Guys you've never heard of...

[Mr. Scot]

"Louis Leonard? Who?"

Wonder how many times that collection of words was repeated today.

The Panthers have a habit of going out and finding guys that their fans know very little about, if they've heard of them at all. That angers some in the base, but the good side of it is that a lot of these guys wind up turning out to be better than anyone expects.

Take this past season. No one expected much from guys like Keydrick Vincent and Tyler Brayton. Both, however, became contributors on their respective units. "The Nutcracker" proved to be a lot better DE than anyone expected and will likely still be holding down a starting spot this season. And Vincent, though he ended the year injured, was part of what most Panther fans would acknowledge was one of the best Big Ugly groups in team history (and you could argue the best).

So with that in mind, I thought it might be interesting to take a look back at prior times when the team has introduced one of those "guys we never heard of" and how they turned out.

CHRIS HARRIS (2007)

The safety position, fans lamented, had become a somewhat neglected spot under John Fox. And in an offseason when the team could have had the opportunity to pick up some big name free agents or use a high draft pick to shore up what was considered the weakest spot on the defense, nothing had happened.

Until one day when a trade was announced. A fifth rounder had been sent to the Bears for one of their reserve safeties, a guy by the name of Chris Harris.

Only a few (outside of our resident Bear fans) had heard the name. Stats didn't tell much. All in all, it was hard to know whether he was going to pan out to be worth anything at all.

So far, he's been worth a fair amount.

Harris is in competition with LB Thomas Davis for the title of hardest hitter on the D. I'd still give the edge to Davis right now, but Harris has his backers. The one on one stop he had on Brandon Jacobs was quite the highlight last season. And coming from the Ron Rivera School of Stripping the Ball certainly helped his standing with fans, and the team.

Hopefully, he's got another good season in him this year.

AL WALLACE (2002)

In one of the early trades of the Fox era, DE Jay Williams was shipped to Miami for a fourth round draft pick and a player. The player, everyone believed, was just a throw-in. No one expected him to be much more than camp fodder.

But Al Wallace proved everyone wrong, not only making the team but becoming an important part of the D-Line rotation. "The Principal" had his fair share of solid plays in the Panthers Super Bowl season. Down the road, he took less money to stay in Carolina as a backup when he might have been offered more and a starting position elsewhere.

These days, Wallace is retired and back in the world of education. But he leaves as a legacy to the Panthers two things:

One, the coolest nickname anyone on the team has had (though Stanley McClover fans might argue).

And two, an unpaid debt.

(he still owes Chris Simms a spleen)

JAKE DELHOMME (2003)

In the second year of the John Fox era, the starting QB spot was speculated to be up for grabs. Rodney Peete had been serviceable the prior year but certainly was no long term answer. Chris Weinke was waiting in the wings, but was still mostly unknown and had the shadow of a 1-15 season on him. Prior golden boy Randy Fasani had decided football wasn't his thing (then later decided that it was again, but somewhere else).

Fox proclaimed "open competition" between the existing parts, and one other fellow signed to a moderate contract. He'd been backing up Aaron Brooks in New Orleans, had backed up Kurt Warner in NFL Europe, and had played for the Saints on one of the most exciting days in Panther history (the point competition with the Packers).

His name: Jake Delhomme.

Come week one, Rodney Peete was called the starter, and John Fox was called a liar. People declared the "open competition" had been a sham. Both Weinke and Delhomme had their moments in preseason, with Delhomme even having a perfect 11 for 11 performance against the Steelers that led then Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher to reportedly tell John Fox "If you don't start that Delhomme guy, you're crazy". Despite all that, and the fact that Peete had barely played at all in preseason due to nagging injuries, Fox declared that he was the guy.

And for one awful half of football, he was.

Delhomme came in after, telling the dejected starters to "get their ----ing heads up" because they were "going to win this game". And win they did, in dramatic fashion on a last second pass to Ricky Proehl that sticks in the minds of many Panther fans as one of their favorite memories. Another dramatic pass from Delhomme is in competition, that being the "X-Clown" call to Steve Smith on the way to an NFC Championship. And later, a Super Bowl appearance.

These days, Delhomme is a polarizing figure among fans. It can be rightly said that the team's "Cardiac Cats" persona has a lot to do with Delhomme (in both good and bad ways). For the team however, and for the players, there's an allegiance to Delhomme that won't easily be broken anytime soon. Fans have to hope that loyalty proves to be justified.

Time will tell, and "time" starts again in just a matter of days.

JEREMY BRIDGES (2006)

The season couldn't have gotten off to a much more disastrous start. Two offensive linemen were out for the year, lost in a first game performance for which "amateur" would have been a compliment. Since one of the losses was at the all-important left tackle spot, fans speculated that the Panthers would trade for a big name, plug him in and, hopefully, get back to business with better performances than the week one tragedy.

Instead, the team did what many were hoping they wouldn't, moving Jordan Gross over to the left. That move of course created a need at right tackle, a need that would be filled via tryouts of some street free agents. The ultimate winner in that derby? A former Cardinal by the name of Jeremy Bridges.

"A Cardinals castoff?" many scoffed, "We're done."

As it turned out, not quite. While the team didn't make the playoffs that season, they did find a guy who could be a solid contributor on the offensive ine. Bridges became as popular as any offensive lineman on the team, at least in small part because everytime there was a touchdown celebration, he was one of the first guys you saw.

Bridges career with the team transitioned later to backup, and eventually out after some off the field incidents. Still, for the time he was here, he gave the team a lot more positive play than anyone though "a Cardinals castoff" had to offer.

NEXT (?)

There are other names worth mentioning (Marlon McCree and Jason Baker, for example). Even prior to the John Fox era there were some unknowns who shined. Guys like Greg Kragen, Brett Maxie,. Mike Fox, Patrick Jeffers, Jason Kyle, and this one draft pick that went by the first name of Stevonne (I forget his last name, but my sense is that it's a common one). Despite the fact no one much knew who he was when he was chosen with a high pick, he turned out pretty good as I recall.

The point of this trip down Memory Lane though is to illustrate that just because someone isn't a household name, it shouldn't be automatically assumed that they're a scrub. The team has far greater resources for scouting players than anyone in the fanbase. And they've shown in the past that every once in a while they can strike gold with a guy none of us has ever even heard about.

At least for the moment, how he'll work out as a player is still in question; but Louis Leonard may be the ultimate "guy we've never heard of" from one standpoint. On news of the trade, local sports radio guys at WFNZ called a Cleveland beat writer to try and find information about him. The response they got from the beat writer in question was essentially "I'm not familiar with the guy." Not the kind of answer you'd expect from someone covering the team about a player who's been there two years and started four games last season.

So it would seem the latest incarnation of the "guy we've never heard of" may be even more obscure than his predecessors.

Will Louis Leonard eventually wind up joining the list of success stories? Unknown.

But then "unknown" is what all of these guys were to us at one time.

[Udogg]

I still miss Marlon McCree. He hits people like he means it.

[Jangler]

sunshiny

[Mr. Scot]

sunshiny

Not honestly meant to be.

Just attempting to offer a little perspective.

[Jangler]

No, I thought it was good. More good news is always needed, especially around here lately. Hopefully the trend can continue with Leonard.

[beastson]

I still miss Marlon McCree. He hits people like he means it.

Yea, I miss Al Wallace too

[firstdayfan]

I first off wanna say that I totally and 100% agree with you on this one but I just have to throw out one thing for discussion. When Harris and Delhomme were traded and signed respectively the fan backlash was pretty big. I KNOW Saints fans were upset about losing Delhomme and many of the Bears fans thought Harris had potential while others thought was going to start that year. No one from the Browns fan base seems to care about this guy. Could it be that he was in the wrong system and doesn't fit in the 3-4? Could it be that he just rubbed fans the wrong way? Or is he truly nothing special?

I tend to think that he can be a good player in the right system and we won't ask him to do much but take up some blockers, which I think he can do and more. The thing I like the most about this guy is that he is only 25 years old. If he turns out to be a steal like those you mentioned then we have a good young player, if not, then we have good young depth. Regardless it is probably better than anyone we could get in the late rounds of next year's draft. I'm sure we would know absolutely nothing about next year's 5th or 6th round pick either.

[Cyberjag]

The Bears fans were upset to lose Harris but real excited about Archuleta, if I recall correctly...

[KARASMATIC444]

nice write up mr scot.

[The Link]

A good read.

[DaveThePanther2008]

Great points Sir Scot!!!!

This goes to your point on the Front Office. They continue to nab guys that are unknown but come in and really make a difference for our team. You add enough of them like Carolina has over the years, during training camp someone really good is gonna get cut. Sounds rotten but I would rather be in that position then trying to find 53 players worth keeping.

Go Panthers

[Cyberjag]

One of the reasons they've been so successful is Mark Koncz, director of pro scouting. He's been here since the beginning, and took over his current role when Hurney was promoted to GM.

If Leonard works out, he needs a bonus.

[GODFREE]

finally a decent post!

[Wither]

No, I thought it was good. More good news is always needed, especially around here lately. Hopefully the trend can continue with Leonard.

Great thread.

As for this picture, he looks like a cool guy. Hopefully, he can back that up with good play. Light-hearted is always good in my book.