Don't be surprised if we're bad for years to come

[E CaT PanTHer]

Honestly, I look at this team and we have question marks at almost every position on offense. This seriously could be one of the worst offenses in the last 10 years in the NFL, no joke.

I know it's still early, but Clausen hasn't shown any signs that he's on the path to becoming an NFL ready QB. Matt Moore, in the opportunities he's been given this year, has done zip, nada, and is no where close to being starting material. Tony Pike??? Who knows. So what do we do in the offseason, assuming Clausen and the rest of our QB's continue to struggle? Do we use our early 1st round pick on a QB? Do we pick up a FA? If Clausen is not the real deal, we could be spending the next 2 years trying to find a guy who is.

Our WR situation is a clusterfug crapshoot. The only WR that has shown any signs of having the possibility of not being a bust in the NFL is David Gettis. LaFell, Armanti Edwards, David Clowney ... are these guys our future?? Smitty will be gone soon (I don't know how much more he can handle, plus he's old). So if these guys don't show any signs of turning things around, do we start over in the draft? It will take 2 years at least to find some competent WR's.

Our TE's are garbage, and our offensive line has yet to show they can open up running lanes and protect our QB. Hopefully when Otah comes back they'll turn things around, but they haven't shown any chemistry this season thus far. Our RB's are solid, but with a crappy O-line and a completely inept and incompetent passing game, even the best RB's will struggle.

I just look at our offensive woes and all the question marks and I get scared. It could be years before we figure this situation out. I just look at teams like the Colts of the 80's and early 90's. The Raiders and Niners of the last 6 years, the Lions of the last 10 years and I get scared that the Panthers could be one of those teams. One of those teams that sucks for 5 years in a row. I hate to be so pessimistic, but honestly, this team hasn't shown anything this year on offense for me to think otherwise. We're a bad football team, and I guess we just gotta get used to being the laughing stock of the NFL for at least this year, and possibly in the near distant future as well.

Offensive ranks:

Points: Dead Last in the NFL

Yards: Dead Last in the NFL

Passing: 2nd to Last in the NFL

Rushing: 22nd.

[mav1234]

Don't be surprised if we're good for years to come.

Clausen aside, the future for our WRs looks bright. Future being the key. Gettis looks solid, still got Smitty, and while Lafell might not end up being anything at all, it's too early to label him, or Edwards, a bust. If Gettis really *is* a legitimate #2, then we just need a new coach who is willing to get us someone out of FA. Smith has at least another couple years.

I don't think our TEs are garbage, I think the routes they run sometimes are. Rosario has decent hands and shows flashes. Barnadge has tons of promise, and King never seems to let go of his starting job, which makes it hard to see what the others have. A new coach may change this.

Our o-line can only get better in coming weeks. If Otah stays healthy, anyway...

Our defense is as young as it can get, and with a good DE or DT draft, we're looking at a decent line to compliment what is probably one of the best back 7 in the league when healthy.

I understand your concern, but sometimes, a coordinator switch can mean the difference between a cruddy offense and a great one... nevermind the potential for a whole new head coach with a new offensive system that could (hopefully) take advantage of our high skill players.

IMO, the future in Carolina looks bright. The only issue is how far away that future is... 'cause this season is looking dark as can be, and if it gets too dark, odds are a lot of the bright spots may not be here next year when we get some coach-house-cleaning.

[Urrymonster]

I disagree.

Personally I feel as a team we are handicapped by not having an innovative offensive mind in the coaching staff.

Yes Clausen looks like he is struggling, but he is already showing some veteran signs with his ability to check down and throw balls away. He also can slip away from a pass rush pretty easily. My concerns with him is that he is a bit quick to leave the pocket and a I rarely see him step up into it, which is what has opened up the corner blitzes he has been hit with. He also needs to be a 'bit' more aggressive and take the occasional deep throw. What our OC could suggest doing is giving him a big target outside and throw a few jump balls where only our player can get it. Barnidge, Rosario and possibly Lafell should be used more as a possession receiver, rather than all the routes I see them have which are designed for YAC.

Our OLine admittedly is a concern, but part of me thinks that its the experience in the QB position that is causing some problems. Could our QBs possibly be poor at identifying blitzes and shifting protection? Schwartz got man handled yesterday and I really struggle to see the love affair some people have with him, he is what he is a solid back up. I can't believe that a group suddenly have showed an inability to pick up blitzes, so I think there is more to this issue.

Wide receivers are and always have been a small problem. Obviously we still have Smitty and Gettis has proved he is capable of a #3 job, possibly a #2. Remember that most wide receivers come on in their second year... We could find our #2 & #3 from one draft. Regardless we have two pieces of the puzzle, now all we need is someone who can run real crisp routes and always get some degree of separation. Or develop the confidence to trust our bigger receivers.

So frankly, I think our QBs inexperience hurts us, but that is the sort of thing that will develop in time. We have picked up quality at RB and possibly at WR. If the confidence and experience at QB grows I think you see an improvement in the OLine.

[House]

Hey, E Cat Panther, I bet if you would have held your breath the entire time you were typing and for 5 minutes afterward that post would have been a hell of lot better. Cause you would have passed out somewhere around the fifth E, so it would have looked like this..........

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

That is about 20x more insightful than the crap you originally wrote.

[pantherj]

This team can actually be rebuilt rather quickly, but it requires an owner willing to spend a lot of money in FA. If we're planning to stay out of FA, and build through the draft, then I don't see this team making the playoffs for long time.

[Primetime 89]

I stopped reading once I saw "Our TE's are garbage."

[WhiteKnight]

Clausen shows nothing.

Gettis and Edwards look very promising.

[The Faceless]

I don't think we will be in bad shape after this year. I honestly think the biggest issue is the ineptitude of this coaching staff. For once, I'd like us to get an offensive minded HC and keep Meeks on as DC.

[Ruff]

tl;dr

oh wee mayne

jimmy needs a bear

[PantherDude]

Like some others here, I disagree we will be bad for years to come. We're too talented to be bad for years. We just need some new coaches along with some several better players. Remeber when Fox first took over?? Nobody expected us to be in the Superbowl in his 2nd season here. With the right coach & keeping many of our best players, we could be back on top of the NFC again.

[Squirrel]

Panthers are actually a Quick Fix.

Vet Qb

Vet WR

Otah back or a top Offensive Tackle

A couple good DT's

Safety

Fix these positions and we are a winning team.

[Happy Panther]

Playoffs in 2014 assuming any sort of lockout

2013 assuming no lockout

guaranteed

[2jakefansinva]

I disagree.

Personally I feel as a team we are handicapped by not having an innovative offensive mind in the coaching staff.

Yes Clausen looks like he is struggling, but he is already showing some veteran signs with his ability to check down and throw balls away. He also can slip away from a pass rush pretty easily. My concerns with him is that he is a bit quick to leave the pocket and a I rarely see him step up into it, which is what has opened up the corner blitzes he has been hit with. He also needs to be a 'bit' more aggressive and take the occasional deep throw. What our OC could suggest doing is giving him a big target outside and throw a few jump balls where only our player can get it. Barnidge, Rosario and possibly Lafell should be used more as a possession receiver, rather than all the routes I see them have which are designed for YAC.

Our OLine admittedly is a concern, but part of me thinks that its the experience in the QB position that is causing some problems. Could our QBs possibly be poor at identifying blitzes and shifting protection? Schwartz got man handled yesterday and I really struggle to see the love affair some people have with him, he is what he is a solid back up. I can't believe that a group suddenly have showed an inability to pick up blitzes, so I think there is more to this issue.

Wide receivers are and always have been a small problem. Obviously we still have Smitty and Gettis has proved he is capable of a #3 job, possibly a #2. Remember that most wide receivers come on in their second year... We could find our #2 & #3 from one draft. Regardless we have two pieces of the puzzle, now all we need is someone who can run real crisp routes and always get some degree of separation. Or develop the confidence to trust our bigger receivers.

So frankly, I think our QBs inexperience hurts us, but that is the sort of thing that will develop in time. We have picked up quality at RB and possibly at WR. If the confidence and experience at QB grows I think you see an improvement in the OLine.

Nice post........your first sentence hit the nail on the head.

[AceMan]

We got a long way to go...there is no quick fix or quick answer.

1st, we have to assume that JR will go back to spending money once the lockout is over/resolved

2nd, our new head coach won't blow up our team too much