Should we sit Cam?

[footballisasport]

This should just be the end of the thread.

Being at the game, I might have seen more than the cameras showed. Cam was stretching and working out his ankle and torso a LOT during the game (both on field and on the sidelines). He looked fine to start, but as the hits kept coming, he progressively started looking more and more beat up and battered. It's killing his confidence not being able to make those "Cam" plays that make him who he is as a QB. He can't twist out of the pocket and outrun guys to the edge right now. He physically can't do it because he's just not 100% and won't be if he keeps playing and getting abused. If the run game is immensely better this week, then we might see a different picture. A lot of his bad throws (one dump off on a short crossing route that was badly underthrown, for instance) were due to linemen being in his lap and him not being able to step into the throw. That kind of crap wasn't a problem last year because he had the upper body strength to chuck it. Right now, with those ribs still hurting, he can't do it.

Start Cam, let's see what the offense does, and if he starts grimacing and having to constantly work his body after plays, pull him and let Anderson take over the rest of the game. Literally take him out, have a trainer run him into the locker room, change into street clothes, and let him stand on the sideline with a radio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just reading this post made me realize how painfully obvious you guys not only take Cam and his talents for granted, but how deep in denial you are about your team's struggles. 

 

Cam is a QB. He shouldn't be running or playing any of the otter positions on the team. His job is to sit in the pocket and deliver a ball. When he has to spend time doing other things, not only is the team creating bad habits in him but they are killing his confidence and body. 

 

[Oudaman90]

That's always been the case with quarterbacks with mobility. Bad teams and want them to cover the offenses weaknesses by running and throwing, instead of finding a way to solve the problem. Its easier. And cheaper. But boy is it stupid. As soon as your QB gets hurt, no more run game. Hopefully Rivera gets this now and Shula changes accordingly.

Fans who feel that Cam has to run are foolish also. Cam's best asset is not his legs, but his arm and head for the game. They way alot of people talk, you would think we had The Golden Calf of Bristol. Cam is a pocket passer. He's always been one. We as a team have been so bad on offense that it was a necessity that he ran in order to have a chance. That's got to stop. It will wear him down quickly and it took time away from him developing as a passer.

Just look at his first game. He was so comfortable just hanging in the pocket and slinging it. Thats what the Panthers should build around.

Alo

[Oudaman90]

Jeez, so many misspelled words. I hate using mobile....smh

[Francis J. Underwood]

I hate the people on this board that act as if "your not a real panther fan if you don't want Cam to start on Sunday".

 

What I have to say to you is "fug you!"

 

The Cam that is appearing on Sunday is a shell of his former self, due to the organization down playing the surgery that he had in the offseason as if it were routine. It seems now that they were just covering their collective asses because the surgery was not done sooner. Cam's natural reactions on the football field have not changed since he first started. He holds onto the ball in the pocket to allow plays and routes to develop to where he is comfortable throwing the ball. If any pressure comes near him, he would muscle out of it and run, making people look silly trying to tackle him.

 

This instincts have not changed, but now he has a bum ankle. He can't be the man he once was. But changing his techniques now for a temporary period of recovery would be foolish. The man is a competitor, he will never tell you he can't do this, he has too much pride in was he does and what he has achieved in life. Coach Rivera needs to grow a pair, and sit him down for the betterment of this teams future. Derek Anderson is not the future, but he can help us in the interim, due to his veteran understanding. He was in Cleveland, he knows how the 3-4 defense works cause he played against it so often.

 

My main rant here is that people on this board want to act like there is no argument to be made that DA should start. It is their own blind ignorance that makes them so intolerable to read. I recognize what Cam gives us at QB, a consistent big play threat with his arm even though he cant move around as well now. But is that worth him losing confidence and getting injured, after doing so well last season. Ron you have to be the bad guy and sit him down now, if you know what is good for you.

 

/End Rant

[igor]

If he cant run and is injured bench him . Anderson came in one drive and drove the ball. Cam has to learn to get rid of the ball faster

[igor]

Idc who is starting all I care about is winning , start the player who gives us the best chance to win

[Captroop]

That's always been the case with quarterbacks with mobility. Bad teams and want them to cover the offenses weaknesses by running and throwing, instead of finding a way to solve the problem. Its easier. And cheaper. But boy is it stupid. As soon as your QB gets hurt, no more run game. Hopefully Rivera gets this now and Shula changes accordingly.

Fans who feel that Cam has to run are foolish also. Cam's best asset is not his legs, but his arm and head for the game. They way alot of people talk, you would think we had The Golden Calf of Bristol. Cam is a pocket passer. He's always been one. We as a team have been so bad on offense that it was a necessity that he ran in order to have a chance. That's got to stop. It will wear him down quickly and it took time away from him developing as a passer.

Just look at his first game. He was so comfortable just hanging in the pocket and slinging it. Thats what the Panthers should build around.

Alo

 

That's not entirely true. You can't discredit Cam's running ability. Yes, Cam is a pocket passer, but part of the reason he has been able to be a successful passer is because of his legs. They are what keep defenses honest. It's Cam's elusiveness while running that has, in part made him successful, because until this season, defenses have had to respect his ability to escape the pocket and turn a busted play into a 25 yard scramble. They've had to hold people back and seal off the edges due to his escapability. With no threat of a designed QB run, or an improvisational scramble, D-Coordinators can just send a house blitz, and it's either going to turn into a sack or an incomplete pass.

[Oudaman90]

That's not entirely true. You can't discredit Cam's running ability. Yes, Cam is a pocket passer, but part of the reason he has been able to be a successful passer is because of his legs. They are what keep defenses honest. It's Cam's elusiveness while running that has, in part made him successful, because until this season, defenses have had to respect his ability to escape the pocket and turn a busted play into a 25 yard scramble. They've had to hold people back and seal off the edges due to his escapability. With no threat of a designed QB run, or an improvisational scramble, D-Coordinators can just send a house blitz, and it's either going to turn into a sack or an incomplete pass.

I'm not discrediting his running. I just believe it should complement the run game, not BE the run game. Our backs complement most of the time. Without Cam running, our backs get nothing. Other run heavy teams can still run without their quarterbacks doing it.

[B.BERSIN]

Dont want him to be in the situation of RGIII, so yes maybe.

[unicar15]

Id sit cam for the next three games...Baltimore, Chicago, Cincy. We'd most likely be 2-4 without him after those games. But if he is completely healthy after that then there's no reason we couldn't win 8 of our last 10 games like we did last year.

I also wouldn't put it past our defense and DA leading us to a win against the Bears at home.

The problem with playing Cam in this game against the Ravens would be:

1. A good shot from Ngata and he really could finish off that rib. Not unlikely given the struggles of our OL and Cams inability to scramble.

2. Davis probably isn't playing in this game...our defense is going to be a different unit without him. I don't give us a great shot of going INTO Baltimore without Davis and holding down their offense. He's too integral for what we do.

3. It's an OOC game. If you're gonna lose a game then these are the games you lose. They count less toward making the playoffs in the event of a tie. We have two of these over our next 3 games. There really is no better time for Cam to get healthy.

4. The Saints are 1-2 and at best can only tie our record this week. I'm not scared of the Falcons. I think when our D is healthy we can at least split with them.

5. Cam is not nearly as effective when he doesn't use his legs. The coaches are boxing us in by trying to protect him and not calling option plays. Teams know he doesn't want to run. It's putting him and the OL in positions of weakness bc the read option is so much of what we do.

6. Our OL is freaking terrible. Between the OL and the ST last week you couldn't have done anything differently as a QB and defense to win the game. Cam or DA..wouldn't have mattered with those two units screwing the pooch the way they did. I think our OL will have the same struggles this week. So why risk the rest of the season when cam isn't going to be enough to win this game anyways?

[Mr. Scot]

Conventional wisdom says that you always play your best player if he can go.

 

The rough thing with Newton right now is that his injuries are specifically hampering an extremely important aspect of his game.  Minus his ability to run, Newton is most definitely not himself. 

 

Add in that the offensive line looked awful last week and so it could be argued that a less mobile Newton is in more danger than he might otherwise be.

 

Do you really wanna be without your franchise quarterback this week?  Especially after coming after an embarrassing loss?  No.

 

Do you wanna be without him for even more weeks if he gets hurt worse playing in this game?  No.

 

This is one of those times when I'm really glad I don't have to make these decisions.

[TheRed]

Problem is, too many in this "sit Cam" crowd have other motives. You can see right through it.

 

If the man himself says he can play, then play him. Simple as that. It's week 4.

[TheRed]

It's one thing to play, it seems as if he is playing with his ankles tied together.... last year Cam would have evaded a few of the sacks he has taken this year.

 

Exactly what is there to evade when the opposing defense is getting pressure just rushing 3?

 

It doesn't matter who is behind center, we need a real OL, and if not that then a smarter gameplan to mask those deficiencies.

[Fan01]

Cam is a dynamic football player throwing the ball and running the ball.  It just so happens that you need a lot more help when you throw the ball than you do when he's running.

 

He kills teams with his running ability because a defense doesn't usually account for the QB and if they do then they're taking away that defender from somewhere else so if the QB doesn't run the defender was just a spectator.  When things break down and there are wide open lanes (because no one account for the QB running) Cam has plenty of room to run.  It also helps that he is a superior athlete.  For the most part it doesn't matter what his o-line does or what his WR's or doing or what the play call was.  When everything breaks down Cam's running ability is lethal.

 

Now, passing is a different story.  He's shown in the first couple of games that he's really excelling as a passer.  He's been accurate and thrown well.  He's been late on a few passes but many of those were still catchable but really had more to do with knowing his receivers than his ability. 

 

Any QB that is passing from the pocket needs everyone on the team to do their part and to help him so he can be great at his job. 

 

We need good WR's that can catch the ball. 

We need an O-line to give him the time he needs for his receivers to get open.

We need a run game to keep the defense honest so they don't just tee off.

We need a game plan that works with the parts we have.

 

Right now, we're hurting at all of those spots. 

 

Our received corps are good enough and even with Benjy quickly becoming a star, he's not one yet.  We're still hurting at the position although if the other areas weren't so lacking it wouldn't be as noticeable.

 

Our O-line is not the greatest.  (Duh)  But we're not anywhere near as bad as we played last week.  They can't hold up for long period of time which bring up my final point.

 

Shula has to game plan around these problems by moving the pocket.  Leaving in more protection.  Quicker developing plays.  Checkdowns.  Etc.  Heading into this game I really thing Shula and company thought otherwise based on how well all those areas were doing in the first two games.  The Bucs suck but we handled some very good players on their D-line.  Detroit has a very good d-line and they barely got to Cam.  With the way the Steelers were playing the Panthers probably saw no reason we couldn't play the same type of game.  And I agree.

 

I bet every Panther fan thought the same thing I did.  That we would steamroll the Steelers.  I told my buddies I watch the game with before it started that on paper we should but anything can happen in the NFL.  You just never know.