Much as I hate to say it...

[Mr. Scot]

...one point made by a friend of mine that I have to acknowledge to be true.

Kris Jenkins would have made a big difference in last night's game.

I agreed with the management decision to let him go, and still do. But with that said, a presence like his on the interior line, a guy on the inside who could both stop the run and effectively rush the passer, would have been huge last night.

We have on the interior right now is a guy who can stop the run (Kemo) and a guy who can rush the passer (Lewis) but not one guy who can do both. Truthfully, those guys don't grow on trees. Much as I like Lewis, I've long felt he was a better rotational guy than starter, but he's being paid as a starter now. Doubt that changes.

Could the team find another guy like that in the offseason. Possibly, but again those guys are fairly rare. We've got no first round pick and a couple of high priority free agents, so I don't know how much money we'll have for "shopping" this offseason, and guys like that don't come cheap in free agency or trade.

(can't say I've looked at the free agent list; might not even by anyone who fits the bill on it)

Bottom Line: I'm sure the Panthers locker room has been better overall this season without the headaches Jenkins caused, and no one can definitively say that we'd have had an equal or better season with him in the fold, but yeah, it would have been nice to have him last night.

Biggest lesson out of all of this though: Folks who are pining for what Kris Jenkins brought to the field should be the last ones calling for the team to show Julius Peppers the door :nonod:

[Foxmustgo]

Haynesworth??

nah

SIGN NNAMDI!!!!!!!!

[Kurb]

MrScott you disappoint me with this thread.

[Mr. Scot]

Haynesworth will cost way too much, and he's a headcase anyway. He's been a model citizen of late, but I'm not about to predict that he stays one after he gets a fat payday.

Nnamdi Asomugha isn't coming here. If the Raiders don't re-sign him, someone else will pay him more money than we will.

[Mr. Scot]

MrScott you disappoint me with this thread.

I disappoint me with this thread honestly, but it's a valid point. Can't really deny that last night he would have made a difference.

The real issue though, is whether the headaches he'd likely have caused the rest of the season would have been worth what he could have brought to the field.

Even looking at everything I saw last night, I still say no.

But with all that said, part of the reason I bring it up: The people who are jumping on the "let Peppers walk" bandwagon need to think long and hard about the effect that losing a a rare talent can have on the field.

(meant to make that point in the initial post, but forgot)

EDIT: Fixed it.

[Kurb]

Honestly ANY starting caliber DT would have made a huge difference late in the game.

As a whole we are better without Jenkins, at least the form of Jenkins that existed his last season here.

[CWalker4205]

Kemoeatu would have made a difference last night, Jenkins quite frankly would not have since if he was still here we wouldn't have been playing for the #1 seed to begin with

[Davidson Deac II]

He didn't want to be here. Regardless of how talented he is, if a player doesn't want to play here, then we are better off without him.

[mountainpantherfan]

I just started a similar thread. We were probably writting it at the same time.

I don't disagree with the move to trade Jenkins or to make Lewis the starter. What I do question is the team not getting another DT to help in the rotation. They signed guys like Hackett and Johnson who IMO they could have done without even if they hadn't been bust.

One thing I saw that is interesting was that Terrance Cody, the big Junior DT from Alabama, is being ranked between 20 and 25 on most boards if he declairs for the draft. He seems to fit the bill of another Kris Jenkins type of DT but without the headaches. IMO there is no greater need going into this offseason than getting a DT to solidify the defensive line. Not sure what it would take to move up from the bottom of the 2nd round to get him at say 20 but it might be worth it.

Edit: For the record, I did not start the "Why did we trade Jenkins" thread. Mine was the one on the defensive line.

[Mr. Scot]

Honestly ANY starting caliber DT would have made a huge difference late in the game.

As a whole we are better without Jenkins, at least the form of Jenkins that existed his last season here.

On this point, we are in complete agreement.

And yet I see, looking in the other thread, someone crying that we shouldn't have traded Jenkins turning around and saying we should toss Peppers. Amazing eh?

We let one guy go because even though he wa a rare talent, he was a headache. Now people want us to throw away another guy who's similar in talent and doesn't come with the headaches? Wow :nonod:

[Zaximus]

I think everyone knew DT was a hole for us coming into this season. Luckily it wasn't a problem till late. Once Lewis got hurt too it was rough. I'm 95% sure we draft a DT with our 2nd round pick. We ain't making a big FA plunge cause we have our own guys to sign, and I honestly think we have the talent to not need anyone. But Dt is a need

[Snake]

Honestly ANY starting caliber DT would have made a huge difference late in the game.

As a whole we are better without Jenkins, at least the form of Jenkins that existed his last season here.

:iamwithstupid: We dont have any run stopping DTs other then Kemo and it showed last night. I still wish we would have signed Grady Jackson this off-season. IMO he would have been that second run stopper we needed all season. Sometimes you have to replace one guy with two.

[Mr. Scot]

I just started a similar thread. We were probably writting it at the same time.

I don't disagree with the move to trade Jenkins or to make Lewis the starter. What I do question is the team not getting another DT to help in the rotation. They signed guys like Hackett and Johnson who IMO they could have done without even if they hadn't been bust.

One thing I saw that is interesting was that Terrance Cody, the big Junior DT from Alabama, is being ranked between 20 and 25 on most boards if he declairs for the draft. He seems to fit the bill of another Kris Jenkins type of DT but without the headaches. IMO there is no greater need going into this offseason than getting a DT to solidify the defensive line. Not sure what it would take to move up from the bottom of the 2nd round to get him at say 20 but it might be worth it.

Edit: For the record, I did not start the "Why did we trade Jenkins" thread. Mine was the one on the defensive line.

Caught that.

My main point in starting this thread wasn't to question the front office, but to point out the folly of people who miss Jenkins also wanting to see Peppers let go. Unfortunately, I left out my last line

(it's fixed now)