Category: Panthers

The Carolina Panthers are all in on Bryce Young this season

The Carolina Panthers have proven that they’re all in on Bryce Young’s development in Year 2. How will that manifest itself on the field?

It’s always a good sign in the NFL when a team can learn from its own mistakes and adjust moving forward. This is especially true given the recent history of the Carolina Panthers and their historically stubborn owner David Tepper who have routinely bumbled the most important position in football since Tepper arrived in Charlotte back in 2018. Heading into the 2024 offseason, it appears Tepper and the Panthers have committed in making sure their current quarterback has the best possibility for success moving forward.

Now entering his second season after being the first overall pick the year previous, quarterback Bryce Young becomes the first quarterback since Cam Newton to be the Week 1 starter in consecutive seasons. Given Young’s first season was a bit disastrous, in large part thanks to an abysmal supporting cast, the Panthers are intent on maximizing ways for their young leader to succeed.

Carolina has spent this offseason dumping money into what was their biggest weaknesses from last season on the offensive side of the ball in an effort to ensure Bryce Young has everything he needs to develop as their starting quarterback. Dumping $153 million dollars in contracts for guards Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis in free agency, as well as snagging one of the best separating receivers in the league from the Steelers in a trade in Diontae Johnson.

These moves to dump resources into the offense have come at a bit of a cost however. Three of Carolina’s best players on the defensive side of the ball have departed via free agency or trade. Brian Burns, Frankie Luvu, and Jeremy Chinn have been staples of this defense for years and were large contributors into making it a respectable unit. It takes maturity to understand how to build around your young quarterback and understanding the sacrifices that have to be made to do that. Building from the outside in to make sure your investment in Young reaps profits is one investor move Tepper certainly has right.

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Wrapping up NFL free agency for 2024

2024 NFL free agency is just about in the books, so it’s time for Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar to analyze the biggest transactions in the second wave.

Now that most of NFL free agency for the 2024 league year is in the bag — though there are a few helpful players still on the open market — it’s time for Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup, and Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire, to recap the biggest and most important moves in the second wave of this free agency phase. Greg and Doug covered the first day of free agency last week in the Xs and Os; here’s the conclusion.

Among the discussion points:

  • What does Brian Burns bring to a Giants defensive line that already has Kayvon Thibodeaux and Dexter Lawrence?
  • Can Justin Fields become the best version of himself in the Steelers’ offense?
  • Conversely, can Kenny Pickett turn his career around with the Eagles?
  • How can Calvin Ridley use his true X-Iso skill set to ramp up the Titans’ offense?
  • Can the Texans’ addition of Danielle Hunter, along with Will Anderson Jr. and Denico Autry, make Houston’s defensive line a Super Bowl-level group?
  • What can Hollywood Brown do for the Chiefs?
  • Tyron Smith is a future Hall of Famer, but what will he be able to do for the Jets’ offensive line in the short term?
  • Chase Young has been an inconsistent pass-rusher throughout his NFL career; can he turn it around with the Saints?
  • The Lions made important additions to their defensive line and their secondary; can all that put them over the top?
  • The Falcons already have a ton of weapons for new quarterback Kirk Cousins. How will the addition of receiver Rondale Moore affect what looks like one of like the NFL’s most explosive offenses (in theory, at least)?

You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Giants trade with Panthers for edge-rusher Brian Burns, who gets massive new contract

With Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Dexter Lawrence, the Giants now present impossible problems for opposing offensive lines.

16 months ago, the Los Angeles Rams offered two first-round picks (2024, 2025) and a second-round pick (2023) to the Carolina Panthers for the services of edge-rusher Brian Burns, and the Panthers turned the Rams down.

Now, the Panthers have traded Burns to the New York Giants for second- and fifth-round picks, and they’re off the hook for Burns’ new contract. That’s up to the Giants, who — per Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network — will give Burns a new five-year deal worth up to $150 million with $87.5 million guaranteed.

As they say, timing is everything.

For the Panthers, it’s just more picks and more cap space free for new general manager Dan Morgan as the franchise keeps up the rebuilding process. For the Giants, it’s the opportunity to put Burns on the other side of edge-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux, with nose tackle super-destroyer Dexter Lawrence in the middle. Which isn’t bad at all.

Last season, Burns had nine sacks and 40 total pressures, which was actually a bit of a down year for him — the 2019 16th overall pick out of Florida State had 13 sacks and 68 pressures in a career-best 2022 season. But Burns still has that ferocious acceleration to the quarterback, he can put speed-to-power moves together quite estimably, and he has a full array of techniques to get to the quarterback.

Given Burns’ relative limitations in the run game, this might be a bit of an overpay, but if it all works out, the Giants have created an impossible question to answer: Who on that defensive line do you double-team?

Panthers make major move for ex-Dolphins guard (and #THICCSIX star) Robert Hunt

Robert Hunt goes to the Panthers as a top-tier guard, and a sneaky red-zone #THICCSIX weapon. What’s not to like?

The Carolina Panthers are all too aware that they need to surround second-year quarterback Bryce Young with as much talent as possible, and the team took a big step forward in that regard on Monday by agreeing to terms with former Miami Dolphins offensive guard Robert Hunt on a massive deal.

Over four seasons with the Miami Dolphins, Hunt has allowed a total of nine sacks and 61 total pressures, with one sack and five total pressures allowed in 376 pass-blocking snaps. The Dolphins have one of the NFL’s most complex and multi-faceted run game, and Hunt was a bastion of consistency on a line that was a bit all over the place. Which is what Hunt will try and solve in his new home.

Moreover, Hunt adds a potential red zone target for Young — you can read more about this particular play here.

Dolphins guard Robert Hunt cheated out of greatest Big Man Touchdown ever

Dave Canales is the perfect hire for Bryce Young if David Tepper can be patient

Dave Canales looks like the right man for the job if owner David Tepper can keep his interference to a minimum.

It’s not exactly a secret that the Carolina Panthers have one of the most trigger-happy owners in all of sports in David Tepper, who of late has given a short leash to just about everyone associated with the franchise. Following a disastrously bad last two seasons, Carolina has essentially gone through four coaches in just that short span. Now with the hiring of the young offensive coordinator for Tampa Bay in Dave Canales, Tepper must learn to exercise patience with both his young quarterback and new head coach.

Canales was one of the top young offensive minds available going into this coaching cycle and thought it was a bit of a surprise hire, it was certainly the right one. When looking to establish an identity, one which Carolina lacks, snagging a young and motivated guy like Canales makes perfect sense. With a track record that includes a Russell Wilson dream season and rebirths for both quarterbacks Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield, Canales has proven to be able to come in and provide quarterbacks with an opportunity to succeed within this Shanahan style offense. The number one urgency of this franchise is surrounding quarterback Bryce Young with talent on the offensive line and with more weapons than what is currently rostered, on top of getting Young to discontinue his up and down play that we saw last season.

This is not going to be an overnight fix by any means, this team is severely lacking in depth on both sides of the ball and do not possess a first round pick until 2025 after trading this years away for their current quarterback. Canales and new general manager Dan Morgan are going to need to follow a tight path in order to strengthen the depth along the offensive line and defense as well as address the woeful group of weapons surrounding Young.

Barring a miracle by Canales his is going to be at minimum a two year project before we really start to see the fruits of the upcoming labor that will define this new duo. Tepper will be wells served to go hands off, resisting his past behaviors of forcing players onto the roster and cutting loose coaches at the drop of the hat. The less interference by an owner has been historically successful, and allowing these two talented and seasoned men in Canales and Morgen build to the best of their ability is going to be key in snapping the nightmare that has been the Tepper regime so far.

Panthers choosing Bucs OC Dave Canales as their head coach

The Panthers are zeroing in on Bucs OC Dave Canales as their next head coach

Dave Canales fixed Baker Mayfield and Tampa Bay in 2023. His next task is far more monumental.

Canales is on the verge of leaving the Buccaneers for another NFC South team. The Carolina Panthers are ready to hire the offensive coordinator as their head coach.

In Carolina, Canales would step into a job with the worst team in the NFL. The Panthers were 2-15 in 2023 and do not have the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

That is because they dealt their first pick in 2024 to the Chicago Bears so they could draft Bryce Young as the first pick in 2023.

The results were awful and Canales has a big, big job in front of him. The only positive is the division is weak.

The perfect head coaching candidates for each vacancy

The perfect head coaching candidate for every current vacancy around the NFL.

There have been a plethora of teams around the NFL that decided to move on from their now former head coaches. From the totally expected to the outright shocking, there are currently eight head coaching vacancies around the NFL- each one with a candidate that could help turn their tides.

Side note: I don’t think Bill Belichick or Mike Vrabel take any current vacancy.

2024 NFL Mock Draft: End-of-season quarterback decisions lead to surprising picks

How many NFL teams will stick with their current quarterbacks? A high number could make for an interesting first round of the 2024 draft.

Now that the 2023 NFL regular season is over, every team turns its attention to the draft — even those teams that are part of the postseason. Area scouts will start to move to the home facility to interact with scouting directors and general managers, and with the scouting combine less than two months away, it’s time to start putting your big boards together.

This applies especially to those teams with crucial quarterback decisions to make. For the purposes of this mock draft, we’ll assume that the Chicago Bears are sticking with Justin Fields, the Arizona Cardinals are committed to Kyler Murray, the Tennessee Titans think they have a future franchise quarterback in Will Levis, and the New York Jets think that eventually, Aaron Rodgers will stop shooting his mouth off long enough to play quarterback in 2024.

Conversely, the Washington Commanders, New England Patriots, New York Giants, and Atlanta Falcons will avail themselves of the best draftable quarterbacks possible in the interest of turning things around.

So, four quarterbacks go in the first round here, with more teams looking to build around the guys they’ve already got. That makes for one notable omission (Oregon’s Bo Nix), and a whole bunch of talented prospects at other positions pushing themselves up the boards.

Panthers owner David Tepper fined 300K for unacceptable behavior

Panthers owner David Tepper was zapped with a 300K fine by the NFL

That was one expensive drink Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper threw at a fan Sunday in Jacksonville.

The NFL fined the owner of the team with the worst record in the league $300,000 for throwing the drink,

Tepper offered a statement for his behavior.

“I am deeply passionate about this team and regret my behavior on Sunday,” Tepper’s statement read. “I should have let NFL stadium security handle any issues that arose. I respect the NFL’s code of conduct and accept the League’s discipline for my behavior.”

In addition to being shut out by the Jaguars, Week 17 was the game that saw the Panthers clinch what turned out to be the first pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

The pick they traded to the Chicago Bears last year for their first pick in the 2023 draft, which Carolina turned into Alabama QB Bryce Young.

4-Down Territory: Lamar MVP, Brad Allen needs to go, Eagles or Chiefs, Worst of the Week

In this week’s “4-Down Territory,” Doug Farrar and Kyle Madson discuss Lamar Jackson, Brad Allen, Eagles or Chiefs, and the Worst of the Week.

With 17 weeks of actual football in the books for the 2023 NFL season, it’s time once again for Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire, and Kyle Madson of Niners Wire, to come to the table with their own unique brand of analysis in “4-Down Territory.”

This week, the guys have some serious questions to answer:

  1. Can anybody but Lamar Jackson be the NFL Most Valuable Player right now?
  2. It is time for the NFL to fire referee Brad Allen and his entire crew?
  3. If you had to take one of last year’s two Super Bowl teams — the Chiefs or the Eagles — which one would you be stuck with?
  4. And what was your Worst of the Week (non-officiating version)?

You can watch this week’s “4-Down Territory” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “4-Down Territory” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.