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Good afternoon everyone. I thought I'd report in on how the Panthers' mock is looking for tomorrow over at 'Mocking the Draft'. Revshawn and I have taken up the duty of being the Panther pickers for the remainder of tomorrow's draft, so I thought I'd let the community know what has happened and what we're looking at for tomorrow.

When we came aboard the 2nd round pick had already been assigned to the Panthers by default- we picked WR Arrelious Benn out of Illinois. Despite this being a default pick I was thrilled; Benn is at the top of my board for the Panthers because he's a big body and easily the best blocking WR in the draft. He'll should help replace Moose and continue to support the running game where needed. While Rev and I both plan to be picking live tomorrow we'd like to let you in on our 'big board' for the 3rd and 4th rounds, and our current thinking for the remaining rounds- though we're still fleshing it out.

We always appreciate comments and discussion- but forgive us that we wont be changing the board in the 11th hour. I'm still running our community mock starting April 1st, but this should be a nice taste to wet the beaks of those desperate for a little mock draft info.

2nd round: Arrelious Benn- WR (Illinois)

3rd round:

DT Lamar Houston (Texas)

TE Dennis Pitta (BYU)

DE Jermaine Cunningham (Florida)

DE Alex Carrington (Arkansas State)

OG Jon Jerry (Ole Miss)

WR Jacoby Ford (Clemson)

DT Torrell Troop (UCF)

OLB Dekota Watson (FSU)

 

4th round:

DT Linval Thomas (ECU)

QB Tony Pike (Cincy)

CB Akwasi Owusu-Ansah (Penn)

DE Lindsey Witton (UCONN)

OLB Navorro Bowman (Penn State)

DE Kevin Baspad (Nevada)

TE Jimmy Graham (Miami)

DE DJ Wilson (ECU)

CB Al Jefferson (Fresno State)

C Eric Olson (Notre Dame)

 

5th round:

DE Daniel Te'o-Neisham (Washington)

SS Myron Rolle (FSU)

MLB Darryl Sharpton (Miami)

 

6th round:

OL Thomas Austin (Clemson)

OT Mike Tepper (California)

OLB Keaton Kristick (Oregon State)

K Aaron Perley (OSU)

RB Charles Scott (LSU)

 

7th round:

CB David Pender (Purdue)

DT Nate Collins (Virginia)

QB Max Hall (BYU)

QB Armanti Edwards (App State)

WR Kyle Williams (Arizona State)

 

 

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Here we are right in the middle of offseason - the time of year when players are drifting this way and that way, landing new jobs, in new cities, for new teams. As a player, it's a wild experience to go through, and I would know, because I've been one of those guys who's made a move from one market to another.

I'll be honest with you... When you're told by management that you're going to another team, it can be a devastating blow. Of course, I can't speak for everybody and say that the same reaction is felt by all players facing this situation, because different moves have different circumstances, but, for me personally, I was none too pleased.

I felt like I was doing everything right in Chicago, because I was playing some pretty good ball. I started a couple years, started in the Super Bowl, got an interception in the Super Bowl -- all seemed well. My first two seasons with the Bears were great, but when I entered the next season's training camp and was told... "Hey -- You're gone -- We just traded you," ...I gotta admit that it was a pretty bittersweet moment.

You know what? <Haha> I wouldn't even say that it was bittersweet. I was really upset!

You gotta realize that I was a young guy when this happened. I was just going into my third year in the league and didn't really understand that the NFL could work like this. I had never gained an appreciation for the business side of the game - all I saw was football, football, football. I was real green and simply could not believe that the Bears had actually let me go.

I had really good friendships with the guys on the team, people in the community, my neighbors, etc. I was truly enjoying myself in Chicago. But, when I got the bad news, all I could think was...

"Dang. They don't want me anymore."

Finally, after a lot of frustration, I realized something...

The Bears hadn't released me. They traded me. I was about to go to a team that did want me.

Even though it had finally clicked that I was still wanted by somebody, I still felt so uneasy about the entire situation that I was almost in tears. I didn't know what to expect from the move I was about to make. I was about to leave my comfort zone, enter a new situation, settle down in a city I was unfamiliar with, and live among people I didn't know.

But look at me now. I can reflect back on that transition and thank God that everything worked out for the best. I've come to Carolina, been given opportunities to showcase my talents, become a starter, and stayed a starter. Ya know... God worked it out the way it was supposed to work out.

But yeah, man... When I was told that I was being bounced from the Bears, I was angry as hell (Ha!). I was confused over my loss of a city and team that I loved.  But now - of course - I couldn't be happier to have come to Charlotte to become a Carolina Panther. I love this city; I love my teammates ; and I love playing for all the great people who work upstairs. Everyone who works for this organization and is a fan of this organization is very loyal, just like God knew they would be. He had a plan for me and I'm sooooo glad I followed it.

--------------------

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ESPN insider Len Pasquarelli reports that the Carolina Panthers will seek a contract extension with their Pro Bowl running back.

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San Francisco's head honchos must stop hiding and shed some light on the status of GM Scot McCloughan.
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Appalachian State quarterback Armanti Edwards said Tuesday the Carolina Panthers seemed more interested in him than any of the NFL he's spoken with so far.

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Julius Peppers not only will make the Bears' other defensive linemen more effective, he'll make it easier for blitzing linebackers to harass the quarterback. That's the theory, anyway. Whether his presence will mask a secondary that was torched repeatedly by elite quarterbacks last season has become the pertinent question as general manager Jerry Angelo enters the second phase of the Bears' free-agency plan. Angelo has made the biggest splash so far, belly-flopping into the market to the tune of $121 million for Peppers, running back Chester Taylor and blocking tight end Brandon Manumaleuna. But that doesn't mean a team that finished 7-9 last season doesn't have talent deficiencies elsewhere.


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The Ravens' offseason moves are among the AFC's best.


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As the draft nears, find out how the NFC is shaping up this offseason.


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Panthers HC John Fox attended the Florida Pro Day and was asked his opinion of QB Tim Tebow. This journalist obviously didn't realize the futility of getting real info from the sly 'Ol Fox:

Florida Gators sports news, analysis, commentary - Gator Bytes, a PalmBeachPost.com blog " Blog Archive " Reaction from Tim Tebow’s Pro Day
Q: What can you take away from watching workouts like these? Fox: "We don’t have a lot of looks at ‘em as coaches. We just get to look at ‘em this time of year, so sometimes it’s our first exposure other than TV games along the way."

Q: What did Tebow show you out there today? Fox: "He doesn’t lack in the work ethic department, so whatever needs to be done he’ll do."

I'm always amused at  Fox's non-answers...Moving on to our favorite local prospect who seems to have all the intangibles and most of the tangibles...but is it enough?

Panthers focus on Edwards, but at what position? | The Herald - Rock Hill, SC
"That’s his makeup; his intensity level, he’d play tight end — or try," Moore said. "He’s so, so competitive. You’ve seen him one day in here doing this, I’ve seen him for four years, and there’s been no drop-off. I think that’s his biggest strength, is his competitiveness and his intensity. "I think he’d have been just as good a wide receiver as a quarterback. Wherever you put him, he’s going to work hard and be competitive about it. He’s in the game for one thing, and that’s to win, and do well."

Seems like he and Smitty would be tight. He could also follow Smitty's path to stardom which began with special teams:

Darin Gantt's Panthers Blog | The Herald - Rock Hill, SC
Edwards said the Panthers had displayed "strong interest," saying he met with coach John Fox and position coach Tyke Tolbert at the scouting combine in Indianapolis earlier this month. While everyone at ASU Tuesday was eager to see him do both sets of position drills, Edwards said he's getting different signals from different teams. Some are looking at him as a special teamer only, others as a receiver only, and others as an all-purpose athlete who might play some quarterback as well.

Next season is Fox's last chance in Carolina? I'm not so sure...

Next season is Fox’s last chance - CharlotteObserver.com
The Panthers’ personnel moves, on the other hand, have been dominated by fiscal conservatism and a "go young" mission. The Panthers’ front office appears to be at peace with the notion of taking one step back now to take two steps forward later. The Panthers need to win, for Fox’s sake. But they also want to rebuild. And those two ideas are at cross-purposes.

I still believe Panther management fully expects to challenge for the division next year anyway. If that is going to happen we need some experience on the defensive line, which got a shot in the arm with the return of this guy:

Darin Gantt's Panthers Blog | The Herald - Rock Hill, SC
In many ways, bringing Brayton back was similar to the track record of the recently released Damione Lewis, who came here on the cheap, got a second contract and provided valuable leadership to a young line — though it wasn’t nearly as young as this one.

More updates on our departed Panthers:

Sports Radio Interviews " Blog Archive " Was Signing Julius Peppers The Answer in Chicago?
Whether people mistake his calm demeanor on the field for taking plays off: "Yeah I have heard that a million times and I think that is true. That is correct. That is a fair assumption to make, a fair statement to make. People do mistake that sometimes ,but that is just a part of my personality that it’s not going to change. It’s not going to change. Whether you mistake it for a lack of motivation or not playing hard or anything like that. That is just who I am as a person… Sometimes in your career people have to nitpick at silly things because there is nothing else to say. You can’t say that there is a lack of production. You can’t say anything else really but lack of motivation. That is the thing that people are going to try to nitpick at."

I was thinking it was the goose eggs he put up in key games that we were nitpicking...There was no questioning this guy's enthusiasm for the game:

NFL NOTES / Holmgren says Browns need 'leader' Delhomme
"My own belief is this team needs an aging veteran," Holmgren said. "They need a guy that is going to grab everybody by the throat and say, 'Follow me through that door.' I don't look at him as an aging veteran, I look at him as the leader I wanted."

I'm hoping that leadership rubbed off on our 2010 starter, who in spite being labeled the top free agent QB wasn't expected to get a better deal than in Carolina:

Czar: Watch for trade market to warm up - NFL News - FOX Sports on MSN
It made sense that quarterbacks like Matt Moore (Carolina) and Bruce Gradkowski (Oakland) signed with their old teams because they never would have seen similar contracts on the open market. The guy who made out the best was Jake Delhomme, who is still owed millions by the Panthers, but got $7 million more from the Browns. That’s a huge contract for a guy who may be simply a great leader and locker-room guy. But such a deal also makes it sound like Mike Holmgren knows that the Eagles won’t be parting with either Donovan McNabb or Kevin Kolb.

Right or wrong I'm just glad he's our guy.

 

 

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Simms described it as "a feeler visit" and said Johnson is trying to get a sense of the market for him.

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Matt Moore believes he'll be the starting quarterback this coming season for the Carolina Panthers no matter what happens the rest of this off-season.

"From what they are telling me, yeah, I do feel like it's my team now," Moore said.

Moore said he was "shocked" when his agent, Dr. Lynn Lashbrook, called to notify him that the Panthers were releasing veteran Jake Delhomme last Thursday on the eve of free agency.

"I was completely caught off guard," Moore said.

Moore said it didn't really sink in that he's now the face of the franchise until he walked into Bank of America Stadium earlier this week.

"That's when it really hit me—when I walked in the locker room for the first time and seeing everybody and just started talking about things," Moore...
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