Tuesday practice tweets

[Jackie Lee]

7 minutes ago, frankw said:

It's been talked about adnauseum over the years each time of the year around now that the first team offense and especially the offensive line needs reps together as much as possible to get the kinks out. Add in a new OC and a starting quarterback who has been here for only a few months and yes even a blind homer should be able to admit we shouldn't have wasted reps on Sam. If we look sluggish expect the folks acting like this is no big deal to disappear or act deaf dumb and blind about their past remarks.

 

[ECHornet]

14 minutes ago, kungfoodude said:

Don't forget Elflein calling out blocking assignments. Having a competent center has a cascade effect on the entire line. Especially with as many new parts as ours. 

We need to keep an eye on how cohesive that group is early in the season.

Agreed. From what I’ve read, Boseman wasn’t playing well at first and then went out with an injury. That makes me wonder if the injury was causing the poor play early. Either way, I chalk Elflein getting most reps at 1st team center to Boseman being injured. 

[ECHornet]

18 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

I don't use week one as much of a benchmark for anything, honestly.

But if you want to use it as a benchmark for how training camp went, that might be a bit of a risk. Most teams go into week one looking kind of sloppy on offense, especially given the training camp and practice rules that were imposed by the most recent CBA.

I also don’t expect everything to be harmonious in the first few games. It just frustrates me that all this whining in the preseason about reps may all go unchecked if we come out and look cohesive. Very few posters would come back and say that maybe Rhule and staff were right. 
 

My opinion is Baker likely has received a similar amount of work with his receiving corp as most QBs this off-season. 

[kungfoodude]

34 minutes ago, ECHornet said:

Agreed. From what I’ve read, Boseman wasn’t playing well at first and then went out with an injury. That makes me wonder if the injury was causing the poor play early. Either way, I chalk Elflein getting most reps at 1st team center to Boseman being injured. 

Yeah, that is a big concern. Elflein is a known and obvious weakness so if Bozeman isn't a substantial upgrade, that could torpedo a lot of the improvements we supposedly made on that unit.

That is why my primary concern is for our OL and DL units. They are thin on talent and high on question marks. And both units are very, very, very shallow in terms of quality depth.

We need to develop chemistry quickly and stay healthy. Otherwise it may drag down some big improvements on both sides of the ball.

Very nervous about that situation.

Edited August 24, 2022 by kungfoodude

[Mr. Scot]

41 minutes ago, ECHornet said:

I also don’t expect everything to be harmonious in the first few games. It just frustrates me that all this whining in the preseason about reps may all go unchecked if we come out and look cohesive. Very few posters would come back and say that maybe Rhule and staff were right. 
 

My opinion is Baker likely has received a similar amount of work with his receiving corp as most QBs this off-season. 

Here's the thing, though...

Training camp is about getting starters ready for action, not backups.

Yes, it's possible to have people compete for positions. But come on, everybody and their brother knew from the minute Mayfield was signed that he should be the starter. Likewise, pretty much everyone knew that Ickey Ekwonu should be manning the left tackle spot.

Forcing those guys to compete for those roles was stupid. All it ended up doing was taking away valuable time that could have been used for the starters to gain chemistry with each other.

Could it still work out okay? Possibly, but that doesn't take away the fact that it was a dumb idea. And no, it isn't just fans that have been saying that.

[coffee]

16 hours ago, TheSpecialJuan said:

Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey couldn't say enough about how Sam Darnold has handled losing the starting quarterback job to Baker Mayfield. "He's been somebody from the inside looking out, who has to take a lot of crap from a lot of different areas. He hasn't said a word, shows up every day, does his job, focuses on what he can focus on and controls what he can control. It's admirable . . .I have nothing but respect for him.''

 

 

David Newton, ESPN Staff Writer21m

As a Panther fan, I'm glad Baker got the job.

As a human, I look at this man that may not have been our answer at QB1, but that has done everything in his power to try to be, and to be a great teammate while going through a horrible situation.  We sit here looking at someone who may be the 32nd best at his job in the entire world and we call him an idiot and trash.

I agree with CMC.  I have nothing but respect for him.

[ECHornet]

1 hour ago, Mr. Scot said:

Here's the thing, though...

Training camp is about getting starters ready for action, not backups.

Yes, it's possible to have people compete for positions. But come on, everybody and their brother knew from the minute Mayfield was signed that he should be the starter. Likewise, pretty much everyone knew that Ickey Ekwonu should be manning the left tackle spot.

Forcing those guys to compete for those roles was stupid. All it ended up doing was taking away valuable time that could have been used for the starters to gain chemistry with each other.

Could it still work out okay? Possibly, but that doesn't take away the fact that it was a dumb idea. And no, it isn't just fans that have been saying that.

Baker typically finds motivation in perceived slights. I’m not upset if the staff tried to stoke the fire there, even if Baker and staff knew the eventual result. 

[Mr. Scot]

17 minutes ago, ECHornet said:

Baker typically finds motivation in perceived slights. I’m not upset if the staff tried to stoke the fire there, even if Baker and staff knew the eventual result. 

Yeah, I'm not a fan of "tricking" guys into playing well. I much prefer seeing them coached.

But even accepting that premise, how do you answer for the failure to let the starting OL practice together to build chemistry and gel into a cohesive unit?

[ECHornet]

1 minute ago, Mr. Scot said:

Yeah, I'm not a fan of "tricking" guys into playing well. I much prefer seeing them coached.

But even accepting that premise, how do you answer for the failure to let the starting OL practice together to build chemistry and gel into a cohesive unit?

Part of coaching is finding ways to motivate your players. 
 

You assumed earlier everyone believe Icky at starting LT was a foregone conclusion, but I disagree. He’s a rookie and that’s a tough position to be one. Many wondered if BC might be better at LT with Icky at LG for this year. I’m still not convinced that might not work out better. Either way, the staff had to assess the rookie first. 

[ECHornet]

3 minutes ago, Pakmeng said:

I don't buy the creating a perceived slight angle. I think Will Kunkel summed it up best in his explanations. And it's not 1 single thing. Reality is rarely so simplified.

Are you referring to this tweet…

If so, I think #4 covers the competitive spirit angle I was going for. Thanks for pointing me towards his take and I agree with him. 

[Captain Morgan]

43 minutes ago, ECHornet said:

Part of coaching is finding ways to motivate your players. 
 

You assumed earlier everyone believe Icky at starting LT was a foregone conclusion, but I disagree. He’s a rookie and that’s a tough position to be one. Many wondered if BC might be better at LT with Icky at LG for this year. I’m still not convinced that might not work out better. Either way, the staff had to assess the rookie first. 

 

Icky against Miles in the first game is worrisome.  If BC slides out for a few games, I'm fine with that.  

 

[Mr. Scot]

1 hour ago, ECHornet said:

Part of coaching is finding ways to motivate your players. 
 

You assumed earlier everyone believe Icky at starting LT was a foregone conclusion, but I disagree. He’s a rookie and that’s a tough position to be one. Many wondered if BC might be better at LT with Icky at LG for this year. I’m still not convinced that might not work out better. Either way, the staff had to assess the rookie first. 

They also had to coach him up.

And seriously, how often do you see a guy picked in the top ten not start?

[Jackie Lee]

We know about lingering hamstring issues

 

[Jackie Lee]