Fittermagic

[MHS831]

Just wanted to start a thread to examine our new GM.  He is proactive, does not hesitate to make a move when needed, and he knows the talent pool, as it seems. So as I sit on my front porch this morning thinking, "How can I contribute to the Huddle today?" as a mild breeze wafted through my silky-fine hair, I thought, "Why not celebrate the man with the best moves on the team recently: Scott Fitterer."

His aggressive style:  Perryman traded, not cut of kept on the roster as in the past; Little traded instead of being cut or kept on the roster as in the past (Marty would milk his picks for all they were worth--the reason he wanted Marcel Dareus over Cam Newton--to see if Clausen would develop), and then we trade for a strong-legged kicker because we have had enough of Joey Slyce--instead of waiting to see who was cut and then trying to battle to sign them, we make a move--for the pick we got for Little (basically), so SF is playing with house money.

So far, the draft seems exceptional:  Yes, Horn is that guy, Marshall is a stud with first round talent, Christensen is going to find a place to play very soon (RT with Moton at LT or LG is my guess), Tremble is a player, Hubbard will give CMC some breathers and prolong his career, Nixon is showing that he can contribute, Shi Smith has been very good--a slot WR if I have ever seen one, Taylor seems to be a CB gem found late in the draft, and even Haskins can get up the field and make noise in the backfield....This tells me that he (and the scouts) have an eye for talent late in the draft, something we have never seen here very often.  This could go down as the best draft in franchise history if Horn and Marshall reach their potential and the other players mentioned contribute effectively.  Shi Smith is the sleeper who could remind us of another Smith at WR who was a sleeper, Nixon and Haskins could contribute to a rotation now (what? Day 3 picks you say?).  I have to be honest--I think Tremble is one of those locker room guys--a leader on the field with his tenacity and work ethic, an overachiever who will fire up the crowd and sideline.  He is another sleeper.  Christensen is a technician, a very athletic OL and he plays like it; he will find a place in the lineup soon.  So what is not to like so far? Horn will be the best CB we have seen in black and blue, and Marshall could be better than Moose. 

Free Agency:  The move that seems to impress me the most is Luvu.  Where did they find this 24 year old? (I know, the Jets where we found Anderson, Darnold, and Elflein) At worst a special team warrior, at best a starting LB very soon. Currently, he is on a 1-year, $1m contract). If he continues to play well, we could be locking him down soon. Reddick was a great move for a bargain ($8m, 1 year); maybe he has a good year and we can afford to re-sign him.  Dan Arnold looks to be a bargain for 2 years ($3m per) and Morgan Fox (2 years, $4m per).  Getting John Miller back on a $1m, 1 year deal (for a starting G) was a coup.  If Elflein or Erving materialize into players, free agency was a win.  The reason I say that is these players were the first signings during the open free agency period and we paid top dollar, imo.  If both bust, it hurts Fitt's stock.  Fitterer's background, however, is college scouting, so he should be better at drafting than working free agency, but both seem to be rather successful in my opinion.

Neck out, sharpen those swords and have at it or thank me for the obvious, but doggone it--I am worth it.

[NAS]

I really like the way he operates.  It's too early to judge him yet but I think he has shown a lot of promise and I trust him way more than I ever trusted Hurney or Gettleman

[vorbis]

the thing I liked the best was his philosophy of being willing to trade back multiple times in the draft to accumulate picks like darts for the dartboard.

I think taking more shots in the draft leads to a better talent pipeline on the bottom half of the roster. this leads to being able to make tough decisions when the season's over, and let marginally effective players coming off their rookie contracts walk in free agency.

and since you'll have the pipeline of talent coming from within, you won't have to mine the free agent market quite as much. which will lead to a relatively steady influx of compensation picks. which improves the talent pipeline.

it's just a simple way to make roster management a bit more efficient. it takes a few seasons to set up, but you have to trust in your scouting and development processes. and I think that's where the Panthers are headed.

I am here for it.

[SmokinwithWilly]

[cardiackat88.]

I really think Brown will be starting at guard before the season is over, too.

[Tommy Jone]

Let's keep saying "Scott Finesser" until it makes its way to the media.

[Manna]

It’s just a breath of fresh air to have a GM who doesn’t draft a player with the intention of converting the player to a new position he’s never played in his life. 

[SetfreexX]

I'd like to see:

Left to Right - Moton / Elflein / Paradis / Brown / Christensen

I think we see this line-up by mid-season. 

[SetfreexX]

1 minute ago, Manna said:

It’s just a breath of fresh air to have a GM who doesn’t draft a player with the intention of converting the player to a new position he’s never played in his life. 

Was Christensen a RT at BYU?

I understand where you're going with this though -- Godfrey, Sherrod Martin, Rashaun Gaulden, etc. 

Hurney really sucked at identifying Safety talent, and took a 3rd round QB when we could've just signed a veteran over CGJ, who of course ends up in NO. 

 

Edited August 27, 2021 by SetfreexX

[Panthera onca]

That's a nice post. I agree that Fitt seems to be a huge upgrade over Hurney. Of course a fruit fly would have been but you get my point. MHS, I hope you can get rid of that open mawed avatar of Person soon, it is starting to get on my nerves. How long does the bet require that you use it?

[frankw]

Let's just see what the win/loss is looking like in '21 and '22 before we trot out the clever monikers and weird mancrush.

[Manna]

4 minutes ago, SetfreexX said:

Was Christensen a RT at BYU?

I understand where you're going with this though -- Godfrey, Sherrod Martin, Rashaun Gaulden, etc. 

Hurney really sucked at identifying Safety talent, and took a 3rd round QB when we could've just signed a veteran over CGJ, who of course ends up in NO. 

 

I dont know about Christensen, but I’d imagine the learning curve from playing linemen is not steep like going QB to WR (Armanti Edwards). 

[MHS831]

16 minutes ago, cardiackat88. said:

I really think Brown will be starting at guard before the season is over, too.

how did i forget him?

[MHS831]

7 minutes ago, frankw said:

Let's just see what the win/loss is looking like in '21 and '22 before we trot out the clever monikers and weird mancrush.

Because the only vision we should have is hindsight, right?