Coach Rivera Says "adding Lb Depth Important"

[carolina-chuck]

There are also a ton of comparable DTs to whoever goes off the board first. There aren't comparable LBs to Luke.

I'm fine with Kuechly at 9th.

Kuechly is not going to fall in the 2nd. Thought we're talking about lb in the 2nd and later.

[MadHatter]

That's very true and for some reason I knew someone were going to say that. But, dt and cb is much more important. It's going to be harder finding gems at dt/cb in this draft than lb later.

Rivera has said over and over that he DOES NOT view DT as an area of need.

[carolina-chuck]

Rivera has said over and over that he DOES NOT view DT as an area of need.

Then why bring in brockers and worthy in for visits if it wasn't important. And seeing teams ran up on our throat last year, if Dt is not a need then I don't know what is.

[MadHatter]

Then why bring in brockers and worthy in for visits if it wasn't important. And seeing teams ran up on our throat last year, if Dt is not a need then I don't know what is.

They are definitely covering all of their bases and doing all of their homework. But he has said many times that he does not view DT as a significant area of need.

[cotblock]

Then why bring in brockers and worthy in for visits if it wasn't important. And seeing teams ran up on our throat last year, if Dt is not a need then I don't know what is.

Planning for various scenarios. Draft day trades cause some players to drop into your lap. If that happens, Rivera wants to be ready. It could also signify they are at least planning for the possibility of adding picks by trading back...but since that's something I want, I'm probably just reading that into it.

[Herbert The Love Bug]

It doesn't gaurantee that we will draft a LB. We have other positions that we have to address just as badly

[MadHatter]

It doesn't gaurantee that we will draft a LB. We have other positions that we have to address just as badly

I don't think that it guarantees anything.

I love the fact that Rivera and this staff are looking at all positions and what potential players may be available (trading up, staying put, or trading back) that might be available when the Panthers pick.

[megadeth078]

Rivera has said over and over that he DOES NOT view DT as an area of need.

I, too, would be tempted to get Coples to pair him up with Johnson and just stick whoever the fug journeymen/noob DT in between them and see what happens. I also would like to see what getting an "elite" linebacker in Kuechly does for us and seeing if that improves Hardy/Johnson's pash rush and alleviates our DT problems. I would also be tempted to see if a solid CB is the missing piece that improves our pash rush and our weak saftey coverage.

A lot of scenarios can play out in the first round. Drafting a DT in the first round to be an impact player or getting an offensive player when we need so much help on defense would be the only scenarios I would consider as a failure.

[KendrickPanther]

I couldn't disagree more with this statement. With the rise of the TE position in "today's NFL" as you put it, the LB position has never been more important. LBers will have to check these TE's and if they can't keep up, u will get burned every time!

Linebackers are important in my opinion but if you look around the league you will see they are not valued. Look at Charles Johnson's contract, he had one good season and is making 10mil a year. Look at Jon Beason, a proven commodity and hes getting 5mil a year. Following this logic Coples/Ingram are valued higher than Kuechly. Look at the Giants last year, who was playing linebacker for them? They had a substitute teacher picking off Brady on a deep TE route. Why? Because JPP and Tuck were pressuring Brady. If you look at the money and were guys are drafted the linebacker position is not valued.

[TruCatzFan]

Well you just took it to another level when you brought salaries into the equation. If you look at it like that you're absolutely right, the #'s don't lie. I think that we all could agree that having stud LBers over the middle will be something that trends in the league over the next several years after the year of the TE's. Ask the AFC East about those guys up in NE....... I bet they value the hell out of the LB position now.

The game has always been about pressuring the QB. It won't ever change either. The LBing core is about to experience a lot more in salaries than years past for what they're expected to do. They mostly always been about stuffing the run and blitzing schemes, and sometimes drop back in coverage. Now they will be dropping back in coverage far more often as the game evolves more and more into a passing league. None of this is news to any serious fan. All I'm saying is to not forget about the position and more importantly don't under value it.

Coach Rivera was a LBer himself, so I know that he's on it. We will be drafting a LB no later than the 2nd round.

As far as CB's go (earlier post in this thread) I don't see us doing that until later in the draft. Don't forget that we have Hogan and the coaching staff is Very High on his ceiling. He would have been a 1st rndr last year if not for injury and off field issues. They had to know that he likely wouldn't play last year. They have a plan and 3 defensive Gurus on our staff. It all will work out. Have faith.

[TruCatzFan]

I meant AFC East... Can we not edit posts now? Or is it just from my phone that I can't?

Never mind, once I zoomed in I saw it. It's camoflauged and the same color as the background...

[pOpCoRnPoPpEr]

I have Brown as the 2nd round pick in my mock. I think he will standout in this system.

[Ivan The Awesome]

For me, these are the acceptable picks at #9. Not including the ones I hope drop to us, Claiborne or Blackmon.

DeCastro, Kuechley, Cox, Coples, Floyd (yes, he's worth a 9 to me.), and Kirkpatrick (barely).

If we pick him, so be it.

[TANTRIC-NINJA]

I saw Kendricks in the 4th..he is projected as a second rounder and made tons of plays..

He is 5-11 but a sideline to sideline guy..