Other than DT what areas have we really improved?

[jarhead]

Is upgrading our DT position going to be enough to make this a winning franchise? Can Rivera develop the young talent in our secondary to be good enough to keep teams from those game winning drives?

 

I feel much better about the defense than the offense right now. I am pleased with how Rivera has developed the talent on defense but am much more uncertain about the OL.

 

I also feel that adding Ginn will improve our special teams but question what if anything he will contribute at WR given his history when in pads.

 

With Gross getting some age and Bell being slow  I am most concerned that we may be vulnerable to the edge rush.As for the running game Bell will do, but Piggy is not that roadgrader to get the push to move the line.

 

I understand the need to save money but would feel better if we could add a guy like Brandon Moore to the OL.

[Panic]

OC

[Taro ∆]

Adding a veteran Blackburn and a rookie like Klein to our LB core made that unit deeper, and even better than it already was.

[teeray]

Adding two studs at DT will automatically upgrade every single position of the defense.

 

Offensively we don't need players we just need to execute more efficiently and more consistently.  I do not understand and will not understand the hand wringing of our offense other than the new OC.  We have playmakers at every single position and our O-line is better than people are giving them credit for.

[stirs]

Upgrading the DLine will automatically upgrade the back 7. Beason coming back, Keek with more experience, secondary is very young except for Drayton, who will help the young guys obviously.

Last year, we ended playing pretty well with a hodge podge DLine, no Beason and a handful of young guys in the secondary. All this will be better.

Correct on the Oline, except for the fact that the field general, Kalil, is back. He makes the calls and should help a great deal. LG is by all accounts, much better this season and with the emphasis on running, he should be able to exhibit a bit more nastiness than before. Rookie at RG will mostly watch Hangman this season, but will have stints where he is on the field.

Adding Ginn, and Hixon, getting back Gettis and Pilares and the sudden emergence of AE, should hellp the WR group get immensely better. RB's are what they are.

[La Pantera]

Even with no clear replacement for Smitty, the bottom end of our WR corps are vastly improved. Maybe the best the unit has been since. Moose, Ricky and Smitty were together. Not saying they're an elite group BTW, just better than we've had in a looong time.

[pantherj]

Other than DT, we're looking at Beason, TD, and Keek as our starting LBs, so that's a big improvement. Naka won't be starting, so I'll assume we're going to be better at safety.

 

The latest buzz is that AE is looking good, and tbh I thought he looked pretty good last season as well. If he lives up to what Hurney saw in him this season, then WR would be a major improvement. Also I think Ginn is desperate to prove that he can play WR and is worthy of a starting spot. Cam can throw an amazing deep ball, and Ginn should be a match up problem for CBs on deep routes. Good combo that we didn't have last season.

 

Piggy is still a problem, and there were times last season when a stared at him like a mental patient staring at the wall. I just couldn't believe how badly he was getting pushed around, and he has next to no ability in run blocking. And watching him pull is just plain sad. He looks disabled. Bell is a little slow and he struggles at getting enough depth in pass protection. Kalil is back from a major injury, but his play is tied to the OGs next to him. He needs their help in pass protection, and they mess up it makes him worse. He relies more on leverage and redirect than on raw power, and the OGs need to be on the same page with him and help out. Silatolu was having trouble last season with stunts, and looked a half beat off on a lot of plays. If he's better this season, then the O-line should be another area of improvement.

 

If you want to worry about this teams weakest area, then look no further than our secondary. The only way our defense is going to function is if our D-line can rack up sacks and apply consistent pressure. We don't have a leader in the secondary, and the talent level is lower than any other team in the NFL. Just think of some of the adjectives that could be used to describe our DBs. Slow, short, stiff, weak. I'm worried, but the pass rush might just make up for the secondary.

 

[MadHatter]

We upgraded S, LB, WR.

OL is upgraded with Kalil coming back.

[L-TownCat]

Ask me again in October. Right now I couldn't even tell you any position has improved because they haven't played.

[bleys]

Until some games have played, this thread is just rehashing the same question over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and.............

[DaveThePanther2008]

Of course with the Defensive HOG MOLLIES that we have acquired this offseason the defense is going to be better.  They will make everyone better.   That Said

 

I still believe the surprise will be D-Backs.  Norman got a year under his belt, Thomas seems to be a front runner and we have a little depth with Dockery and White as depth.  Godfrey and Mitchell with Campbell and Lester as back-ups. 

 

I have no evidence to back my belief just the fact that they have matured from last year and a little more help up front. 

 

IMO McDerrmott will not have any excuses to make this defense very scary.  Since he has been here injury and lack of talent has limited him.   I just don't think he will be able to use those excuses.  I think we have good starters and some depth.

[BBQ&Beer]

Ask me again in October. Right now I couldn't even tell you any position has improved because they haven't played.

^This. I am very optimistic though.

[rayzor]

it's possible that we've improved the secondary a little. it's likely that the WR corps as a whole and as a whole it may be better than any weve had before... but if smitty goes down it's also likely we'll be up the creek without a paddle so there's that.

 

i think if beason is back the LB corps is as stout as any we've ever had and much better than last year.

 

with kalil being full go and the rest of the OL healthy and silatolu having a year under his belt, the OL should be better, but that right side is still questionable.

 

i think DT is really the only position i feel much better about, tho. the rest still have a ton of question marks.

[Red Zone]

While opinions on position improvement is subjective, (Until proven on the field), I feel significant progress has been made in several areas. Obviously the DL has huge opportunities going forward depending on how quickly the new additions can get comfortable in the transition. (No doubt Star and Kawann will contribute, just not sure how quickly)

 

As already stated, the LB position is certainly solid, and I agree additions/competition in the defensive backfield will eventually pay off. (Improved front 7 will help)

 

I wish the OL was not a concern, and I'm not so sure it really is. Maybe homerism, but I honestly feel they will be OK, and I see improvement at WR with the addition of Ginn and Hixon.

 

At this point I am excited about the potential improvement through player development. I really think this is the year where Cam will get even better in both play and leadership. I also think we will see huge jumps with several other players, (Frank Alexander, Amini Silatolu, J. Thomas, J. Norman, and yes even Armanti Edwards)

 

Go Panthers!