Rivera will be....

[Chimera]

Oh, you're correct, but I was referring more to the other guy's comment about Rivera being the worst first year coach in Panther's history which, even if it comes to pass, means little, a la Jimmie Johnson

and i also stated...

yeah, I know it doesn't mean anything... just trivia if you're interested

selective reading FTW

[Delhomeboy]

and i also stated...

selective reading FTW

It was meant to be a joke. Has no one come up with the sarcasm font yet? :D

[mav1234]

fox' early teams were streaky

2002

started 3-0

lost 8 in a row, then won 4 of 5.

2003

started 5-0

had a 3 game losing streak somewhere in there before a winning streak to end the season/enter the playoffs

I'd forgotten we started 3-0 in 2002, just remembered the 4-1 at the end of the season, hehe

[Actionman0z]

So far Im not impressed by him, but better than clapping and gum chewing. 2-6 is 2-6 though. He's new. Hes got a bit of time.

[Cyberjag]

I think he's made more than a few mistakes, but it would be a terrible mistake to try and judge him on the season to date. For one, he had no training camp. For two, he's dealt with a lot of injuries. For three, he inherited a very young team.

Fox's first team was streaky, but successful. This was largely because he benched Weinke and brought in Rodney Peete and Lamar Smith, two veterans. He also was the beneficiary of a pretty damn good draft class in 2001 that had a year under it's belt. Rivera has gone the other route, doubling down on the youth movement.

Fox gave us a long string of seasons where we were always a threat to contend, but never really achieved greatness after 2003. Maybe Rivera's approach will be better. It's certainly different. And it's certainly too early to judge.

[L-TownCat]

Damn its so hard to get people to just agree that we really have something here. Yeah I know rr is 2-6. So the fug what? I'm behind him I like what he's doing. This team is full of players that forgot how to win. The whole point of my thread was to give a little appreciation to the man who's running this show. Record aside I still love the direction things are headed. So poopoo on the team you claim to root for all you want. I'm done arguing with "fans".

[The Saltman]

poopoo he says.

[mav1234]

Damn its so hard to get people to just agree that we really have something here. Yeah I know rr is 2-6. So the fug what? I'm behind him I like what he's doing. This team is full of players that forgot how to win. The whole point of my thread was to give a little appreciation to the man who's running this show. Record aside I still love the direction things are headed. So poopoo on the team you claim to root for all you want. I'm done arguing with "fans".

if you can't understand that some of us aren't ready to crown a 2-6 head coach as someone who will be the best we've ever had just because his #1 overall draft pick is playing well and the coach gives good interviews with only 8 games under his belt, you're going to just be continually frustrated here.

I'm behind Rivera 100% and I understand that he's not had a proper offseason to really install his stuff. I also understand injuries decimated the defense and in turn hurt the special teams. I don't place the blame on him completely for a 2-6 record. He's made his mistakes, sure, but he's done some good things as well, particularly with targeting Chud, turning the offense over to Cam, and getting our veterans like Smitty and Gamble to really buy into what he's doing... But I want to see some team-wide positive results before I say much more than that.

[Chimera]

I like that Rivera is transforming this team into what he wants.

Many of us worry too much about the run game - he's not building a Foxball team. Remember Fox couldn't even get these guys to play Foxball last year. Rivera has his plan and he's molding guys to fit his plan.

I think Rivera understands how the team was run in the past - afterall, his teams are 0-2 against us in the postseason (Philly 2003, Chicago 2005) and who can forget the week 1 2008 game in San Diego? He's taking us in a new direction. I respect that and I'm not putting much stake into this transition year.

That being said, I wish he'd stop trying to make the Panthers into a San Diego Chargers clone.

[bleys]

Damn its so hard to get people to just agree that we really have something here. Yeah I know rr is 2-6. So the fug what? I'm behind him I like what he's doing. This team is full of players that forgot how to win. The whole point of my thread was to give a little appreciation to the man who's running this show. Record aside I still love the direction things are headed. So poopoo on the team you claim to root for all you want. I'm done arguing with "fans".

I share your optimism.. but I also understand why people are hesitant to put a label on Rivera yet..

I look forward to the next few years...