Has Cade Mays proved to be our starting center, or do we look for another?

[Donald LaFell]

All QBs need a good line but I think this is especially true for Young. I think it will be important to “keep the strength strong”, but I’d rather do that in the draft. 

[Jmac]

2 hours ago, woahfraze said:

We’ve invested enough money in the offensive line to justify a top or market free agent contract. The end of the year showed us that we have a unit that has developed good chemistry and can be really effective in both run blocking and pass protection.  From a needs and capital allocation perspective, it makes much more sense to invest in the defense and another playmaker on offense. The offensive line should not be ignored this offseason, but the focus here should be to maintain/build depth in the position group rather than bring in a new starter. 

Grab a rookie in the middle to later rounds and coach him up. We should never ignore the Oline again

[MHS831]

A lot of folks seem to think that Mays is not that good despite his performance numbers since taking over.  Reason?  He has been labeled, in my opinion, and that is preventing some from seeing Mays as a legit OL.  He played nearly every position on the in college at Georgia and Tennessee. This should help him as a center calling blocking schemes.  He started here at OG, where he struggled, and many of you sealed your opinion of him then--he was 24.

Ryan Kalil played G his first season and he was not good.

So now he has transitioned to one of the positions he has the least amount of experience playing--C--and he has been good for 11 games.  During that time, the Panthers got Bryce back at QB and the last nine games of the season the Panthers went 4-5 and if Legette catches that damn pass, they would have posted a winning record. 

Number of sacks surrendered during the 11 games this season?   0

I am not sure why anyone is questioning Mays and acting as if we need to upgrade. 

[Icege]

Cade played surprisingly well. I think he's earned another contract, though the team should definitely look to make sure there's depth.

[jayboogieman]

Draft one and may the best man man win

[Khyber53]

2 hours ago, MHS831 said:

If you don't realize what a great job Mays did, you don't watch OL play.  He was better than Corbett, he beat out BC when Corbett was injured--and Mays had been playing G as well as C--yes, it helps being between two stud Gs, but his pass blocking was very good. Overall grade,  PFF--Lewis 72, Hunt 67, Mays 66.   Pass blocking?  Mays ranked higher than Lewis and Hunt. 

Compared to Corbett:

• Overall:  Mays 66.1; Corbett 62.9
• Pass Blocking:  Mays 74.9; Corbett 66.8
• Run Blocking:  Mays 66.9; Corbett 59.3
• Salary:  Corbett $10m; Mays $711K (RFA entering 2025).

Mays may have contributed to Bryce's turnaround more than anyone else--

Mays will improve when he learns better technique and gets familiar with just 1 job.  He is 25.  

Let's not create problems that do not exist.

 

The biggest factor on whether you keep a center or not is whether they and the QB are meshing well. Everything else is secondary. 

They seem to be building that and Mays has shown solid skill growth there.

This ain't broke, like you said, and it may even get better. I've been pounding on the table to draft a center high for the last couple of years. This year, I think we should address other needs unless the BPA is a Center head and shoulders above the competition.

I think we need to work the other side of the trenches right now. We're good at O-line and actually have some depth. Never thought I'd be typing that statement...

[NorthTryon]

2 hours ago, MHS831 said:

If you don't realize what a great job Mays did, you don't watch OL play.  He was better than Corbett, he beat out BC when Corbett was injured--and Mays had been playing G as well as C--yes, it helps being between two stud Gs, but his pass blocking was very good. Overall grade,  PFF--Lewis 72, Hunt 67, Mays 66.   Pass blocking?  Mays ranked higher than Lewis and Hunt. 

Compared to Corbett:

• Overall:  Mays 66.1; Corbett 62.9
• Pass Blocking:  Mays 74.9; Corbett 66.8
• Run Blocking:  Mays 66.9; Corbett 59.3
• Salary:  Corbett $10m; Mays $711K (RFA entering 2025).

Mays may have contributed to Bryce's turnaround more than anyone else--

Mays will improve when he learns better technique and gets familiar with just 1 job.  He is 25.  

Let's not create problems that do not exist.

 

Way to come with the facts. I am tired of people whining over the Frazier. It didn't happen and Cade played very well this year! I know o-line play and the way we leveled up with the "answer on the roster" over what we had last year Bozeman was nothing short of amazing. This o-line coach has gotten so much more out of the guys on the roster from last year it isn't even funny. I believe we can only improve and there is no need to put any more resources into the line this offseason minus undrafted free agency. 

[WarPanthers89]

This is an interesting topic. On one hand he is just solid and can definitely be upgraded, on the other we already have a ton of money being spent on guards and Moton, with Icky coming around the corner. You have to have someone drafted or come in cheap. One injury to him and it could spell disaster as it is such an important position. Looks like the best path is to draft someone this year or look for a cheaper vet option for backup at a minimum. 

[blueandblackattack]

4 hours ago, Matthias said:

I say this because a potential probowl center could be on the market to make our O-line a fab five.  I'm speaking of Ryan Kelly of the Colts.  He is a four time probowler at the position, and has lead the way for Jonathan Taylor's success in Indianapolis.  The down sides of acquiring him is he's coming off an injury season (but he did finish the year strong), he's a veteran who is currently 31 (not too bad for a trench guy), and could want good money from the center position. (Particularly if coming to Carolina who aren't seen as a contending team as of yet).

All that said, I like how Cade Mays played at the position, but the question is will he continue to progress into a top center?  I'm looking at the dynamics on our line and this is the first time I've seen probowl qualities at every position left to right.  The only question mark perhaps is the center position.  What say y'all?

I really liked Cade Mays growth this year. The biggest complement is that I barely noticed him, whereas when we had Bozeman, he kept getting pushed back into BY's lap. I think, especially since we don't have a ton of cap room this year, that signing Mays to a 3yr deal would be financially the most bang for our buck. He held his own well, and when he wasn't in the lineup, ala Brady Christiansen, it showed. If it aint broke, don't fix it and spend that money towards a great NT instead to help stop the run.

[OneBadCat]

If we've learned anything over the last few seasons, it's that we need as many bodies as possible. I think he's earned another contract. And we need to draft another Center and swing tackle in the draft. It is likely we'll lose Brady Christensen to free agency.

[Aussie Tank]

Plenty of 4th and 5th round picks to add some competition in the draft 

[Seltzer]

1 hour ago, MHS831 said:

A lot of folks seem to think that Mays is not that good despite his performance numbers since taking over.  Reason?  He has been labeled, in my opinion, and that is preventing some from seeing Mays as a legit OL.  He played nearly every position on the in college at Georgia and Tennessee. This should help him as a center calling blocking schemes.  He started here at OG, where he struggled, and many of you sealed your opinion of him then--he was 24.

Ryan Kalil played G his first season and he was not good.

So now he has transitioned to one of the positions he has the least amount of experience playing--C--and he has been good for 11 games.  During that time, the Panthers got Bryce back at QB and the last nine games of the season the Panthers went 4-5 and if Legette catches that damn pass, they would have posted a winning record. 

Number of sacks surrendered during the 11 games this season?   0

I am not sure why anyone is questioning Mays and acting as if we need to upgrade. 

The offensive line coaches have been incredible. Both Cade Mays and Chandler Zavala looked horrendous last year, and they played above-average this year.

I'm ok with resigning Mays and Corbett to an incentive deal. I think between that we should have it covered. Maybe a Day 3 pick also.

We need to spend most of our draft capital on defense obviously 

[Jon Snow]

30 minutes ago, Seltzer said:

The offensive line coaches have been incredible. Both Cade Mays and Chandler Zavala looked horrendous last year, and they played above-average this year.

I'm ok with resigning Mays and Corbett to an incentive deal. I think between that we should have it covered. Maybe a Day 3 pick also.

We need to spend most of our draft capital on defense obviously 

I would sign Christensen over Corbett if it were me.

[Basbear]

2 hours ago, jayboogieman said:

Draft one and may the best man man win

 

That's what I feel, bring him back for competition. 

Between Lewis and Hunt, a few other 3rd stringer would look good too. He still played great coming back form the giants.