Don't expect us to run much more than we have been...

[Bruce]

and both were headscratchers to most outside of Carolina......

Hurney and probably Richardson must just want to reward guys for what they have done even if the future looks nowhere near as promising as the past.

Carolina Panthers bonus plan........wonder if they're hiring?

[jtnc]

everyone shut up about hurney. what good is having a great passing offense if defenses KNOW you can't run because your running backs suck?

i'll take all the weapons we can get.

I'm sorry, I was unaware J-stew and Goodson suck. When that money could have went to deeper needs.

[Catalyst]

Rivera has always said our plan was to run the ball. We may be a vertical passing offense, but I find it difficult to believe we would have re-signed DeAngelo if we knew we didn't plan to run it much.

I think this has more to do with our struggling to run the ball.

[cdandi1]

You have to have a running attack as the season goes on and the weather gets worse. The monsoon is enough proof of the effects of bad weather on the down field passing attack. Playing in green bay or philly in the playoffs with crazy winds, snow, etc the panthers are going to need a good run game.

Disclaimer, I'm not saying we are playoff bound this year (but if we can compete within the division with winnable games vs tennessee and indy anythings possible right?) but to get where this team wants to get...a run game is essential.

[PhillyB]

I'm sorry, I was unaware J-stew and Goodson suck. When that money could have went to deeper needs.

if a historically injury-prone stewart goes down are you comfortable having mike goodson as your starting running back?

don't answer "yes" just to bolster your point

[OneBadassCat]

In a new video conference that ran on the NFL Network today Ron Rivera said:

"We are a Vertical Attack PASSING offense, that's what we like to do."

When being asked about running the ball more He said: "we had to because the weather dictated that, but we are a vertical attack style offense"

So the debate is over. We have a new identity that He and Chud are implementing. Don't expect us to run the ball much more than we have!

DeAngelo is probably loving life right now... You mean you're gonna pay me quadruple what u did before, AND ask me to do less... Where do I sign?

You can find the entire video on panthers.com

Thought u guys should know though.

That doesn't mean we can't lean on the running game. We still have the components to be the best running attack in the game. The difference is that we are no longer using the running game as a crutch.

In the past it has been a strength and a weakness because we haven't been able to pass the ball and the constant running makes us predictable.

I still expect us to the run the ball plenty.

[CRA]

if a historically injury-prone stewart goes down are you comfortable having mike goodson as your starting running back?

don't answer "yes" just to bolster your point

DeAngleo is much more injury prone than Stewart.

This is the NFL, playing through injury doesn't make you injury prone. If it does, then I think Steve Smith is easily the most injury prone player on our team.

and we have no one to replace Smitty if he goes down. No one close to it....nor have we tried to obtain that caliber of player.

[rayzor]

Oline/run game will get their crap together soon enough.

i don't expect that we will run much more than we do now (except in the red zone/goal line situations), but i do expect that we will run better and more effectively. we'll get back up to that 5+ ypa territory. in fact we'll probaby have 34 & 28 both breaking off for 20+ yard carries like they did a couple years back.

run game just needs a little more time. it's still early in the season.

[Marguide]

if a historically injury-prone stewart goes down are you comfortable having mike goodson as your starting running back?

I don't know why people keep saying this.

Stewart has missed 2 games in his career. How is that injury-prone? Using that definition, a majority of our players are injury prone.

[panthers55]

First of all there is plenty of opportunity to run the ball. Vertical passing attacks stretch the field vertically and make the safeties back out of the box. That alone will open up the running lanes. Secondly, short passes to the backs out of the backfield, screens and dump off passes are all part of the extended running game. We will do what the defense allows us to do given they can't stop everything.

Having 2 good backs who can block in the passing game, are great out in space on the screen and dump off passes are a real bonus. Plus they can get the tough running yards in the redzone and on third and short.

People who think that signing Williams was a mistake already had their minds made up and are using this as an excuse. Anyone who knows football would have no problem with signing them both and using them exactly as Chud is doing. We are a top 10 offense for the first time in forever.

When teams all go to the cover 2 and out their safeties deep we will run the ball on them to set up the pass. Plus it is great to have that to fall back on if Cam struggles some games.

Honestly this is a great problem to have versus having a running game and no passing game.

[CRA]

First of all there is plenty of opportunity to run the ball. Vertical passing attacks stretch the field vertically and make the safeties back out of the box. That alone will open up the running lanes. Secondly, short passes to the backs out of the backfield, screens and dump off passes are all part of the extended running game. We will do what the defense allows us to do given they can't stop everything.

Having 2 good backs who can block in the passing game, are great out in space on the screen and dump off passes are a real bonus. Plus they can get the tough running yards in the redzone and on third and short.

People who think that signing Williams was a mistake already had their minds made up and are using this as an excuse. Anyone who knows football would have no problem with signing them both and using them exactly as Chud is doing. We are a top 10 offense for the first time in forever.

When teams all go to the cover 2 and out their safeties deep we will run the ball on them to set up the pass. Plus it is great to have that to fall back on if Cam struggles some games.

Honestly this is a great problem to have versus having a running game and no passing game.

I got no issue w/ usage of the RBs.....the problem still remains there are holes on this team that his cash could of been MUCH better used on. That was said before the season started.....and is just looking more and more so as the season goes on.

[panthers55]

I got no issue w/ usage of the RBs.....the problem still remains there are holes on this team that his cash could of been MUCH better used on. That was said before the season started.....and is just looking more and more so as the season goes on.

That assumes that we would have spent the cash we used on him in other areas. I don't know that to be the case nor do you. Paying DeAngelo was done on several levels. Not signing him would have hurt Richardson's credibility with the fans and players. What do you think Goodson or Stewart would think if we dumped Williams before the season. Oh goody more carries for me?? Or you can't count on this franchise to reward a player after his rookie contract is done no matter how well you play?? Secondly who knew that Cam would learn this fast or start out so well. Common wisdom is that the defense and running game were going to be needed to keep us in games while Newton learned the pro game. This decision was made in the offseason not today in hindsight after we see how the offense is functioning.

And finally it has been 3 games which is barely 1/5 of the season. Can we wait until the season is over to decide if a multiyear contract for a running back is a waste or not???

[Snake]

Will be interesting to see what Chico does should Cam start stringing together multi-INT games

Having the hardest schedule in the NFL by the time Cam gets to mid season he will prob have seen almost every defense there is. Those picks will become less and less. Besides if your putting 40 up every game does it matter?

[nosuchthingasapanther]

That assumes that we would have spent the cash we used on him in other areas. I don't know that to be the case nor do you. Paying DeAngelo was done on several levels. Not signing him would have hurt Richardson's credibility with the fans and players. What do you think Goodson or Stewart would think if we dumped Williams before the season. Oh goody more carries for me?? Or you can't count on this franchise to reward a player after his rookie contract is done no matter how well you play?? Secondly who knew that Cam would learn this fast or start out so well. Common wisdom is that the defense and running game were going to be needed to keep us in games while Newton learned the pro game. This decision was made in the offseason not today in hindsight after we see how the offense is functioning.

And finally it has been 3 games which is barely 1/5 of the season. Can we wait until the season is over to decide if a multiyear contract for a running back is a waste or not???

there's paying someone, and then there's paying someone what they're worth.

should carolina have resigned williams? yes.

should they have paid him $21 million? no.

i can guarantee you that if they had let williams test the market and topped the best deal out there they would not be near the amount he was given.

nobody was going to pay that kind of money to him.

his contract rewrote the payscale for running backs...and the biggest ripple effect of them all...if stewart finishes the season as the leading franchise rb for the third season in a row, or williams misses time and stewart carries the load for him for the third season in a row....stewart's price tag to stay in carolina will go thru the roof.

as it stands right now, the least they can pay him is what williams is making right now.

i'm sure that the majority of fans and players would have been satisfied with a sincere effort to keep williams at a lesser price. if he decided to leave, then so be it.

no one expected them to jump headfirst into an empty pool to keep him, but that's exactly what they did.