My Fan Fest Thoughts and Observations...

[firstdayfan]

Just wanted to put a few thoughts and observations from my view of fan fest tonight. I am no scout or expert, just been a fan since the beginning and have been lurking around here for quite a while (12 years) and I also know people crave any kind of content this time a year so here you go.

I was in section 107 right near the corner of the end zone where the players entered and exited the field, I had good view of Defensive Line Drills, 1v1's and the 7 on 7's but the 11 on 11 went the opposite direction and most of the offensive line stuff was on the opposite side as well.

It didn't really matter a ton because the practice wasn't in pads (as has been mentioned) and it was a really light practice. The first team offense only had a handful of plays during 11 on 11. I think that was because of what McCaffrey said about the field, and speaking of which, despite all the gripes during the offseason I had forgot about the field until I was driving home and saw his quote. It looks really good and isn't noticeable at all, what IS noticeable are the new luxury boxes in the opposite endzone from the panther eyes. I feel like several players will end up there throughout the season, I believe Trenton Cannon almost went over the wall at one point. 

Ok, now to practice.

So again, it was a light practice so there wasn't a ton to take away but I'll start with the defense. Just based on drills it seems that the starting defensive linemen (if we are in a base 4-3 set) would be Burns, Brown, Jones, and Fox. Fox is a veteran and seemed to fit in nicely with the other players. Gross-Matos ran with the 2's along with Marquis Haynes. It was interesting to see Reddick do drills with both linebackers as well as defensive linemen, you can tell they are going to have him all over the place. 

In the 1v1's, Jaycee Horn was like a blanket on the receivers, just smothering them (which could be an issue with flags down the road). But considering 1v1's favor the Wide Receivers heavily, this was really impressive to see.

That's kind of it for defense, again, there was no hitting and it was almost like everyone was going kind of 3/4 speed (again, the turf).

I do have several thoughts about the offense, and I will start with the guy I was most impressed with. Terrace Marshall Jr.

Despite all the good things I've read about him from Jeremy and other guys that have been at camp, I was still really blown away by his size, athleticism, and how he just plucks the ball out of the air so effortlessly. But that's not all, he is so smooth in his routes and so fluid in his motion its just amazing for a guy his size. Here is a quick clip of him just absolutely abusing a corner right off the ball, unfortunately I missed the first part but he juked the corner nearly out of his shoes.

Another winner in my opinion at the Wide Receiver spot was Shi Smith who beat Troy Pride in 1v1's on just an absolute dime by Darnold. It happened right in front of me and it was awesome to watch (more on Sam later). Smith also has some smoothness to his game, but you can just tell he is not on the same level as Marshall. Still though, I was impressed with Smith and Omar Bayless as well, who was a favorite target throughout practice and seems to be a very polished receiver. Given how much attention he has received, I'd be extremely disappointed if Bayless didn't lead us in receiving during the preseason. 

Another thing I noticed is the fact that Trenton Cannon has been running with the Wide Receivers, something that has been discussed throughout camp. I think I heard it first on the PNP podcast and Rashad said it best, Cannon will probably make the team based on his versatility, he was also the first man up on kick returns when they did some special teams work (Hubbard was second). It will be interesting as to who's spot he takes, depth at WR and RB is crazy right now.

Sticking with the offense, I want to talk about the tight ends for a sec. I came away very impressed with Tommy Tremble. I never saw him drop a pass and while most of his routes were very short I thought he was extremely fluid and caught the ball well. Ian Thomas on the other hand was pretty much what we've seen for the last couple seasons, he flashes and then he dashes. I saw him drop a few easy balls but he also came back in 11 on 11's and bailed out Sam. I really don't know what to make of Thomas but I do feel like Tremble will overtake him at some point during the season, easily. 

I also came away very happy with the Darnold to Arnold connection, it is real people, and I know its been talked about extensively over the last two weeks but I can confirm that it is an exciting combo. Here is a clip during 7 on 7's where Sam kinda holds onto the ball a little long but then delivers a strike over the middle to Arnold (very Greg Olsen like), and you can also see what that 6-6 frame can do for a QB. 

Being a light practice, there wasn't much to take away from the offensive line, I did make a note that Trent Scott was running left tackle with the second string, I know Little had got some reps there earlier this week.

Now to the elephant in the room, what did I think of Sam Darnold?

I was happy with his performance and feel much better about the upcoming season after watching him tonight. He has everything you want in a QB, size, arm talent, mobility, and its incredibly obvious when you see him out there spinning it. Grier and Walker just don't even look like they're in the same league as Sam. Another thing I liked was his energy, he just looked like a leader out there, messing around with teammates, playing it up to the crowd. I just liked everything I saw, in 1v1's his touch, velocity and deep accuracy were excellent and after some of the doom and gloom of the first week of camp I am completely happy with him as our QB right now. Obviously this could change once real bullets start flying but I'm telling you, he has all the tools, if the coaches and offensive line can help him succeed, I have no trouble believing he could have a solid season and turn into a top 15 starting QB.

One final note. I feel like DJ Moore is so close to being an elite level receiver in this league and no one knows it but us (especially not the people at EA Sports). He is such a cool guy, outside of McCaffrey he seemed like the most popular player on the field, all while Smitty looked down in approval.

Thanks guys, hope you enjoyed.

 

 

 

[BurnNChinn]

Thanks for the write up it was awesome, wish I could see the videos it won’t let me play them. Also I think that new section could be a safety hazard for players, it looks to close to the end zone. I could see players running into it, and getting hurt.

[Riverboat Ron]

All I can say is after watching I left the stadium wet tonight.

[Cdparr7]

2 hours ago, firstdayfan said:

Just wanted to put a few thoughts and observations from my view of fan fest tonight. I am no scout or expert, just been a fan since the beginning and have been lurking around here for quite a while (12 years) and I also know people crave any kind of content this time a year so here you go.

I was in section 107 right near the corner of the end zone where the players entered and exited the field, I had good view of Defensive Line Drills, 1v1's and the 7 on 7's but the 11 on 11 went the opposite direction and most of the offensive line stuff was on the opposite side as well.

It didn't really matter a ton because the practice wasn't in pads (as has been mentioned) and it was a really light practice. The first team offense only had a handful of plays during 11 on 11. I think that was because of what McCaffrey said about the field, and speaking of which, despite all the gripes during the offseason I had forgot about the field until I was driving home and saw his quote. It looks really good and isn't noticeable at all, what IS noticeable are the new luxury boxes in the opposite endzone from the panther eyes. I feel like several players will end up there throughout the season, I believe Trenton Cannon almost went over the wall at one point. 

Ok, now to practice.

So again, it was a light practice so there wasn't a ton to take away but I'll start with the defense. Just based on drills it seems that the starting defensive linemen (if we are in a base 4-3 set) would be Burns, Brown, Jones, and Fox. Fox is a veteran and seemed to fit in nicely with the other players. Gross-Matos ran with the 2's along with Marquis Haynes. It was interesting to see Reddick do drills with both linebackers as well as defensive linemen, you can tell they are going to have him all over the place. 

In the 1v1's, Jaycee Horn was like a blanket on the receivers, just smothering them (which could be an issue with flags down the road). But considering 1v1's favor the Wide Receivers heavily, this was really impressive to see.

That's kind of it for defense, again, there was no hitting and it was almost like everyone was going kind of 3/4 speed (again, the turf).

I do have several thoughts about the offense, and I will start with the guy I was most impressed with. Terrace Marshall Jr.

Despite all the good things I've read about him from Jeremy and other guys that have been at camp, I was still really blown away by his size, athleticism, and how he just plucks the ball out of the air so effortlessly. But that's not all, he is so smooth in his routes and so fluid in his motion its just amazing for a guy his size. Here is a quick clip of him just absolutely abusing a corner right off the ball, unfortunately I missed the first part but he juked the corner nearly out of his shoes.

 

Another winner in my opinion at the Wide Receiver spot was Shi Smith who beat Troy Pride in 1v1's on just an absolute dime by Darnold. It happened right in front of me and it was awesome to watch (more on Sam later). Smith also has some smoothness to his game, but you can just tell he is not on the same level as Marshall. Still though, I was impressed with Smith and Omar Bayless as well, who was a favorite target throughout practice and seems to be a very polished receiver. Given how much attention he has received, I'd be extremely disappointed if Bayless didn't lead us in receiving during the preseason. 

Another thing I noticed is the fact that Trenton Cannon has been running with the Wide Receivers, something that has been discussed throughout camp. I think I heard it first on the PNP podcast and Rashad said it best, Cannon will probably make the team based on his versatility, he was also the first man up on kick returns when they did some special teams work (Hubbard was second). It will be interesting as to who's spot he takes, depth at WR and RB is crazy right now.

Sticking with the offense, I want to talk about the tight ends for a sec. I came away very impressed with Tommy Tremble. I never saw him drop a pass and while most of his routes were very short I thought he was extremely fluid and caught the ball well. Ian Thomas on the other hand was pretty much what we've seen for the last couple seasons, he flashes and then he dashes. I saw him drop a few easy balls but he also came back in 11 on 11's and bailed out Sam. I really don't know what to make of Thomas but I do feel like Tremble will overtake him at some point during the season, easily. 

I also came away very happy with the Darnold to Arnold connection, it is real people, and I know its been talked about extensively over the last two weeks but I can confirm that it is an exciting combo. Here is a clip during 7 on 7's where Sam kinda holds onto the ball a little long but then delivers a strike over the middle to Arnold (very Greg Olsen like), and you can also see what that 6-6 frame can do for a QB. 

 

Being a light practice, there wasn't much to take away from the offensive line, I did make a note that Trent Scott was running left tackle with the second string, I know Little had got some reps there earlier this week.

Now to the elephant in the room, what did I think of Sam Darnold?

I was happy with his performance and feel much better about the upcoming season after watching him tonight. He has everything you want in a QB, size, arm talent, mobility, and its incredibly obvious when you see him out there spinning it. Grier and Walker just don't even look like they're in the same league as Sam. Another thing I liked was his energy, he just looked like a leader out there, messing around with teammates, playing it up to the crowd. I just liked everything I saw, in 1v1's his touch, velocity and deep accuracy were excellent and after some of the doom and gloom of the first week of camp I am completely happy with him as our QB right now. Obviously this could change once real bullets start flying but I'm telling you, he has all the tools, if the coaches and offensive line can help him succeed, I have no trouble believing he could have a solid season and turn into a top 15 starting QB.

One final note. I feel like DJ Moore is so close to being an elite level receiver in this league and no one knows it but us (especially not the people at EA Sports). He is such a cool guy, outside of McCaffrey he seemed like the most popular player on the field, all while Smitty looked down in approval.

Thanks guys, hope you enjoyed.

 

 

 

What was your thoughts on the Grier/Walker position battle? Who took reps with 2s?

 

Also, 

How about the Fletcher/Jansen battle?

[ncstatekwi]

First Day Fan....great stuff and thank you very much for sharing!!  #GoPanthers #KeepPounding

[Proudiddy]

Great write up, and to your last point about DJ - ABSOLUTELY.

All I know is, DJ must've impregnated one of the EA Dev's wives at some point, bc they hate his guts.

[DaveThePanther2008]

You know during each thread on practices since preseason started there has been one noticable statement that I see.

Darnold drops a dime to *****.  You can insert whatever receivers name you want.  It seems he's really throwing good passes.   I know there have been some bad throws here and there but for the most part it seems Dime is the preferred term. 

I'm excited to see how he does in live action.

 

[Jackie Lee]

6 hours ago, BurnNChinn said:

Thanks for the write up it was awesome, wish I could see the videos it won’t let me play them. Also I think that new section could be a safety hazard for players, it looks to close to the end zone. I could see players running into it, and getting hurt.

I hate everything about those boxes

[B_Eazi]

Good write up 

[firstdayfan]

4 hours ago, Cdparr7 said:

What was your thoughts on the Grier/Walker position battle? Who took reps with 2s?

 

Also, 

How about the Fletcher/Jansen battle?

Grier was definitely ahead of walker, in warmups, every drill and even team periods. I know a lot has been said about Grier over the off-season but he seemed slightly better than walker to me. 

I didn't actually notice the long snappers. I did see a kid with a Jansen jersey leaving the stadium, I thought that was odd. Maybe his kid?

[1of10Charnatives]

"If the...offensive line can help him succeed...."

 

Welp.

 

Guess he's @#$%ed.

 

 

Kidding aside thanks for the write up.

Edited August 7, 2021 by 1of10Charnatives

[top dawg]

Glad to hear Bayless is still competing for his spot. And to those who just don't want to take one word on Bayless, here's Rushil Vashee of Panthers Wire:

Omar Bayless shows out again

The 2020 training camp phenom continues to impress in 2021. Last night, Bayless hauled in multiple receptions on 7-on-7 drills from different quarterbacks, then followed it up by playing a key receiving role in the one-minute drill the team ran at the end of practice. Bayless will compete for one of the team’s final spots on the depth chart at receiver.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/pantherswire.usatoday.com/2021/08/07/panthers-2021-training-camp-notes-from-friday-night-fan-fest-practice/amp/

 

 

 

[LinvilleGorge]

8 hours ago, firstdayfan said:

 

 

Wow. What were they thinking? Those are the worst seats possible. You're going to spend the entire game watching from the TVs because you're not gonna be able to see poo unless the action is on the goal line in front of you.

 

 

[top dawg]

2 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

Wow. What were they thinking? Those are the worst seats possible. You're going to spend the entire game watching from the TVs because you're not gonna be able to see poo unless the action is on the goal line in front of you.

 

 

It's about the wine and cheese.