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January 11 2025: And so it was written.... Not getting into too much depth concerning new contract extensions etc–I figure Horn and Ickey (and possibly Jackson) are the priorities right now and it does not have to happen all at once. I think you decide what you need to be successful then work on contracts until it happens–I believe the Panthers expect to be competitive in 2025. The South is wide open–Tampa Bay is not a team that cannot be dethroned and they are aging, Atlanta is now riding on Pennix, and The Saints are headed for a roster overhaul, starting with Carr (word on the street says they were interested in Russell Wilson before his late season collapse.) Offensive Line. (1-2 depth players) Brady Christensen is going to pimp his services in free agency. He is a valuable backup, but I think he has been misused. He is a short-armed swing tackle, but we have him at G and C. Let him look. Nijman is still under contract for $5m per season and I think I would draft an OT (to backup and possibly Moton’s replacement in a year or two. Cutting Nijman would save $3.6 m and I think a rookie would give you as much Nijman has a 57.9 PFF rating, and I think that might be high, but his pass blocking rating was 84th of 141 OTs overall and his run blocking was 112 of 141 OTs. I think a rookie can do better, like maybe Kingston. Nijman will be 30.. Besides, you should draft an OL every year anyway. Tight End (1 starter). Ja’Tavion Sanders flashed too little and Tremble had 200+ yards entering Free Agency. In my view, neither is the Alpha TE we need at the position. Sanders is only 21, so he should get better, but Bryce Young needs a stud. Do not be surprised to see us make a move at TE. I think a top TE could improve our offense as much as any WR in this draft. Full stop. Wide Receiver (1 starter, 1 depth player). Xavier is a project in year 2 and I expect improvement from him. He needs to start being treated like a football player and not some novelty from a SC time warp. He will. Coker is becoming a solid pro. AT is flirting with time, but he is solid–shows that hands and route running mechanics are more important than 40 times. We could go WR in round 1 if T-Mac is there, or we could try to fill the WR room with Cokers. Maybe the way to give Bryce weapons is at TE and possession WR–I see a lot of them in the draft–few Alphas. For example, there are only 2 WRs that have first round grades, and only 1 projects to a #1–arguably. (I do not see Egbuka, Ohio State, as a first round prospect and he has never been a #1 on his college team). If you have 4-5 guys who can catch the ball and a TE who is also a threat, why do you need what we call a #1 WR? Currently, the Panthers have XL, Coker, AT- we should bring Moore back on the cheap. We need 2 more WRs, one needs to have the ability to start. If the Panthers added 1 WR (with the ability to start) and a #1 TE, this offense would improve, but we need a sixth WR regardless–injuries always happen and rarely is the WR room without a player sitting out. Running Back. (1 depth player) Sanders is probably gone. One of the previous administrations’ dumbest moves. Chuba has been solid, as we all know, and the draft is loaded at RB, which means there will be some UDFAs available. We need a RB who can block, catch, and hit the holes–It was hard to watch Arizona State without thinking, “That would be a great backup/short yardage RB and special teamer” when you saw Skatteboo or whatever his name is. As much as some of us think you don’t spend draft picks on RB, I say it is 10x better than signing a RB on a second contract. I think you might get more value out of a fifth round RB than you would a fifth-round CB or Edge. Cornerback. (1 starter). There is a lot of drama at this position. You have an oft-injured CB who will want pro bowler money because he is worth it when on the field. You have an UFA who came in and earned a starting job. Smith-Wade seems ready to play the nickel as the starter; a good tackler who seems pretty instinctive. Finally, Akayleb Evans and Shemar Bartholomew quietly proved that they should be the depth conversation in 2025, both with PFF scores in the mid fifties. I am confident the Panthers will sign Horn, but what to do if Mike Jackson leaves? Is the answer on the roster? Personally, I think if the Panthers get Jackson back, the starters are Horn, Jackson, and Smith-Wade with Evans and Bartholomew behind them entering camp–that is a decent–not great–CB room. I think you try to re-sign Mike Jackson because we know what he can do in this system. If the Horn extension negotiations do not go well, consider trading Horn for picks and cap room. At least you know that we are not giving guaranteed money to an ice tub Eskimo. Safety. (2, 1 starter, 1 depth) Demani Richardson is 24 and played 400+ snaps and has a 60+ PFF grade. He is a big S who can tackle. He was better than starting SS Jordan Fuller (54 PFF grade) who he split reps with, for the most part. Richardson starting at S is probably a given. On the other side, it is wide open. Woods played 1200 snaps with 3 picks but his PFF score was 57. He will be 30 next season, and is an UFA. We need a starting S and we need a backup. Nick Scott (UFA) is also going to be 30 and his PFF grade in 324 snaps is low (52.6). We can do better, so look for Richardson to be the SS and look for us to draft (probably) a FS to start. Inside Linebacker. (2, one starter, maybe 1 depth). Jewell (56.5 PFF) will be 32 and should play better with a better DL; however, he is a far cry from the Mills, Morgan, Beason, Luke tradition in Charlotte. Since one of those LBs is now our GM, I cannot see us watching Shaq leave without replacing him with a Dog. Wallace (56 PFF score) was fine, but behind that DL, hard to gauge. He seems to be a backup LB. I just do not see Morgan sitting back in this draft, with so many good LBs, and not getting a “Dawg.” to play inside. Windmon showed signs of having a shot, and they may want to look at Rhattigan a bit more. Still need that Alpha Dawg. Defensive Line: (2 starters, 1 depth) Gone: NT–Shy Tuttle (42.7 PFF score) Deshawn Williams (47.9 PFF score); LaBryan Ray (33 PFF score). NO WONDER WE SUCKED. Questionable: A’Shawn Robinson (DE) had a 54.6 PFF rating and is due $10m salary in 2025. He will be 30. Derrick Brown returns, but aside from Robinson, the cupboards appear to be bare. Yes, there is Jaden Crumedy (not good in 2024) and Sam Roberts who played 24 snaps in 2025, so who knows how deep this cut really is? Ideally, we could save a lot of $$ ($5m) by cutting Robinson, but we really have nothing else, so if you cut him, DE becomes a priority. I think he will be better with Brown and a good NT inside. We need a NT. We need a DE to challenge Robinson. Edge/OLB: (1 starter–or developmental rotational player) Clowney (70.8 PFF) has a $14m cap figure and Wonnum (55 PFF) has a $8m cap number. That is $22m for average to below average. Barno showed a few signs of turning the corner in very limited play this season (injured) and his salary is $1m. DJ Johnson had 1 pressure in nearly 400 snaps. Thomas Incoom only played 41 snaps, but his PFF score was nearly 80: he is 25. Cam Gill (27) played over 200 snaps but his PFF score was 49.1. If it were me, I would add a pass-rushing edge and keep Clowney, Wonnum, Barno, and Incoom. Need Starters (7): NT, S, WR, OLB, CB, TE, ILB . (While TE is not essential, it is more important than people realize and Tremble is a free agent. You could pencil in Sanders as a starter, but he is not starting material at this time….CB is removed from this list if we re-sign Mike Jackson or another quality veteran….OLB is a big need because long term need and rotational participation is emphasized at this position.) Need Depth: DE, OL, S, ILB, RB, WR -
By kungfoodude · Posted
See, I view it quite a bit differently. Carter is a far, far less developed prospect than Burns. -
By panthers55 · Posted
Paying starter money for a backup on our team makes little sense. He may start elsewhere but not here except for injury
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