Panthers Made the top 5 on an ESPN List...

[Ricky Spanish]

... Ranking the worst mistakes for all 32 teams since 2020:

https://www.espn.com/nfl/insider/story/_/id/42989713/ranking-worst-roster-coaching-mistakes-all-32-nfl-teams-2020-watson-wilson-rodgers

Quote

 

5. Carolina Panthers

Biggest mistake: Trading DJ Moore and multiple first-round picks to the Bears to move up to draft Bryce Young with the No. 1 overall pick (2023)

Frankly, this could be even worse. Caleb Williams hasn't been the instant success many projected in Chicago, although it seems clear that a lot of the blame for his struggles is being pinned on a mostly deposed coaching staff. Young has turned around his career after being benched earlier this season and ranks 19th in QBR over the past month. NFL teams likely would still take Williams over Young given their respective levels of play and the extra year of cost control Williams has remaining on his deal, but this doesn't look generationally bad in the way it might have in September.

It hasn't been anything close to good for the Panthers, though. The 2023 pick they traded to the Bears eventually turned into Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who has been outstanding in recent weeks while making a late All-Pro push. Moore has run hot and cold in Chicago, but the Panthers have been desperate to add help at receiver since trading him, using two top-40 picks at wide receiver while acquiring a handful of veterans in free agency and trades. None of the moves has clearly paid off. If Young pans out, this deal still would be disappointing for Carolina. And if he doesn't, well, it's a nightmare

 

#6 was Jax hiring Urban Meyer.

Rounding out the bottom 4:

• 49ers trading for Lance
• Jets Trading for Rodgers
• Broncos trading for and then extending Wilson
• Browns trading for and extending Watson

[NAS]

Sounds about right. Even if Bryce turns out to be a franchise QB the trade still was terrible.  Even if they picked Stroud it was terrible 

[mrcompletely11]

3 minutes ago, NAS said:

Sounds about right. Even if Bryce turns out to be a franchise QB the trade still was terrible.  Even if they picked Stroud it was terrible 

thats not even remotely true

[NAS]

2 minutes ago, mrcompletely11 said:

thats not even remotely true

Yes he would have been ruined here. No weapons and a terrible offensive line.  I wish we picked Stroud, that was my pick, but the trade itself is horrible because it sets up the team to fail

[Chaos]

Definitely cannot argue with #1

[cookinbrak]

7 minutes ago, Chaos said:

Definitely cannot argue with #1

Yet a lot of folks wanted this

[bythenbrs]

56 minutes ago, NAS said:

Sounds about right. Even if Bryce turns out to be a franchise QB the trade still was terrible.  Even if they picked Stroud it was terrible 

But we were assured that you must ‘go get your guy’.  I hope this trope now dies the painful death it deserves.

[mrcompletely11]

9 minutes ago, bythenbrs said:

But we were assured that you must ‘go get your guy’.  I hope this trope now dies the painful death it deserves.

Control the draft was a cringe phrase as well

[mav1234]

52 minutes ago, NAS said:

Yes he would have been ruined here. No weapons and a terrible offensive line.  I wish we picked Stroud, that was my pick, but the trade itself is horrible because it sets up the team to fail

... We have one of the best OLs in football this year. Last year was bad, sure, but the Texans had nearly as bad an OL and are terrible this year, and that was with competent QB play behind them lol. If the Texans haven't ruined Stroud, how would we? Stroud took an abysmally bad Texans team and they're a playoff team now

[Ricky Spanish]

6 minutes ago, bythenbrs said:

But we were assured that you must ‘go get your guy’.  I hope this trope now dies the painful death it deserves.

Only way "Going to get your guy" makes sense is if you fall ass backwards into a ton of high picks and use those picks to get the guy.

For example, if we somehow land a top 2 or 3 pick and a QB desperate team wants to trade up with us so they can take Ward or Sanders, I say we take it. Get a pick for next year. Then in the 2026 draft you have two firsts to either use to draft a replacement QB for Bryce OR use the two picks in the trade package to move up and draft a guy. Then you aren't hampering your team for years and can still continuously build around the rookie using the draft.

[Ricky Spanish]

1 minute ago, mav1234 said:

... We have one of the best OLs in football this year. Last year was bad, sure, but the Texans had nearly as bad an OL and are terrible this year, and that was with competent QB play behind them lol. If the Texans haven't ruined Stroud, how would we? Stroud took an abysmally bad Texans team and they're a playoff team now

His line is bad this year, but not as bad as ours last year.

His scheme is also bad this year, but still not as bad as ours this year. We had multiple offensive schemes frankenstein'd into the abomination that was last year.

His weapons are fine this year, even with injuries. Our weapons from last year have combined for something like 150 total yards across the league so far this season.

Stroud is still better. I won't argue that. But jesus, last year was just so absolutely putrid across the board, Fitt should be hired again just so we can fire him again.

[mrcompletely11]

5 minutes ago, Ricky Spanish said:

His line is bad this year, but not as bad as ours last year.

His scheme is also bad this year, but still not as bad as ours this year. We had multiple offensive schemes frankenstein'd into the abomination that was last year.

His weapons are fine this year, even with injuries. Our weapons from last year have combined for something like 150 total yards across the league so far this season.

Stroud is still better. I won't argue that. But jesus, last year was just so absolutely putrid across the board, Fitt should be hired again just so we can fire him again.

47 sacks with 3 games to go.   His line is really bad.   But somehow they are sitting at 9 wins and going to win their division.  Some qbs can overcome adversity 

[TD alt]

"Moore has been hot and cold..."

And this is what I and others were trying to tell some of y'all all along. I remember last year, @frankw, when you were trying to clown me after the Moore's 200+ yard game. Well, predictably, that was an anomaly 

Now I'm not in any way saying that he isn't a good receiver, and, yes, it was an ill-advised move to trade him by really any measure. But, he's probably a top 20 or 25 receiver like he's basically always been. 

Yeah, I'm not always right, but listen sometimes.   

---The Wide Receiver Extremist (given nickname by @tiger7_88)

Edited 3 hours ago by TD alt

[mav1234]

11 minutes ago, Ricky Spanish said:

His line is bad this year, but not as bad as ours last year.

His scheme is also bad this year, but still not as bad as ours this year. We had multiple offensive schemes frankenstein'd into the abomination that was last year.

His weapons are fine this year, even with injuries. Our weapons from last year have combined for something like 150 total yards across the league so far this season.

Stroud is still better. I won't argue that. But jesus, last year was just so absolutely putrid across the board, Fitt should be hired again just so we can fire him again.

His OL last year was only barely worse than ours based on a lot of advanced metrics. They were ranked like 4-5 slots higher than ours. Stroud was pressured 2% less often on pass plays than Bryce Young in 2023. They had the same pocket time last year (2.5s)

Stroud's receivers have missed tons of games this year. Diggs and Collins have played in a combined 17 games out this season. Now Collins and Stroud have great chemistry together, but Collins was considered average prior to his arrival.

It was a bad trade, but if we had drafted Stroud, it wouldn't be anywhere near the top of that list. Stroud this year - and that is with an atrocious OL and a lot of injuries to his weapons - has 17 TDs, the same number of INTs as Bryce on more pass attempts, and 3250 yards. All that with more drops (and a higher drop %) by his receivers.

Edited 3 hours ago by mav1234