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Captain Munnerlyn is officially back with the Panthers as of this morning and spoke on how he made it back, why, and what he looks forward to. Here are the highlights.
Read MoreThe 2017 compensatory picks were announced this past week. The Carolina Panthers received an additional 3rd round pick (98th overall) because of the departure of Josh Norman and Brad Nortman. In the past, compensatory picks
Read MoreEvery year, fans fall in and out of love with certain players. We always have favorites who didn’t make the team or who we believe, given a real opportunity, could contribute positively to the team. Coincidentally, we nourish these affections as we fall out of love with guys who are approaching the twilight of their career or who we believe never fully capitalizes on their potential. I’m one of these fans.
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I realize this is a smidgen early. No, it's way way early. Panthers GM Dave Gettleman is known for playing chess and in doing so, he is thinking years down the road. I want to look position by position, tying things up at the end for 2016. Here goes for each position group's year-long outlook:
Read MoreWhen asked who would be getting the start at wide receiver this Sunday with a healthy Philly Brown back, Ron Rivera simply stated, "It's a surprise."
Read MorePanthers rookie and 2nd round draft pick Devin Funchess is slated to get his first career start Sunday. Philly Brown suffered a shoulder injury this week, and as bad as you hate to see any player injured, the timing couldn't be better for 'Fun Fun.'
Read MoreIt is crazy to think that a team with Ted Ginn and Philly Brown as starting receivers is in the top five of the NFL at scoring offense. The Panthers have arguably the most effective ground game in the league, and receivers that make just enough plays to put them in scoring position. Carolina is 8-0 for the first time in team history, and is doing it without the likes of Steve Smith, Muhsin Muhammed, and Kelvin Benjamin. Here are some statistics to show how the Panthers’ receiving corp has been performing, and how their current success would project over the entire season.
Read MoreIt seems it takes forever for the NFL season to arrive, and no time at all before it ends. We are already through 25% of the regular season, and just five teams remain undefeated. Luckily we are one of the five, and are possibly poised for a deep playoff run. The Panthers’ wide receiver corp has been in the spot light seemingly forever, and the the beam got more intense when Kelvin Benjamin went down with injury. Here are some stats showing how they've done thus far, and projections on how they will do down the stretch.
Read MoreIt’s only happened once in history, and I even then it seems like one time too many. In 1967, Detroit Lions rookies Mel Farr (RB) and Lem Barney (CB) swept the Rookie of the Year awards. Landing one rookie of the year is impressive enough, but stealing both is the literal heist of the century. Could Carolina be the 2nd team in NFL history to sweep the Rookie of the Year awards?
Read MoreWith David Gettleman's sanity being questioned overnight with the acquisition of Shaq Thompson, the "slash" player from Washington U., the Panthers' GM made a move the next day that made so much sense on so many levels, the same people questioning the man's sanity suddenly had a change of heart as the team gave up several draft picks to vault to the top-third of the second round to select Kelvin Benjamin v 2.0.
Read MoreThe punchline for the Panthers over the last few years has been their lack of receiving talent, with possibly the biggest joke being last years group. This year should dispel all critics; it seems the Panthers will trot out a formidable group of receiving talent. However, behind the twin towers in Kelvin Benjamin and Devin Funchess, the remaining wideouts form a muddled yet talented group. The Panthers kept 5 receivers on their 53 man roster last year, this year I can see them keeping 5-7. Here is my prediction on who will make up this group.
Read MoreC3 caught up with Michigan Wolverine beat writer for the Detroit Free Press to get some more insight on Carolina's second round pick. The Panthers moved up to Funchess, a guy with tight-end size and wide-receiver athleticism, but what did they really get in this Michigan product? He's a guy who had a startling slow combine 40-yd time, but bounced back with a startling fast Pro Day 40-yd time. He's got some crazy tools, size, catch radius, and athleticiscm, but he wasn't all that productive in college and had a concerning 8.8% drop percentage.
So who really is Funchess? Is he the 4.47 Pro Day guy or is he the 4.7 run backwards guy? We wanted to know, so we found someone who has followed him throughout his high-school and college career.
"He's eternally been caught in between what he is."
"He saw an opportunity to be a dynamic wide receiver, and that is going to be a better position for him going into the NFL."
"He's crazy athletic and he's pretty fast."
"He never got the ball in the prime spots and he always had guys right on him after the got the ball."
"After that first game there wasn't really any consistency or productivity."
"There were a number of times he could have impacted their season by keeping things moving and he just never got to that point. He dropped balls in critical situations definitely."
"There's a potential for him to be a dynamic pass-catcher."
I'm disappointed we had to give up a third round pick to get him, but Gettleman must have been convinced that he is the right guy for us and that the Saints had him targeted as the replacement for Jimmy Graham.
Read MoreCam needs toys and badly. As many of you loyal C3 followers know, I did a countdown last month of 10 Wide Receivers that I believe the Panthers could target in the upcoming draft and why. Below is my new, post-Combine, rankings and why.
Read MoreC3 is taking a look at 10 WRs that the Panthers could and should be targeting in the upcoming Draft. We will Chronicle 10 guys (or Cats) and give you some little known information on them.
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