Gary Barnidge signing with Cleveland

[TheRed]

I always liked Barnidge, wish him well.

[csx]

It's interesting that Chudzinski did not utilize him much and yet had to play a part in his signing in Cleveland.

[Panthro]

I'll just be glad that we finally won't have to hear that this will be his breakout year when he becomes an impact player for the Panthers. God forbid he catch a ball or two in Cleveland though...

Aren't you one of the ones saying that about Armanti year in and year out?

[Carl Spackler]

lol not even 24 hours into FA and a lot of talent still available but since we haven't picked anyone up i guess that means we won't.

too funny.

Considering there's very little cap room, and this team's philosophy is not to make a FA splash it's safe to say there will be little impact from this FA period. I'm not talking about specifically today, I'm talking about the whole time. I guess I'm just not as great at cooking up blind optimism as I once was.

[LinvilleGorge]

Aren't you one of the ones saying that about Armanti year in and year out?

Uhhh... hell no.

[Miiikey]

meh. we have olsen.

[PhillyB]

I think we snag a TE in the drafts later rounds this year.

[rayzor]

It's interesting that Chudzinski did not utilize him much and yet had to play a part in his signing in Cleveland.

could be he's desperate or has a short memory.

barnidge could have been used this year by chud and you have to wonder why. i think maybe he forgot.

[Who Said What?]

It's interesting that Chudzinski did not utilize him much and yet had to play a part in his signing in Cleveland.

I thought if they would have put him in and run the two TE set like two years ago, he would have done fine. Instead, they never put him on the field. When he got his one chance, touchdown.

[rayzor]

Considering there's very little cap room, and this team's philosophy is not to make a FA splash it's safe to say there will be little impact from this FA period. I'm not talking about specifically today, I'm talking about the whole time. I guess I'm just not as great at cooking up blind optimism as I once was.

that's not what gettleman said he's going to do. he said he believes we need to patch holes using FA. there's a lot of holes on the team.

i'd say that 1) he's not done with the cap and 2) we pick up several players in the next week to start filling those holes. he'll probably try and get as much done before the draft to free up the team to take the best player available and then he'll pick up several more as the offseason goes on.

i just don't see us sitting on our hands the whole FA period....esp. knowing that there is so much time left, that there's a lot of value out there and will be more, and that gettleman likes finding diamonds or at least solid players where others don't see them. he's good at it.

this isn't blind optimism. i'm not expecting some big name talent to come here nor do i think it's necessary. i do think that this team will be in better shape than it was when the season starts as far as personnel is concerned. we'll still have questionable coaches, but at the very least we won't be less talented than we were last year.

[LinvilleGorge]

that's not what gettleman said he's going to do. he said he believes we need to patch holes using FA. there's a lot of holes on the team.

i'd say that 1) he's not done with the cap and 2) we pick up several players in the next week to start filling those holes. he'll probably try and get as much done before the draft to free up the team to take the best player available and then he'll pick up several more as the offseason goes on.

i just don't see us sitting on our hands the whole FA period....esp. knowing that there is so much time left, that there's a lot of value out there and will be more, and that gettleman likes finding diamonds or at least solid players where others don't see them. he's good at it.

this isn't blind optimism. i'm not expecting some big name talent to come here nor do i think it's necessary. i do think that this team will be in better shape than it was when the season starts as far as personnel is concerned. we'll still have questionable coaches, but at the very least we won't be less talented than we were last year.

I agree. We'll make some free agent moves, but they won't be big splashes. You always have to overpay to land the premier free agents and we already have enough bad contracts on this roster. We sure as hell can't afford anymore.

[scpanther22]

If he could be a great player, he would've gotten a chance. There's a reason why we went out and got Shockey when Chud was wanting to run a bunch of two TE sets. He showed promise in '09, but after that... nothing.

That only works if you have coaches/GM that are able to recognise and utilize talent.

[rayzor]

I think we snag a TE in the drafts later rounds this year.

i don't know...if tyler eifert is there when we pick in the second round i think it's hard to pass that guy up. big guy who is a great blocker and receiver.

[rayzor]

I agree. We'll make some free agent moves, but they won't be big splashes. You always have to overpay to land the premier free agents and we already have enough bad contracts on this roster. We sure as hell can't afford anymore.

the thing is, if you're as good at spotting overlooked talent as gettleman is repped for, then you shouldn't have to to pay a whole lot. you find hidden gems for cheap and give the an opportunity to flourish and once they've done it and it's time for them to get paid, you thank them for their service and let them walk to some other team to be paid and you find another for your team.