Panthers Hope Gamble Pays Off

The Carolina Panthers were in such disarray after the end of last season that it actually took their fans and their reporters a couple of months to properly recover.  Indeed, the Panthers’ faithful were so shocked to see their team miss the playoffs again, they actually had the audacity to scoff at the work the Panthers did during their early offseason.  Yes, an offseason that now in hindsight is being viewed as one of the best (and certainly one with nearly the most potential) was initially viewed by the fans and the print media as essentially a bust.

With the benefit of time and perspective, we can see this simply is not true. Indeed, this particular article details the risky NFL draft day trade made by the Carolina Panthers this year to move up and get Jeff Otah.  At the time, many people derided this decision, but the Panthers knew what they were doing.  Now, with all the pieces in place, this trade has the capacity to mean big things for the Panthers.  Of course, we won’t know how truly genius this trade was until the Carolina Panthers get out on the field this season.

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Panthers Progressing Nicely

The Panthers offseason is going so swimmingly that the local print media has started running optimistic feel good stories, like this one detailing the progress the Carolina offense has made so far this year.  The article focuses mostly on Jake Delhomme’s progress as he makes his comeback from Tommy John surgery.  Delhomme’s elbow seems to be healing up nicely, as he was active for the last three weeks in Panthers mini-camp.  Delhomme has always said the injury felt like it was healing well, and now we have some concrete tangible evidence to back those claims.

The Panthers also added many offensive players to their mix, and the past three weeks have been very important in terms of developing team chemistry.   When you make the kinds of wholesale changes the Carolina Panthers were forced to make after last season’s disappointment, there is definitely a period of adjustment.  Having everyone on the same page for these mini-camps is vitally important to a team that is expected to win quickly.  The Panthers can’t afford to get off to a slow start, and these types of successful camps will help prevent them from stumbling out of the gates.

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Goings is Good

This week has been a funny one for the Carolina Panthers.  I haven’t had much to report from the Panthers’ side of things, and most of the stories I’ve found have been your garden variety offseason filler stories.  The thing is, I have to commend the Carolina print media.  They are really giving things a solid go now that mini-camps have started.  Many of their stories lately have been much like this one about the fact that Nick Goings is no longer feeling any ill effects from a concussion he suffered in 2007.  Goings believes he will be good to go this season.

This is certainly good news for the Panthers, but there is much more to it than that.  Goings is a contributor, but not a superstar.  For the Panthers sports media to be actively searching out these kinds of stories is spectacular.  Having done time as a local sports journalist myself at one point, I know how hard it can be to find the stories during the offseason.  All too often, the writers get lazy.  However, this has not been the case in Carolina, as the local sports journalists have really given a great effort in their downtime this year.

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A Story About Hangartner

Geoff Hangartner has been beefing up this offseason.  Why should that mean something to you?  Because Geoff Hangartner is a player for the Carolina Panthers.  In fact, he’s an extremely versatile lineman who can apparently also play center.  He’s only gotten 19 starts in his career so far (19 more than I have, so go him), but he is looking to keep up with the new trend in Carolina.  Hangartner saw all the bigger guards and other linemen the Panthers were picking up and bringing into the fold, so he went ahead and gained 20 pounds in the offseason.

Hangartner, who was an impressive 6′5″ tall and 305 pounds at the end of last season, has bulked up to nearly 320.  I’d venture a guess and say that most of that weight is straight up muscle.  This extra bulk will likely slow him down a bit - Hangartner admits as much to the press - but it is the direction the Panthers are moving.  One can’t blame them.  Going small and quick hasn’t been working for them lately. They decided to go the Bill Parcells route and sign some big bruisers.  I hear that Bill Parcells guy knows a thing or two about football, so maybe this gamble will pay off.

You can get all your Carolina Panthers tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Team Likes Connor

Lost in the shuffle of Carolina’s offseason was the third-round draft pick of Dan Connor.  The Panthers got some serious value when the Penn State Nittany Lions linebacker fell to them all the way in the third round.  He could have easily gone in the second round, but no one seemed to believe he fits their needs.  The Panthers certainly had a need at linebacker, having dealt with a shortage that began as a training camp headache and ended as one of the season’s glaring problems that had to be fixed in order to save a few people their jobs.

Again, I can’t say enough good things about the Panthers’ offseason thus far.  They had many challenges before them at the end of last season’s disappointing campaign.  However, they have risen above the fray to position themselves to compete in the NFC South.  They should almost certainly be a playoff team in 2008, and as the Giants proved last year, all you have to do is make the playoffs and get hot at the right time in the National Football Conference.  The Carolina Panthers fans should definitely be excited for next season.
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Panthers get Smith Seal of Approval

I don’t only blog about the Carolina Panthers.  I have a few other teams around the league that I write about.  So when I say the Carolina Panthers are having a very successful and productive offseason, I like to think that I have at least some frame of reference from which to pull that information.  However, I know that there are other sources that are far more trusted.  So I’m turning to this story about the fact that Steve Smith is very happy with the direction the Panthers are headed to show everyone that I actually do know what I’m talking about from time to time.

Steve Smith has seen the Panthers go from the top of the NFC to the doldrums of the have-nots watching the playoffs from their recliners at home.  He knows a thing or two about a great football team, and he also knows a thing or two about a not-so-great football team.  So when Steve Smith starting talking up the offseason acquisitions, and he begins to allow himself to get excited for 2008, I think Carolina fans should pay attention.  This team should be vastly improved from last year’s squad, and they have their eyes on the top prize in the NFL.

You can get all your Carolina Panthers tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Jarrett Ready for Next Year

When a young man can play football at a very high level, he begins to dream of playing at the highest level.  Only a select few of the players who excel as children go on to play in the National Football League.  So you can imagine the disappointment that comes along with finally making it to the NFL, only to find that things are not what you thought they would be.  Such was the case for Dwayne Jarrett, second-round wide receiver pick for the Carolina Panthers last year.  Jarrett was so disappointing in his first year, the fans even began to turn against him.

However, after a tumultuous first year and offseason, Jarrett says he is ready to put last season behind him on his way to a brighter future in the NFL.  He called his offseason issues a learning experience and promised big improvements this year.  The young man should be just fine, as he is a USC Trojan.  While Jarrett’s transition to the NFL has not been the easiest we’ve ever seen, he seems to have gotten his head on straight now.  I expect big things from the big receiver in the upcoming 2008 Carolina Panthers football season.

You can get all your Carolina Panthers tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Hackett Out with Injury

Unfortunately for the Carolina Panthers, wide receiver D.J. Hackett has been unable to practice as of late, out with a sore knee.  The Panthers had a particularly busy offseason, and Hackett was one of their better acquisitions.  It’s unfortunate that he has been unable to practice lately, as the Panthers were expecting to have quite the spirited competition for their starting spots at the wide receiver position. However, with Hackett sidelines, that has put a damper on the competition so far, but he will surely be back on the field soon to stir the pot.

Detractors will point to this and say that it’s one of the main reasons the Panthers shouldn’t have signed Hackett.  Indeed, the receiver has had a few injury issues in the past.  However, he has not been defined by his injuries, and I don’t believe some soreness in his knee at the early parts of camp should be looked at as anything but a bit of rust that needs to be worked out.  I fully expect D.J. Hackett to be making big plays for the Carolina Panthers all season long.  He has months to get himself into playing shape.  No one should panic yet.

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Panthers Welcome Delhomme back to the fold

The Carolina Panthers are glad to see Delhomme back out on the practice field.  Though it will be months before Delhomme even plays a snap in a real NFL game again, the Panthers are still nearly downright giddy seeing Delhomme throwing passes and looking precise.  His rehabilitation is not completely finished yet, but the Super Bowl QB is certainly doing much better than he was the last time the Panthers saw him.  At this point, the name of the game is progressing on schedule.  So long as Delhomme can do that, all will be well in Carolina.

Delhomme represents so much for the Panthers this season.  He is definitely representative of the hope the Panthers have that next year will be completely different from their last.  When the Panthers lost their starting QB last season, they really lost all direction.  There were other injuries and problems that contributed to their decline, but overall, the Delhomme situation was the biggest factor.  If Delhomme can remain healthy all season long, the Panthers certainly have a better chance of making the playoffs in 2008.

You can get all your Carolina Panthers tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Otah Impressive

When the Carolina Panthers drafted Jeff Otah, they hoped he would be the kind of player who could make an impact in his first season.  From the moment he became a Panther, Otah has known that playing time was his to lose.  He knew that he would need to exhibit the work ethic and dedication to football that made him so enticing to the Panthers in the first place.  And so, when Otah was felled by an ankle injury that has kept him off the field of play as of yet, it was a harsh blow for the young man to be dealt.  However, Otah handled the adversity well, and the young lineman looked impressive in his first day back from injury.

The Panthers could not be more thrilled at Otah’s progress and his approach even in the face of his adversity.  The young man was at every meeting, absorbing his mental assignments and learning all he could about the new professional offense he would need to blend seamlessly into.  And so, now back from injury, Otah knows where he is supposed to be.  He knows who to block.  He hopes to be ready to step in from day one and fill a starter’s position in the offense.  The Panthers could not be happier with their new rookie.
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