Report: Shula And The Panthers Planned On Getting McCaffrey And Samuel Months In Advance

[Fox007]

12 minutes ago, csx said:

He was a better choice than any of the  backs taken in the 2005 draft at picks higher than 8.

Ronnie Brown, Cadillac Williams, Cedric Benson.. ..better than WR Troy Williamson.

The logic of that argument doesn't make much sense. Any of those teams would have rather taken Sproles in retrospect.

Also teams aren't built the same. Sproles could be worth the #8 overall for us but maybe not for the Browns or the 49ers for example...context matters.

If all you're missing is speed, hands out of the backfield, runs on the edge, and return threats to take it all the way on any 1 missed tackle....then yup and Sproles had  a better career than most of the top 10 offensive players in the draft he was in.

Also he's bigger than Sproles and had a better CFB career than Sproles......

[Mr. Scot]

1 minute ago, Promethean Forerunner said:

Then that contradicts the supposed articles from ESPN and the Charlotte Observer. I'm sorry but I don't buy it. This just feels like the "we were behind our draft pick all along blah blah blah" talk that every team does every year.

We didn't take more than 5 seconds in the previous drafts to announce our pick. 'The Pick Is In' was always our mantra in the past drafts.

I guess we'll know the truth several years from now.

Henson was actually in the War Room at the time.  ESPN and the Observer were not.

There's actual video on the team site from when it happened if you doubt.

[Saca312]

4 minutes ago, Johnny Rockets said:

 

Was Westbrook worth an 8th overall pick? Granted he probably had a better career than Sproles. If you can assure that than great, but not sure how you can say that with 100% confidence. Hope it works out because Westbrook is one of my favorite players. I think CMC will do good things here regardless. Just thought Omar's reasoning behind him being the 8th pick was solid even though I don't agree with him all the time.


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What matters is who was available at 8 who would impact our team the most right off the gate. I don't think you'd find a better player than McCaffrey for us with how much he could impact our offense.

[Johnny Rockets]

What matters is who was available at 8 who would impact our team the most right off the gate. I don't think you'd find a better player than McCaffrey for us with how much he could impact our offense.

I can agree with that. That's exactly what I was thinking when he was talking about it. He mentioned Barnett. I don't see how you can do that with McCaffrey on the board.


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[tiger7_88]

1 hour ago, nctarheel0619 said:

Even the sites owner wrote a whole column about how Fournette is clearly the better player.  Just stop dude.  

http://www.carolinahuddle.com/2017/04/22/carolina-panthers-fournette-mccaffrey/

As much as I admire him and respect the product he sponsors and produces hear, this sites owner was also in love with Brandon Wegher and Lee Ward.

[tiger7_88]

1 hour ago, panthers55 said:

This offense will still be a vertical offense using play action and running plays but it will run out of a spread formation and use a lot more no huddle.

Sent using the amazing CarolinaHuddle mobile app
 

Yes, please, thank you.

(That right there is what you call "maximizing your quarterback's talents".)

[Marguide]

One thing tells me he was their guy all along...his meeting with JR.

[tiger7_88]

1 hour ago, Promethean Forerunner said:

We don't smokescreen. We're one of the few teams that don't try to hide who we like during the draft process.

Until we do, and then it works like a charm!

:P

[RoaringRiot]

I still get a huge kick out of these threads. Read the whole thing just to watch a few people continue to poo all over themselves. 

It was always going to be him - no matter how bad you don't want to believe it. 

[Woodie]

Based on things I had been hearing and reading, I had a feeling before the draft that McCaffrey was the real target.  Most of those saying Fournette was the clear choice were just assuming.  Listen to what they actually said, and they never said sources told them he was our #1 target.  Sure, we really liked Fournette, and that got folks locked in on him as our target.  What that doesn't take into account is what the team thought of McCaffrey.

I also don't think there was a smokescreen, I just think people took the knowledge we really liked Fournette and ran.  

As for Jeremy, you have to remember he is not a true insider, he just gets bits of info from time to time, just like anyone in the media that is close to the team.  So while he probably heard just what he said, it was only from one perspective, and not the one that actually called the shots.  Probably a low/mid-level representative with the team.  Someone with access, but not complete access.  

 

 

 

[Mr. Scot]

33 minutes ago, Promethean Forerunner said:

""He's a great football player. Has Luke Kuechly's DNA. Just an overall great fit," Beane says."

Hmmmmm, according to other sources, Taylor was the one that made that statement and comparison.

"Before the draft began, rumors circulated that the Chargers were very interested in McCaffrey. This, coupled with how close the Panthers are to being on the clock, creates tension and silence in the room."

This I don't buy for a damn second since they drafted Gordon. Not a chance. In addition, as a Charger follower, not one of my buddies heard about McCafferty being on their radar.

i'm pretty sure the whole "Luke Kuechly DNA" comment has been repeated by plenty of Panthers guys; even Lance Taylor himself says that here.

Quote

According to Taylor, “Luke Kuechly DNA” was the phrase thrown around throughout the vetting process of McCaffrey, and again in the 10-minute window in Carolina’s war room on Thursday night.

 

 

 

 

And yes, there were rumors of McCaffrey to the Chargers.  Daniel Jeremiah even had him going at #7 in his final pre-draft mock, which tells me he took the idea seriously.

Quote

The Chargers could really take advantage of McCaffrey's skill set and he would complement Melvin Gordon very well.

Now, it may very well have been a smokescreen, but the word was were definitely out there.

[Ship]

27 minutes ago, Marguide said:

One thing tells me he was their guy all along...his meeting with JR.

True, seems like an underreported thing. I know Cam met with him, and I think I remember an interview with Luke mentioning that he did too. Did other guys like Star, KB, or Shaq though?

Seems like potentially a special thing.. Maybe just for guys in the top 10?

[Johnny Rockets]

I still get a huge kick out of these threads. Read the whole thing just to watch a few people continue to poo all over themselves. 
It was always going to be him - no matter how bad you don't want to believe it. 

You did call it. I'm interested to hear what lead to the difference of opinion between you and Igo. Or maybe I missed something.


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[Ship]

This article is misrepresenting how the process works. They looked at a lot of college teams' tape to get ideas and they looked at a lot of "weapon" players to see how they fit into the new ideas.

I'm sure they looked at tons of Fournette tape too, and I'm sure they loved him. Loving Fournette doesn't mean you can't love CMC too.

CMC and Samuel are the best combo in the first two rounds though if we're talking about weapons. Fournette would be just an RB that we'd pair a WR with. Any of the WRs would require a lesser RB. We wanted weapons. Of that group, CMC and Samuel were the top two.

If you're looking at our drafts as themed, our double dips are complimentary within the theme. The theme was match up weapon with speed. We succeeded 100% and I'm sure that when they put the theme for the draft together they determined that as a combo of top two picks, these guys were perfect as a package compared to other potential combinations.