Last Year:
The season for Carolina started with an injection of life from new coach John Fox. Gone was the emotionless George Seifert whose facial expression reminded many of Stephen Seagal. John Fox enforced a strong defensive system which paid dividends immediately as the Panthers were the talk of the town for the first few weeks. But then just like me at the blackjack table, after winning their first 3, the Panthers came back reality losing 8 in a row. The ageless wonder Rodney Peete showed that he still had some stability in those old knees and gave the Panthers ?reliable? play at QB. This team can take a lot of positive from last year heading into September.
What we learned from Last Year:
This team can play defense. Simply put. Not too surprising considering an ex-defensive co-coordinator took over as head coach. What was surprising is when this defense suffered numerous injuries/suspensions they kept playing very hard. When you can plug in your second or third string guys on defense and your team doesn?t have much of a drop-off that is a sign of good coaching. This defense does not boast many big names, and is extremely weak at the cornerback position, but their ability to consistently get pressure on the QB is what made the defense look good. Peppers averaged a sack a game, Mike Rucker and Brentston Buckner were very difficult to block with just one man, and Kris Jenkins also developed into a nice lineman. By getting so much pressure from only their front four it allowed everyone else to drop back into coverage. Their weak cornerbacks can get some help which they need in order to shut other teams down. This defensive line carried them all the way to number two ranking in overall defense.
If that didn?t surprise you, then how about Rodney Peete? He clearly showed that he has a litre or two left in the gas tank. Now don?t stretch my words, I?m not saying he is the NFL?s version Karl Malone or Edgar Martinez, but in this system on this particular team, they require a QB who will do from point A to point B. Peete was not spectacular, but he stayed away from game-breaking mistakes and he put his team in a position to win. They may have lost 8 in a row, but 4 of those games were by 3 points or less. So what did we learn? This team battles. Whether its Mike ?after dinner? Minter on the field, or whether its his third string backup, they play just as hard.
What has changed?:
The Panthers have added quite a few players via free agency this summer, mostly on the offensive side of the ball. Signing Stephen Davis could prove to be a large addition to this team. The Panthers focus on pounding the ball, and playing defense. This is the type of offense Davis is also used too, opposed to the new offense in Washington that he was pushed out of. Bringing in Kevin Dyson and Ricky Proehl are moves that will add some consistency and depth to their receiving corps. Steve Smith is a bit of a butterfingers at times, and Muhsin Muhammed usually misses a week or two each year. It?s nice to know they will have some hands behind them. Drafting offensive linemen in the first couple of rounds shows that they still believe Rodney Peete can give this team some wins so they are making a strong effort to protect him. They also want to make sure that when they try Delhomme out, that he is in a position to succeed, and a stronger offensive line will definitely help him out.
Although this team?s backups played very hard last year, I think some of those losses in the eight game losing streak can be accounted for a lack of depth. This team has tried to address that in the off-season, but they need to stay healthy to be a contender.
I am not a believer of Rodney Peete, but if he comes in with his yellow hat and lunch pail everyday than what does it matter how old he is? This team has added some weapons for him, added some linemen to protect him, added a backup plan in case he goes down, and added a solid running back. These are assets that they did not have last year. The key for this team to win games is for their defense to stay healthy. This defense was second in the league in sacks last year, and most of those came from the front lines. If they can continue to do this combined with a healthy year from Dan Morgan, then look out!
O/U 6.5:
Let me get this straight: The Panthers lost their starting QB for a couple of games last year, their best linebacker, Dan Morgan, was present for only half the season, Julius Peppers only played 12 games, and Brentston Buckner was suspended as well yet this team finished 2nd in total defense? Why won?t they win 7 games? They did it last year; they seem to be better this year. This is a tough team to figure simply because so much is riding on the shoulders (or should I say knees) of Rodney Peete. I don?t think Delhomme can fill in if Peete calls in sick. He?s had opportunities before and he hasn?t proven much. So can they get the same play out of Peete this year? Well to handicap this total we have to assume yes. He hasn?t shown otherwise yet, so let?s take a look at the schedule. In division things look bleak. I?ll say they beat Tampa in a field goal match, and shutdown the Saints once and find a way to clip Michael Vick after last year?s embarrassments. That leaves them with about 4 to 5 more games they have to win out of division vs.: Jaguars, Titans, @Texans, Redskins, @Cowboys, Eagles, @Cardinals, Lions, @Giants. It looks good, but this sharp pain in the left part of my chest says, ?I?m not sure?. I just get the feeling that this team will be Delhomme?s at some point this year, and I haven?t seen him on the Gatorade commercials, so I don?t know ?if it?s in him?.
Fantasy Sleeper:
If you?re looking for a guy to pick from this team Stephen Davis is the best choice. He should see the ball a lot in this offense because they will look to control the clock. Your buddies might pass up on him in the earlier rounds because of his sub par year in Washington but things will change for him in this offense. He had 17 touchdowns a couple of years back, and if Carolina wants to keep the attention off of Peete then he could re-attain that number. Taking a receiver in this offense is risky. Muhammed should do the best statistically but with many more targets this year the passes are not likely to be concentrated to one receiver.
P.S. I won't be doing one preview a day, but I'll just bang them out as soon as I can.
The season for Carolina started with an injection of life from new coach John Fox. Gone was the emotionless George Seifert whose facial expression reminded many of Stephen Seagal. John Fox enforced a strong defensive system which paid dividends immediately as the Panthers were the talk of the town for the first few weeks. But then just like me at the blackjack table, after winning their first 3, the Panthers came back reality losing 8 in a row. The ageless wonder Rodney Peete showed that he still had some stability in those old knees and gave the Panthers ?reliable? play at QB. This team can take a lot of positive from last year heading into September.
What we learned from Last Year:
This team can play defense. Simply put. Not too surprising considering an ex-defensive co-coordinator took over as head coach. What was surprising is when this defense suffered numerous injuries/suspensions they kept playing very hard. When you can plug in your second or third string guys on defense and your team doesn?t have much of a drop-off that is a sign of good coaching. This defense does not boast many big names, and is extremely weak at the cornerback position, but their ability to consistently get pressure on the QB is what made the defense look good. Peppers averaged a sack a game, Mike Rucker and Brentston Buckner were very difficult to block with just one man, and Kris Jenkins also developed into a nice lineman. By getting so much pressure from only their front four it allowed everyone else to drop back into coverage. Their weak cornerbacks can get some help which they need in order to shut other teams down. This defensive line carried them all the way to number two ranking in overall defense.
If that didn?t surprise you, then how about Rodney Peete? He clearly showed that he has a litre or two left in the gas tank. Now don?t stretch my words, I?m not saying he is the NFL?s version Karl Malone or Edgar Martinez, but in this system on this particular team, they require a QB who will do from point A to point B. Peete was not spectacular, but he stayed away from game-breaking mistakes and he put his team in a position to win. They may have lost 8 in a row, but 4 of those games were by 3 points or less. So what did we learn? This team battles. Whether its Mike ?after dinner? Minter on the field, or whether its his third string backup, they play just as hard.
What has changed?:
The Panthers have added quite a few players via free agency this summer, mostly on the offensive side of the ball. Signing Stephen Davis could prove to be a large addition to this team. The Panthers focus on pounding the ball, and playing defense. This is the type of offense Davis is also used too, opposed to the new offense in Washington that he was pushed out of. Bringing in Kevin Dyson and Ricky Proehl are moves that will add some consistency and depth to their receiving corps. Steve Smith is a bit of a butterfingers at times, and Muhsin Muhammed usually misses a week or two each year. It?s nice to know they will have some hands behind them. Drafting offensive linemen in the first couple of rounds shows that they still believe Rodney Peete can give this team some wins so they are making a strong effort to protect him. They also want to make sure that when they try Delhomme out, that he is in a position to succeed, and a stronger offensive line will definitely help him out.
Although this team?s backups played very hard last year, I think some of those losses in the eight game losing streak can be accounted for a lack of depth. This team has tried to address that in the off-season, but they need to stay healthy to be a contender.
I am not a believer of Rodney Peete, but if he comes in with his yellow hat and lunch pail everyday than what does it matter how old he is? This team has added some weapons for him, added some linemen to protect him, added a backup plan in case he goes down, and added a solid running back. These are assets that they did not have last year. The key for this team to win games is for their defense to stay healthy. This defense was second in the league in sacks last year, and most of those came from the front lines. If they can continue to do this combined with a healthy year from Dan Morgan, then look out!
O/U 6.5:
Let me get this straight: The Panthers lost their starting QB for a couple of games last year, their best linebacker, Dan Morgan, was present for only half the season, Julius Peppers only played 12 games, and Brentston Buckner was suspended as well yet this team finished 2nd in total defense? Why won?t they win 7 games? They did it last year; they seem to be better this year. This is a tough team to figure simply because so much is riding on the shoulders (or should I say knees) of Rodney Peete. I don?t think Delhomme can fill in if Peete calls in sick. He?s had opportunities before and he hasn?t proven much. So can they get the same play out of Peete this year? Well to handicap this total we have to assume yes. He hasn?t shown otherwise yet, so let?s take a look at the schedule. In division things look bleak. I?ll say they beat Tampa in a field goal match, and shutdown the Saints once and find a way to clip Michael Vick after last year?s embarrassments. That leaves them with about 4 to 5 more games they have to win out of division vs.: Jaguars, Titans, @Texans, Redskins, @Cowboys, Eagles, @Cardinals, Lions, @Giants. It looks good, but this sharp pain in the left part of my chest says, ?I?m not sure?. I just get the feeling that this team will be Delhomme?s at some point this year, and I haven?t seen him on the Gatorade commercials, so I don?t know ?if it?s in him?.
Fantasy Sleeper:
If you?re looking for a guy to pick from this team Stephen Davis is the best choice. He should see the ball a lot in this offense because they will look to control the clock. Your buddies might pass up on him in the earlier rounds because of his sub par year in Washington but things will change for him in this offense. He had 17 touchdowns a couple of years back, and if Carolina wants to keep the attention off of Peete then he could re-attain that number. Taking a receiver in this offense is risky. Muhammed should do the best statistically but with many more targets this year the passes are not likely to be concentrated to one receiver.
P.S. I won't be doing one preview a day, but I'll just bang them out as soon as I can.
