Aiyuk

[Jmac]

2 hours ago, jtm said:

Ranking WRs is so subjective and especially for rookies.  I think Coker, Legette, and Sanders are solid options that I expect to be much improved in year 2.  Go grab another vet WR in free agency and let's let the young guys eat.  No way are our offensive weapons in the bottom 5.  Sorry, but I don't agree with this.  

Add A.T to the equation also. Maybe old, but still ballin.

[Loyalty4Life]

I don't think anyone would argue about the potential of XL, Coker and Sanders.  We're in the bottom because we have very young weapons.  The entire offense is a work in progress so I don't put very much stock in where our receiving core ranks. 

What I do care about is projecting going forward but that is much more subjective.  I think Coker is going to be somewhere between Moose and Smitty.  I still see a ton of upside with XL and the team is still trying to figure out how best to use him.  Adam T. is just a smooth vet and we we definitely need that.

It took a bit for Sanders to get going and when it looked like he was really showing out, he got injured.  He's a guy who looks like he's really putting in the work but still too early to tell how big of a weapon he could be for Bryce but he's shown enough to be a starter.

Do we need a #1 WR?  Of course but I don't know that he isn't already on the team.  I wouldn't be mad if we draft one in the first round because it's all about the best that's available and I mean that literally.  What positions can we upgrade and what are we passing over if we do take a WR in the first.

I feel comfortable with a number of options be it trading for a #1 WR, drafting one in the 1st round or rolling with what we have (with some added depth, a la Moore).  Any of those options allow us to compete and progress towards becoming a winning organization year in and year out.

[CPcavedweller]

On 3/12/2025 at 11:02 AM, trucpfan said:

Seriously rather get Burden or Golden we need speed and playmakers we have big body WRs they just need to be coached up.  Jalen’s on a path to high production already we really need to focus on Big Country and it’s not like he wasn’t a catch away or a concentration moment away from multiple big moments as a rookie. If he progresses as many players do this season we should see him making those plays and in turn being our big body high point catching WR along with TE Sanders.

If we draft Tyler Warren then we get one of the best receivers in the draft and the best tight end. 

[tukafan21]

On 3/12/2025 at 10:53 AM, CRA said:

TMac carries way too high of odds of being another Panther WR that doesn't get open.   

Even if that were true (and I don't think it will be), the difference between T-Mac and the guys before him that you're referencing, is that he has hands of glue, all those other big bodied WRs we've had over the years that failed, didn't.

So even if he struggles to create much separation, his big body and his hands will let him make plays that those other WRs couldn't.

I think that's what people seem to forget when looking at him, that he's not KB, or Funchess, or XL, or whoever.  He's a guy who has EVERYTHING, except top end speed and quickness.  There are very few WRs who truly have it all, in fact, their names are Calvin Johnson and Randy Moss, pretty much almost everyone else had something they were missing, whether it was size, or speed, or hands, or route running, etc, something wasn't ELITE.

Which is why I've said his absolute floor is as about the 25th best WR in the league.  Because if he never improves upon his speed/quickness one ounce at the next level (which seems unlikely anyways), he's still going to be a more than useful low end #1 or high end #2.  He'll be a red zone threat, a downfield jump ball guy, and someone to make the contested catches in the middle to move the chains.

Basically, he's Mike Evans, the guy he's most compared to.

Evans isn't some elite separator, he doesn't have burner speed, but all he does is compile stats and score TDs because he's so good at making contested catches.

Evans has a little more bulk on him, but T-Mac is a little more athletic, in particular making guys miss and getting more YAC.  Which is why I see him as a perennial Top 10 WR and someone who will be challenging to be considered a Top 5 WR in his prime.

I just went and looked out of curiosity....

In their full college careers, those 3 guys had... 1,715 yards in 3 seasons for Funchess, 1678 yards in 5 seasons for XL, and 1,506 yards for Benjamin in 2 seasons.

T-Mac has 1,402 and 1,319 in each of his last two seasons after 702 as a Freshman for 3,423 yards in 3 years.

I think the Panthers fans who are concerned about T-Mac are more afraid of our past with big WRs and just forgetting that T-Mac is just on an entirely other level than any of them were.

Edited 3 hours ago by tukafan21