i said the same thing… wonder who our 5th rd. pick will be?

Hurney, is that you stille making picks??? an ILB AJ Klein from Iowa State

kinda confusing late picks

but Star is going to make this draft so who cares

meh, Joe Person (Panthers beat writer) said that he is basically Jason Phillips replacement. now i'm hoping we grab App State's punter in the 6th or 7th. he's wayyyy better than Nortman

Would be okay with that

One thing that makes me okay with the lack of receiver picks is the offense is going to come down to how cam plays. If he is the qb he was in the later part of last season we don't need to surround him with stars to be successful. Much better to just build the team to Rivera's strength which is defense.

Core of this team in the future years is ****ing legit. We pretty much have all the required pieces.

QB- cam
Good OL foundation with the best/top 3 at worst center in football locked up long term and a decent guy in Silatolu
Stewart

Then kuechly, Star, and hardy are all young pieces with sky high potential. Just gotta get hardy signed long term.

Obviously you need more talented players but its a damn good foundation for a new GM to build around. Def need to find gross/Smittys replacement soon, and need to find a legit #1 corner but future is bright from a talent standpoint.

I have no faith in Rivera but hopefully he can turn it around. I've been wrong many times before.

6th rd pick: Kenjon Barner RB Oregon…

who let Hurney in the War Room???

i'm actually not mad at this pick. he's a good RB. will probably be DWill's replacement after this season. that is 2 Oregon RB's we have now

I fukking love Kenjon Barner. I actually had the Panthers taking him in the 6th in my mock draft


Another great Oregon RB for the Panthers.

Saw this posted on a Panthers forum by a poster about Barner and Klein picks…

Basically preparing to let D-Will and Beason go after this season.



Concerning Edmund Kugbila… a lot of teams worked him out. Moved to US when he was 10. Had offers from Bama and UF. SATs were low because of move. Dominated D2 competition leading team to national title, and has played all over their D-Line. Quickest feet among O-Lineman in draft according to many scouts. Former NFL players and scouts have stated he could be a potential starter for many years. Lost 30lbs to get ready for the combine (hard worker). Basically the pick was on potential.



As far as the first 2 picks go, I'm gitty with excitement. Can't wait to see our d-line kick the **** out of Matty Ice.



My thoughts overall:
-Star was the perfect storm. Haven't been this excited about a pick since Julius Peppers.
-Star is the best run stuffer in the draft (and best in years), and Short was the best pass rusher from the DT position in the draft. This will make our d-line so dynamic, and dominating. When Hardy gets his extension (and he will), we could have the best d-line in the NFL in a few years.
-Kubgila looks like a good prospect, who's best days may be in front of him. Thought OT would have been better, but really, our whole o-line is garbage, except for Kalil.
-Klein will provide depth, and ST's. Will play the least important LBer position, and a lot of scouts have said he could compete for a starting job eventually. Not good in coverage, but is instinctive, and a decent athlete for a 250lber. Scouting report http://www.nepatriotsdraft.com/2012/...ng-report.html
-Was confused as **** about the Barner pick at first, but I think the team went with who they felt was the BPA, and who will be a replacement for D-Will in 2014. Also gives punt and kick return insurance incase Ginn gets injured.

Grade: B
Didn't address some glaring needs (WR, S, CB, OT), but imo, our secondary played better as the season progressed, and the D-line will help them. Gettleman has also said that WR wasn't utilized correctly by Chud, and young players need to step up. The additions of Ginn and Hixon, and Gettis recovering from injury made drafting a WR not a priority.

Insurance and thinking about the team a couple of years down the line was addressed. Barner is dynamic, and I think we were lucky to get him in the 6th, even if we don't need him right now.

inb4 tl;dr

I think our hole at S just got filled. we signed Robert Lester from Bama as a UDFA. dude was a projected 3/4 rounder after a rough Senior Bowl. was a projected 1/2 rounder if he had come out a year early. could be the biggest steal of this draft for the Panthers

Gettleman doing work!

Gettlemagic!

Also signed some CB from ULL that is big. 6'1 205 and a 6'7 255 TE from Rice!

I think this sums up Lester as a pro and in a lot of his season in 2012-13
WEAKNESSES - Lester is a tweener that lacks the growth potential to switch to LB and the athleticism needed to cover in space as a safety. In man coverage he is continually exposed on the break, as he is stiff in transition and lacks the acceleration needed to recover once he loses a step. He struggles to change directions fluidly, and does not have the speed to stay with faster TE's down-field. He also struggles to close on outside runs effectively, and has to take very conservative angles of pursuit. He must become more physical and aggressive when faced with man press situations.

SUMMARY - Robert Lester does not have a natural NFL position and is unlikely to ever make a final roster. He is a slow-twitch athlete that looks stiff changing directions, and does not possess the acceleration needed to recover once beaten or close from off the ball. His poor speed and change of direction limits his effectiveness against faster TEs, making him a liability in all forms of coverage. Despite being an aggressive, physical run defender, he struggles to make plays on the boundary and looks physically maxed out at 220 lbs., making him very undersized for the LB position. While a 43 team could attempt to convert him to a WILL, his athletic limitations even for this position will likely make him a practice squad player.

Hopefully he can prove the haters wrong. it'll be interesting to see who ends up winning the SS job with ( Mitchel, lester and D.J campbell) all competing for it

Robert Lester is Taylor Mays without the fancy combine measurables, but with football smarts.

side note - if you play fantasy football with IDP (individual defensive players), Luke Kuechly is my pick to challenge the NFL solo tackles record. Star Lotulelei is far and away the best defensive player from this draft and is a Vince Wilfork/Casey Hampton-degree NT type (you youngsters don't realize how good Casey Hampton used to be when he was young)

Star WILL absorb double teams, Short will require a ton of attention as will Hardy and especially Johnson. Just like Rayray had in the late 90s/early 00's with Goose and Sam Adams, Kuechly has Star and Kawann.

My prediction - Kuechly hits 120 solos as a lowball, possibly breaks 150 and challenges Rayray

So the opposite of Taylor Mays? (nowiseass/10)

Preseason underway with a win.

Was happy to see Norman come out and make some noise. With the secondary being our week link I'm hoping he really steps it up.

Didn't see the game. Howd everyone look?

Not surprised Norman looked decent I'm expecting a nice improvement.

still hard to tell from preseason and i was at work and would liked to have seen our DTs do work. However norman was ballhawking

edit:



I ain't got no worries

Didn't see the game, but not surprised Josh Norman played well. He played a lot better toward the end of last season.

Kawann Short looked really impressive. Very quick hands, plays with great leverage had a qb knockdown on numerous occasions

how are the bros feeling about the murder's row of a schedule. Leagues hardest?

Nothing new for the Panthers.

Has me concerned. I'd be fine with 8-8 and strong improvement from Cam.

8-8 would actually be a really good season. Strongest conference and we play some good west coast teams. I'd like to sweep ATL, that'd be enough to satisfy me for the season.

Cam looks awful so far…

Ain't a good feelin', I can tell you that.

rough game last night brahs

Kuechly has been a beast in this pre-season game. Forced 2 turnovers in the first half.

Edit: bull**** call reversed it

Edit 2: Got another turnover anyways

best LB in the NFL?

Playing like it.

Looks like Captain will be playing with a cast for the first half of the season…

Saw Richard Marshall was released. Liked him as a Panther.

Didn't watch but looked like the offense was brutal again.