So, Rivera REALLY REALLY loves his vets, or just hates Wegher

[Cuttinedge]

Drew Blessoe was get up in age and his skills diminishing but he had been an all pro, and they were winning why would belicheck change  QBs

we will never know but I bet Belicheat would have fazed him out the next year or 2. So Brady still would have started eventually. And Belicheat is a helluva coach. No morals or integrity , but a HOF coach 

No ones ever mistook Amini for an all pro. He looked god awful last year during the games as well as practice from what I've heard. Norwell had to look better in practice.

I understand not putting a unproven rookie out there but when your 3 rd year player is getting picked up and thrown into your franchise  QBs legs every game. I think a smart coach would try something different. 

[Ricky Spanish]

Drew Blessoe was get up in age and his skills diminishing but he had been an all pro, and they were winning why would belicheck change  QBs

we will never know but I bet Belicheat would have fazed him out the next year or 2. So Brady still would have started eventually. And Belicheat is a helluva coach. No morals or integrity , but a HOF coach 

No ones ever mistook Amini for an all pro. He looked god awful last year during the games as well as practice from what I've heard. Norwell had to look better in practice.

I understand not putting a unproven rookie out there but when your 3 rd year player is getting picked up and thrown into your franchise  QBs legs every game. I think a smart coach would try something different. 

He did. He put in Norwell. He didn't put in Scott or Velasco when they were healthy. He kept the guy in that did the job the best. And he has kept his job. If he were as terrible at evaluating talent as people claim he is, he would send Silatolu right back out there and name him the starter. Same with Chandler. It's really a matter of perspective and the situation at hand. 

The O-line was a wreck from the get-go, and silatolu actually looked serviceable the prior year before he was injured. O-lines need chemistry, and half our O-Line retired. It made sense to keep some semblance of familiarity on that line by putting Amini next to Kalil because they knew each other for 2 years. Same reason they put Chandler at RT and Bell in at LT. They were going to try and fight the lack of talent with what little chemistry they had at their disposal. The draft comes and we spend a third rounder on a big school RG in Turner. We pencil him in as day one starter just because we have to. We also picked up some Caveman looking mofo in Norwell as a UDFA. A guy that hadn't been as highly scouted or analyzed as our third round draft pick. A guy that had to grind it out to make the squad. He did that and he earned his jersey.

Then the bullets started flying. Amini proved he was either still not healthy, or a turd, and eventually went down with injury. Crap what do we do now? Throw out this unknown UDFA that doesn't know the playbook, or put in this vet Velasco that has been around the block and is a known commodity. Not the best, but you know you get a pro that can play. That Norwell kid has been solid, but you still don't trust him enough to take the reigns yet. More bullets fly. Turner goes down for a few games. Well poo, Velasco is a better RG than LG anyway, so we should shoot him over to that side and have him do his thing there. Time to give the unknown rookie a shot becuase at practice he has shown out better than Chris Scott (who also started a few games the year prior). More bullets fly and the kid holds up. We like what we see so we keep him in there. We don't put velasco back in when Turner gets back becuase the line is now doing better with this UDFA and Turner is a better option (even though in the Rivera is Anti-rookie camp, their logic would lead to Rivera keeping Velasco in over Turner after injury. Didn't happen). Norwell now understands the playbook enough to warrant that confidence and he's playing like a solid LG. Things are looking up. 

Keep in mind in that same time frame had both starting Tackles go down. One had to be replaced by a Canadian that hadn't played real football, and the other was replaced by a guy that was just scooped off a practice squad in Denver a few weeks before. The situation was so poo last year, it's amazing Cam is breathing. But after shuffling things around, we were able to pull two starters out of our ass that look like long term solutions to the problem that is the Panthers O-line. 

In a perfect world, we would have know what we had in Norwell from the get go. Same can be said about the 5 teams that cut James Harrison before he landed on the Steelers. I will fault Rivera for many things including Clock Management, Pussying out in crunch time, and poor choices in Offensive coordinators, but I can't fault him for not starting Unknown/injured rookie commodities in the vacuum of last year's roster (even though he started a bunch of friggin rookies). 

[Wundrbread33]

He did. He put in Norwell. He didn't put in Scott or Velasco when they were healthy. He kept the guy in that did the job the best. And he has kept his job. If he were as terrible at evaluating talent as people claim he is, he would send Silatolu right back out there and name him the starter. Same with Chandler. It's really a matter of perspective and the situation at hand. 

The O-line was a wreck from the get-go, and silatolu actually looked serviceable the prior year before he was injured. O-lines need chemistry, and half our O-Line retired. It made sense to keep some semblance of familiarity on that line by putting Amini next to Kalil because they knew each other for 2 years. Same reason they put Chandler at RT and Bell in at LT. They were going to try and fight the lack of talent with what little chemistry they had at their disposal. The draft comes and we spend a third rounder on a big school RG in Turner. We pencil him in as day one starter just because we have to. We also picked up some Caveman looking mofo in Norwell as a UDFA. A guy that hadn't been as highly scouted or analyzed as our third round draft pick. A guy that had to grind it out to make the squad. He did that and he earned his jersey.

Then the bullets started flying. Amini proved he was either still not healthy, or a turd, and eventually went down with injury. Crap what do we do now? Throw out this unknown UDFA that doesn't know the playbook, or put in this vet Velasco that has been around the block and is a known commodity. Not the best, but you know you get a pro that can play. That Norwell kid has been solid, but you still don't trust him enough to take the reigns yet. More bullets fly. Turner goes down for a few games. Well poo, Velasco is a better RG than LG anyway, so we should shoot him over to that side and have him do his thing there. Time to give the unknown rookie a shot becuase at practice he has shown out better than Chris Scott (who also started a few games the year prior). More bullets fly and the kid holds up. We like what we see so we keep him in there. We don't put velasco back in when Turner gets back becuase the line is now doing better with this UDFA and Turner is a better option (even though in the Rivera is Anti-rookie camp, their logic would lead to Rivera keeping Velasco in over Turner after injury. Didn't happen). Norwell now understands the playbook enough to warrant that confidence and he's playing like a solid LG. Things are looking up. 

Keep in mind in that same time frame had both starting Tackles go down. One had to be replaced by a Canadian that hadn't played real football, and the other was replaced by a guy that was just scooped off a practice squad in Denver a few weeks before. The situation was so poo last year, it's amazing Cam is breathing. But after shuffling things around, we were able to pull two starters out of our ass that look like long term solutions to the problem that is the Panthers O-line. 

In a perfect world, we would have know what we had in Norwell from the get go. Same can be said about the 5 teams that cut James Harrison before he landed on the Steelers. I will fault Rivera for many things including Clock Management, Pussying out in crunch time, and poor choices in Offensive coordinators, but I can't fault him for not starting Unknown/injured rookie commodities in the vacuum of last year's roster. 

Respect. 

[Cuttinedge]

Well he did mention last year in a post game interview it was Aminis job when he healed up. But then Norwell played too good to be replaced. 

Ill agree with you the OL was a train wreck last year. 

[CRA]

I find it hilarious when I read people talking about Rivera being a Vet lover and anti-rookie... They really have no idea what they're talking about

I wouldn't say he is anti-rookie/pro vet

I'd say he has been painfully slow to reorder depth charts and try other options on his roster at times.

[tiger7_88]

All I know is this... Nippleshorts and Rivera better be DAMN SURE that one final season of Tolbert (at $2.4 million) and/or Brockel (at close to a million) is worth losing Wegher to another team (I'm feeling positive that another team would take him if we place him on waivers... I feel it in my bones that Belicheat would love him) and risking the loss of Ward by exposing him to waivers.

Because memories are long.  If the high-falootin' vet contributes little to the team this year (or even hurts the team) and the popular rookie goes elsewhere and starts producing for a number of years at low cost?

Memories are long.  

[hepcat]

I'd love to see Wegher and CAP get extended reps with the 1st team against New England.  With Stewart's lengthy injury history, it'd be wise to sit him the rest of the preseason and see what these young backs can do behind the much improved 1st team O-Line.  But we'll probably see Tolbert running for 1 yard gains while Wegher tears it up against the Pats scrubs and we'll be none the wiser.

[DaveThePanther2008]

we've seen a number of guys who look great in preseason, and end up in Canadia.

You honestly think Wegher is a preseason superstar?  I hope your right if we cut him.  My gut feeling is your dead wrong and if we cut him he'll be that big fish that got away.

DG isn't that dumb.

[SixMileDrive]

I don't know what world the people who think Rivera is a vet lover are living in because he is as far away from fitting that description as possible. Fox was a vet lover. Rivera is not.

One of the things I've loved about him is how he's willing to give people the chance to earn playing time, no matter where or if they were drafted. Norwell would not have made the team under Fox. If he somehow did and somehow got into that game, I can guarantee that Amini Silatolu would have been right back in the starting lineup as soon as he was healthy. Look at how many un-drafted rookies have seen significant playing time. That is not normal in the NFL. 

Rivera has shown no hesitation to try different lineups to see what works. He has been quick to cut under-performing vets (Cason, Avant) and give their spots to promising young players. He has made a point to bring in teaching coaches so that we can develop our youth. Ya'll are crazy.