A Lack of Leadership

[mountainpantherfan]

After the playoff loss to the Cardinals last season I stated on here that while Jake Delhomme was probably the only real, good option the team had at QB for 2009, I also felt that any chance that Delhomme had of winning a championship with Carolina was gone after that game. I know all of his teammates came out and supported him after the game and during the off season, "Jake is still our guy" ect, but I had a really hard time believing that these players weren't at the very least overlooking the effect that that loss had on them as a team. How could they ever look at their leader in the same way they once did with confidence and assurance that he could pull them back into a game the way he once did coming off the bench at the beginning of the 2003 season.

I didn't think Delhomme still had the ability to lead the team to a championship after that playoff loss but I also didn't think that the ramifications of that loss would be seen so expressively, so soon. It seemed as though the team had found some level of respect for their leader in the preseason and during the first 8 minutes of the first quarter of this game. But any confidence that had been re-established since January quickly vanished as Delhomme threw a interception and then completely disappeared as he fumbled the ball, resulting in a defensive touchdown.

After that play the Panthers were only down 17 to 7 with plenty of time remaining in the half and still the 2nd half to be played. Another long drive or even a quick strike by Steve Smith or DeAngelo Williams would have put the Panthers right back into the game. However, you could already tell by the look on their faces, their body language and their play; the team knew that once again Jake was going to cost them another victory. And it wasn't entirely his fault. But even the once fiery leader that had lead his team back from defeat on many occasions over the seasons knew he had lost the team. You could tell in the look in his face, his body language and his play.

What happened to that Jake Delhomme that came out onto the field, screaming for his guys to keep pushing and that they were going to win? Some will say that Delhomme was never that good of a quarterback to begin with and that really just isn't the truth. He was the spark that lead the Panthers during the 2003, 2004 and 2005 seasons. He was once a good quarterback but why that player is no longer here not even Delhomme could probably answer.

The lack of leadership, however, doesn't just rest solely on the shoulder pads of Jake Delhomme. During halftime I was praying for Fox to give the young Matt Moore a chance to come in and prove himself the same way that Delhomme once did. I was hoping to see that fire and will of a leader that would come onto the field and tell his teammates, "All right guys, I'm the quarterback now and we can still do this. This is our house and at the very least we're not going down without a fight!" Or something like that which probably wouldn't include so many clichés. Instead, both Josh McCown and Matt Moore entered the game about as defeated and hopeless as Delhomme exited the game.

And where were all of our other leaders during all of this? Good question because all I saw was Donavan McNabb gathering both the offense and defense on the sideline telling them the things I wanted someone to say to the Panthers. For all of their physical talents, none of the other stars of the team seemed to even care enough to try and stage a final rallying cry. Steve Smith sat in the corner of the sideline by himself. DeAngelo Williams and Julius Peppers just played their roles. Even a Panther great, John Kasay was just sitting on a bench waiting for his time to enter the game.

Maybe I am expecting too much out of these guys given the circumstance they were in. Maybe watching their once heroic leader crumble for the second straight game was just too devastating. But given that circumstance I am reminded of a quote I once heard, given by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. When asked about his role as commander-in-chief of the Union Army Lincoln replied, "The greatness of an army doesn't lie on the strength of its general, but rather on the willingness and ability of that general's lieutenants to step to the occasion if and when that general has fallen."

[charlottenian]

[Fan4life]

I cannot agree with you more. You cannot ride a horse but so long before you have to turn him out into the pasture. Even if the horse was the best horse that you have ever riden in your life. Through thick and thin. You have to open the gate and slap him on the ass and let him graze for the rest of his days.

[OneBadassCat]

Not a lack of leadership but a lack of trust, one of those issues has already been resolved. So today I wanna talk about fears. Every man has their fears lets hear it.

" A I'm scurred a spiders coach. "