Hurney and mortgaging the future...

[firstdayfan]

The best way to acquire talent in this league is through the draft and considering we have given away first and second round picks the last few years have severely depleted the talent level on this team. There is a reason the colts, patriots, chargers, and eagles are so good year in and year out. They make good decisions on draft day. Simple as that.

Some people may not agree with me but it will take at least two years of good drafts to get this team back to winning games. It starts with a potential franchise QB next year but we also need to get several other quality players. Then, if we can put together another solid draft in 2012 then we should be good.

The point is that the only way to get better is to have a good coach and put together some good drafts. I really believe that's why we had a couple good seasons which resulted in playoffs. It wasn't Fox that brought down this team it was bad drafting...it has set this team back a few years.

[Ohio]

If we draft a QB with the one of our 1st three picks, I think it's time for Carolina fans to boycott games. Seriously, your going to give up on our 2nd rounder from this year, after only 1 year??? You'd have to question the competance of those running the organization.

[panthers55]

We can all look back now and see that the Edwards pick looks like a bad move right now. On the other hand Goodson looked like a bad pick last year after several fumbles and little to no game time. What a difference a year makes.

I have no idea what Edwards may or may not do in the next few years. I do think that we have to give him a few years to truly evaluate his worth to the team. I wouldn't be surprised if a better offensive coordinator would put him at the wildcat spot and find more plays for him.

Given that our second round pick will likely be no worse than 35 at this point, it is easy to where it appears to be a poor move and a bust right now.

But it seems to me that a bunch of players look that way right now. With no pass rush and a poor line scheme, who thinks Brown looks anything but a bust. With no playing time at all and a dismal offensive scheme, who thinks Barnidge is a total bust. And right now based on limited time Clausen could be put in that category.

I think I will wait to see what happens next year to determine who is a bust and who may have just been underutilized or are suffered from a poor scheme and crappy playcalling.

With that being said I am not a big fan of trading future picks at all in the hopes of getting an immediate impact player. Other than perhaps at running back, most time it takes a year or two for a player to develop into an impact player. Plus when you see what we got with Hardy, it is hard to justify paying so much for Brown.

In fact the argument could be made that with our better luck with later rounders, we might do a lot more trading down versus trading up most of the time.

I can't argue that trading up has been a mixed bad so far and for the last 2 drafts seems to be mostly a bad idea. Still I would like to see what happens with a new staff before writing off many of our guys including Brown and Edwards.

[Ohio]

Im being dead serious, our scouts or Marty or Jerry, whoever has the final decision on drafting, is an idiot.

I preached and preached all offeseaon that Jordan Shipely and Jacoby Ford would be steals. And look now....

Some of us might be better at picking personel then those guys in the "war room".

[PhillyB]

Im being dead serious, our scouts or Marty or Jerry, whoever has the final decision on drafting, is an idiot.

I preached and preached all offeseaon that Jordan Shipely and Jacoby Ford would be steals. And look now....

Some of us might be better at picking personel then those guys in the "war room".

yes, this is a rational statement

[rayzor]

If they'd kept all of the talent that those traded away first round picks would have given them, it would have changed the destiny of that entire franchise.

very well could be. you sacrifice greater talent in the future so that you could have not quite as good talent today...win now mode. anything less than a ring in that year could be seen as failure of that move.

[Boltergeist]

You can learn a lot about Marty Hurney by reading up on Bobby Beathard.

Beathard was the Redskins GM when Hurney was in their organization. He built some Super Bowl winning teams in his career there. Later moved on to San Diego where his career would eventually be marred by the decision to use a number two overall pick on Ryan Leaf (a decision pretty much any GM in his position would also have made).

In his time as GM, especially with the Chargers if I recall correctly, Beathard traded away a fair number of future high round picks. Sometimes it worked. Other times it didn't. Hurney's willingness to trade and swap likely owes plenty to Beathard's mentorship.

For the record, Beathard's son Jeff is one of the Panthers regional scouts.

And this is what Beathard did in SD, FWIW.

Eric Moten was a starter for 5 years at G. I think injuries ended his career. (WAS used pick on Desmond Howard)

Means breakthrough year was our SB year, and IIRC money was the issue with his release after 95 - which pissed off most of the fanbase, (SF used pick on Bryant Young)

Terrell Fletcher became our 3rd down guy, taking over the Harmon role. Unfortunately I think the FO thought he could be the guy after Means, which never came to fruition. (STL used pick on Kennison)

Bryan Still - bustola. (TB used oick on Warrick Dunn). This one Beathard would take this one back, and twice on Sunday. We could've used that Dunn pick and taken Tony Gonzalez right under KC's nose - considering we took Freddie Jones in the 2nd rd that year.

Still was the only bust, and the first 3 worked out pretty good for us.

[Sandy Claws]

Mortgaging the future would have been trading draft picks for older malcontented players. Sure, we could get a 2 or 3 years of solid play out of them but they would be beyond a productive age very soon. Foks whine because some draft picks don't produce right now but that was never intended of those particular players. You may not like the decisions now that you're armed with hindsight, but you're also not the guy getting the big paycheck to make the decision without that benefit.

[mav1234]

Meh, this whole "Hurney would have traded a first for Clausen" seems unlikely, since he actually traded a second. You really think the Patriots weren't all "Hey, why not your first? Wink wink" on him?

Also, nobody has told Clausen since preseason he was the future of the Panthers, so you don't necessarily need to worry about Hurney still acting on that.

[Anybodyhome]

Armanti Edwards pick will not be used until next year and we can only hope he lives up to that 33rd pick so all of you haters can shut the hell up. I think the potential is there for him to play either WR or QB (despite his height) and it really depends on the coaching staff to bring him along. This year may have hurt his development a lot for either because he hasn't had the continuity in either due to injuries.

Also Edwards was hurt by Fox's coaching style, which limited him being able to see the field. Because of his size and speed he is most suited as a number 1 receiver or slot receiver, he does not have the size to be a possession receiver or down field blocker. With Smith and Clowney, Fox has the "vets" he likes as his small guys and Lafell and Gettis, while both rookies, are large enough to be possession targets and downfield blockers on the side of the run.

Your lack of objectivity is just a little obvious and hurts your argument. I was reading with an open mind until this.

I don't care if you traded this year's, next year's; up, down or sideways; if you're drafting a guy in the first thru third rounds, he better not be a project. He needs to be starter ready that year.

[Floppin]

Your lack of objectivity is just a little obvious and hurts your argument. I was reading with an open mind until this.

I don't care if you traded this year's, next year's; up, down or sideways; if you're drafting a guy in the first thru third rounds, he better not be a project. He needs to be starter ready that year.

Well when we use his second round pick this next draft I think he might very well be a starting caliber player.

[mav1234]

Plenty of good players get drafted early as projects, especially in positions like QB and WR, where they sit for a while. They sit, learn, do well.

I would have liked to see some product out of AE, but I just don't think we will with the coach we have.

If he's doing something next year I think the pick will be validated, even if he isn't a star yet... If he is a starter, THAT is what is important.

[Sandy Claws]

Your lack of objectivity is just a little obvious and hurts your argument. I was reading with an open mind until this.

I don't care if you traded this year's, next year's; up, down or sideways; if you're drafting a guy in the first thru third rounds, he better not be a project. He needs to be starter ready that year.

How many teams meet your standard? My bet is none.

[Floppin]

You guys act like it was a pick that we used that we already had. If we hadn't traded for it, Edwards would not be on the team at all, nor anyone else with that pick for that matter. What we would have would be whoever we picked up in next years draft with our second round pick. Another rookie, who may or may not work out, but regardless they got someone that they feel is a talent that they had a free year to develop with no consequences.

And you accuse me of having no objectivity.