My Steve Smith NFL Blog

Jimmy Clausen certainly seems to have the swagger of a champion. He has spent an ample amount of time saying the right things around the Carolina Panthers training sessions, and the Panthers have not said a whole lot about who will be leading the Panthers into the 2010 season. They named Matt Moore as the starter during the offseason, but that was before they used their top draft pick to draft Notre Dame product Jimmy Clausen. Since then, they have been largely quiet about who will lead the Panthers.

Moore has to be the odds on favorite to be under center on opening day, but he faces a number of challenges moving forward. Most of the problems he has are not related to his football skills. Moore is one of many Carolina Panthers starters that are to be free agents come the off season, and the Panthers clearly are not going to be able to sign them all. That group of free agents also includes all-world running back DeAngelo Williams, and the Panthers are sure to have him at the top of their list. Where does Moore fit in?

It appears that Matt Moore is going to be moving on regardless of his performance on the field. Of course, this could change with an incredible on the field performance, but it is not likely. He simply is not playing in the type of offense that allows a quarterback to put up big numbers. Sure, he has Steve Smith and some interesting rookie options at the receiver position, but the Panthers are really all about running the football. With Williams and Jonathan Stewart on the team, that is not going to change. The bottom line is, Moore is likely playing to make his trade value go up this year.

The Panthers need to recognize this, and get what they can from Moore. If they hope to make any type of trade and get something either from Moore or potentially Clausen if Moore is as good as he appears, they need to establish that Moore is their starter. They have been a bit dicey about coming out and saying so. That has to hurt Moore's confidence.

Hand Moore the football, tell him that he is the man, and then let the chips fall where they may. If the Panthers do this and Moore flops, it is easy enough to then bring in Clausen to see what he has got. There is no advantage to the Panthers to do otherwise. Moore needs to be named the starter and either win or lose the position with his on field play. By making it up in the air, the Panthers are essentially telling the rest of the NFL that Moore is not as good as they thought. That could hurt his trade value going into a tough off season next year.

Rodney Southern has been writing on the Carolina Panthers and NFL action since they first came into the league. He runs popular blogs on several players and the Carolina Panthers in general, as well as making NFL predictions weekly. If you are looking for content to be written, or just simply want to enjoy reading the hottest Panther and NFL news, then you should check out his work today.

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Time management is a grand idea when dealing with the things in your life. It's all about organization, efficiency and getting things done. As a tool for leading people through change, however, it misses the mark. In fact, when leading change, the last thing you want to do is manage your time. Instead, invest it in the people with potential to become change leaders themselves, and the returns you get may surprise you. Following is an incredible story that illustrates the point.

A few years ago I became upset when a player on the NFL's Carolina Panthers beat up a teammate and subsequently was suspended for one measly game by the team. I felt this punishment was too lax (after all, the attacked teammate ended up in the hospital) and wrote an angry letter to the teams' owner, Jerry Richardson, expressing as much. Mr. Richardson not only acknowledged my letter after I figured it would end up in the trash but he went one giant-step further. He offered to come visit my thirteen-year-old son, who was a big fan of the team's, and me, along with the star player in question, wide receiver Steve Smith.

They made the two-hour drive each way from team headquarters to my home and stayed with us for three hours. I learned that day that Steve Smith is a good man who made a bad mistake and was willing to learn and take responsibility for his actions. I admire him greatly for that. From Mr. Richardson, I learned the power of a leader being personally invested in future leaders who can make a difference.

Jerry Richardson invested time in me that day, but more importantly he invested time and energy in Steve Smith, someone with potential to lead changes on the field of play. I can only imagine the discussions they had as they drove back and forth and the bonds they forged and then carried forward. It's no coincidence that the following season Steve Smith emerged as the team's biggest star and helped lead them to a Super Bowl appearance.

Mr. Richardson identified Steve Smith as someone I call a 'diamond-in-the-rough,' a leader of untapped potential. Then, he personally invested his time and energy to help Steve unleash his potential. You can do much the same for the uncut diamonds in your organization. Here are five tips to help get you started.

Hold yourself accountable for people development. Common comfort zones such as crunching numbers and formulating strategy have their place, but both are useless if you don't have leaders in place to execute. Therefore, hold yourself accountable for the people side of the equation too. Recognize more pressing issues will always come up, so do whatever it takes to make finding and developing people a priority. Schedule time for building relationships into your calendar. Make a list or create a spreadsheet to track your progress if you must. Set goals for people development and hold yourself too them. Identify your Steve Smiths, or your "diamonds-in-the-rough." You can't invest in your future change leaders if you don't know who they are. Some 'diamonds' are obvious. Their talent and ability dazzles and stands out, but others may require energy and effort to unearth. This may be especially true if you work in a large organization where talented people lay buried within the bureaucracy. In this case, use Tom Peters' old technique of management by walking around. Get out of your comfort zone. Visit places in your organization where you don't know as many people. Talk to at least one new person a day. Take the new guy or woman to lunch. When you visit remote sites, make it a point to meet people relevant to your line of business, then, follow up with those you meet. Once you find them, don't delegate your 'diamond' development. Certainly Human Resources and your training department have a role to play in polishing future leaders' skills and capabilities. But the savviest leaders take personal responsibility for helping people grow. Once you have identified the people you think could be future change leaders for your organization, get personally involved in their development. Jerry Richardson answered my letter and placed the initial call to me. Jerry Richardson invited Steve Smith to join him on his visit. Jerry Richardson even drove the car himself. He didn't delegate these duties; he owned them as his. Poor time management? Perhaps. But, poor time management often creates the conditions for great change leadership to occur. Polish your gems by asking questions. The best leaders ask questions - lots of them. They don't invest much time in running around telling people what to do. In fact, they don't hire people who have to wait to be told what to do. Instead, they unleash talent by presenting problems and asking for ideas versus offering solutions. They understand their job is to lead, not do. They encourage people to think. They encourage people to act. They remove organizational roadblocks that hold talent back. They ask questions versus bark orders. Explore ideas and build relationships beyond the boundaries of work. Engage people on a variety of topics beyond your common industry issues. Refining someone's leadership often means helping them look beyond the confines of their everyday world for novel solutions and product innovations they can bring back to it. Become emotionally invested too. Spend time getting to know your future leaders. Find out what matters to them, inside and outside of work. Sometimes engaging in small talk can lead to big insights. You may discover a personal situation that is holding someone down or holding him or her back, such as the illness or loss of a loved one. You may not be able to do anything tangible to help, but simply knowing that you care can be reassuring and provide a boost. If you want people to be there for you when the going gets tough, as it inevitably will when things change, you need to personally invest in them first.
A Final Word

If investing in people sounds like a 'soft' activity to you, you're right. It is. But rare is the business that can consistently return good, hard results without making soft investments in people first. People determine whether you win or lose, whether the game is football or business or life. To better lead change, stop managing your time and start investing it in people. Then enjoy as the wins pile up.

Dr. Gary Bradt is a change and leadership expert, speaker and author of The Ring in the Rubble: Dig Through Change and Find Your Next Golden Opportunity http://www.theringintherubble.com His diverse client base includes IBM, FedEx, General Motors, American Express, Marriott International, The Weather Channel, The Department of Defense, and NASA. For many years he was endorsed by Spencer Johnson as the primary speaker worldwide on Johnson?s business bestseller Who Moved my Cheese? He resides in Summerfield, North Carolina with his wife and two children.

After winning the NFC South divisions of the NFL in 2008-09, the Carolina Panthers finished with an 8-8 on NFL Picks in 2010-11, 3rd in the division. The Panther had high expectation coming into last season but quarterback Jake Delhomme had a less than spectacular season and that got him a one way ticket out of Charlotte. Last year the Panthers offense struggled, especially in the passing game, averaging only 174.9 and that was 27th in the National football League, The running game was very good, the tandem of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart was 3rd in the entire NFL averaging a little over 156 yards per game, Stewart led the team with 1,133 yards. Carolina scored 19 points per game which was not exactly spectacular. The Carolina Panther defense gave up 315.8 yards per game, 8th in the league, the pass defense was the units strong point as opposing quarterbacks threw for 191 yards per game and that was 4th in the entire NFL, the run defense led by linebacker Jon Beason gave up a 124.8 yards per game. As far as the team was for sports bettors, they were 9-7 against the spread, going over the betting odds total 6 times and under 10 times.

Panthers coach John Fox and the Panthers will be faced with Delhomme, the quarterback who led the team to their first and only superbowl appearance. Incumbent Matt Moore played at the end of the season and performed admirably but this sports handicapper doesn't think he is the answer and apparently neither does the Panthers management, the team drafted high profile quarterbacks Jimmy Clausen from Notre Dame in the 3rd round and University of Cincinnati quarterback Tony Pike in the 6th round. Carolina is strong up front on the offensive line and the team may have the best tandem of running backs in all of football with Williams and Stewart, the tandem will be even better this season and we really believe Jonathan Stewart will have a breakout season, becoming one of the best backs in the NFL. Wide receiver Steve Smith will have another great season, there is no problem with his confidence and he will back it up every time.

Carolina also parted ways with longtime defensive end Julius Peppers, who has a much talent as anyone at the position has ever had, I mean anyone and Peppers is not that old, this will hurt Carolina. Middle linebacker Jon Beason is becoming one of the best in the National Football League, he's just a tad behind Ray Lewis when it comes to intensity and hitting, this guy can flat out play. cornerback Chris Gamble is the stud in the defensive backfield but the guy on the other side isn't bad either, Richard Marshall could easily have a pro bowl season. The Panthers lack of experience at the quarterback position will be the only thing holding them out of the 2010-11 playoffs.

Greg C Nelson

The Carolina Panthers haven't started out their 09' season as well as they hoped for undoubtedly. Nothing has gone according to plan, Jake Delhomme isn't productive, the wide receivers haven't impressed much, the defense isn't what it was before, the whole team is in the dumps. As strong as the NFC South is now with the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints, they better start making things happen before they are looking at a 6-10 season.

The Panthers second half of the season schedule is brutal - at New England Patriots, at New York Giants, at New York Jets, and at New Orleans Saints. While the Carolina Panthers weren't the over whelming favorites to win the NFC South, no one expected them to play this badly and unorganized. When teams start out this dreadful, they will struggle the rest of the season to catch up to the leaders in the division.

Can the Panthers turn their season around? Yes they can because they do have the talent to do so. The Panthers need to create more turnovers on defense and give Jake Delhomme more chances to use WR Steve Smith, as of now, Steve Smith isn't even on the radar as one of the best wide receivers in the league. It was just a couple years ago when Steve Smith was a MVP candidate.

If the Panthers expect to compete in the division they must improve on defense or otherwise quarterbacks Drew Brees and Matt Ryan will destroy the Panthers defense.

The Panthers either have had great seasons or terrible seasons - looking back over the course of their history since 1995. Panthers fans hope the 09' season won't be disaster but a season of redemption. Jake Delhomme can not keep throwing interceptions and putting his team in a hole if they hope to win football games.

Talk more about this situation at the Carolina Panthers forum and play some fantasy football at RootZoo.

The strength of these two teams is in their defense but what is most impressive is the strength of their rush defenses. Carolina is the number 4 rush defense in the league, allowing just 91.6 yards per game and the Seahawks are number 5 in the league allowing just 94.4 yards per game on the ground.

Seattle devotes a lot of its offense to its running game and they will be tested by the Carolina rush defense. Carolina is not a big rushing team nor are they really a big passing team. They have a mediocre offense and being on the road against the Seahawks, that can spell a lot of trouble.

The Seahawks can feel safe in their defensive scheme because these Panthers are not going to blow anybody out. The Seahawks on the other hand will need to establish their running game at some point. They will probably establish it by passing the ball early. Getting the ball out for short yardage plays will ease up the Carolina rush defense and they should be able to spread the ball in a way Carolina will have trouble doing.

Carolina relies on Steve Smith too much. They got by the Bears because the Bears had a poor game plan but you can expect the Seahawks to be prepared for it. If the Seahawks can contain Steve Smith and establish a balanced offense, there is no reason to believe they will lose this game at home.

As training camp has emerged creating a vast set of emotions of both hope for rookies and redundant routines for veterans, it is never to early to began the rampant speculations surrounding the issue of how the teams will look in the standings come season end. Through my knowledge of the sport and teams, as well as careful analysis of recent off-season acquisitions and losses, I have come up with a forecast of how I expect each team to finish in its respective division. Continuing with the presence of challenging divisions as seen by the NFC East, the NFC South also provides a dilemma in terms of deciding the rankings.

When looking at the Carolina Panthers, the first idea that springs to me is the incredible year Jake Delhomme is going to have. I have always been a firm supporter of him and look for an incredible season stats wise which will put Delhomme in contention for the MVP title. With the addition of Keyshawn Johnson, who I deem as underrated, and possibly the best receiver in the game in Steve Smith, Delhomme is going to have all the necessary weapons to have a breakout season and surprise many doubters. However, while Delhomme will prove his elite status in terms of quarterbacks, I do have some doubts about the rest of the team. With a hard schedule facing the Panthers in the midst of the NFC South as well as no real running back, there are some questions whether the Panthers can continue to have another playoff season. Due to the lack of a serious running back, a lot of Delhomme's success will come through such an attribute but will also seriously wear him down during the duration of the season causing the Panthers to lose a few games. Nevertheless, I still expect a strong season from this team making a serious run at a wildcard spot.

Like I predicted the Washington Redskins to fall in my NFC East predictions article, I expect a similar type of season for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While his father may tend to disagree with me, I am not a strong supporter of Chris Simms regardless of the few aberrations he may of have last season. I do like Carnell Williams but also expect him to go through a sophomore slump during the duration of the season unable to perform any miracles. Tampa's wide receivers are also mediocre as I believe Joey Galloway, who is injury prone to begin with, had a breakout season and will not match his production of last year. While the team has a decent defense, I cannot see it carrying the Buccaneers to a succession of victories with such a sub par offense. With a hard schedule also in hand, John Gruden may be facing unemployment at season's end when Tampa Bay is far out of the playoffs.

The team that may surprise football fans the most this season is the New Orleans Saints. Decimated last year due to Hurricane Katrina, the Saints, like the Eagles, will ride this season on the basis of emotions. While the team may not have the necessary tools to make it to the playoffs, the Saints will definitely be in the hunt all the way up to seasons end. With the addition of Reggie Bush and Drew Brees, two powerhouses, an already potent offense will get even stronger added to the likes of Mcallister, Horn, and Stallworth. I also like the change in coaching as it was time for Jim Haslet to leave beginning a new era for this club. While the defense is still mediocre at best, again this season is going to rely on the chemistry and emotions shared between players and fans; this will be a season that all of New Orleans will be proud about.

Like the Eagles, Rams, or Packers of last season, the Atlanta Falcons seemed to have faded by missing the playoffs with a team similar to the one that went to the NFC Championship game a year prior. While it can be argued that the team had a tough schedule, it seemed that there were a lot of intangibles that yielded such a disappointing season. With Michael Vick having problems with his offensive nature and even to have claimed to be not playing to the best of his abilities one game, such a situation can be argued to be grim news for Falcons. However, as Vick has come out and said he is going to improve this team next season, I firmly believe such a sentiment with increase the moral of his team and will look for a great season for the Falcons. I am a believer in Jim Mora, and with key additions such as John Abraham to an already bolstered defense, the Falcons should recoup like the Eagles, Packers, and Rams and make the playoffs.

Final NFC South Season Standings (*demonstrates making the playoffs):

1.*Atlanta: 11-5

2. Carolina: 10-6

3. New Orleans: 8-8

4. Tampa Bay: 4-12

Dennis Biray presents advice on all kinds of topics ranging from finance and investing to fitness to sports. For more information email him at dbiray@gmail.com, or to view other articles written by him visit http://www.biraynetworks.co.nr/.

Carolina Panthers have hired Jeff Davidson as their offensive coordinator after Dan Henning was fired. Davidson was the Cleveland Browns' assistant head coach / offensive line coach.

Panthers also announced that Dave Magazu would be taking over as offensive line coach after they fired Mike Maser. Magazu was the tight ends coach since 2003. Panthers have had a disappointing season and failed to make it to the playoffs with 8-8. These changes in the coaching is perceived as a shakeup.

With Davidson's inclusion in the Panthers, coach John Fox is giving indications that he would now want the Panthers to concentrate on the running game. Davidson is 39 years old and before he joined the Cleveland Browns, he spent eight seasons as the tight end / assistant offensive line coach with New England. During that time, Corey Dillon rushed for 1,635 yards with the Patriots winning the Super Bowl in 2004.

In 2005, Davidson joined Cleveland as the offensive coordinator for the last 10 games of the season. However, earlier in January 2007, Davidson handed over the mantle to Rob Chudzinski who he took as his replacement.

Dan Henning was constantly criticized for being too conservative and not involving receiver Steve Smith enough in offense. The Panthers averaged just over 16 points a game which is eight less than what they averaged in 2005 when they lost to Seattle in NFC championship game. Besides this, the Panthers have been coping with a lot of injuries.

Davidson, who wrested the job from Panthers quarterbacks coach Mike McCoy and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback coach Ken Zampese, said that he was extremely excited about joining the Panthers and is looking forward to the challenge.

About the writer: Nigel Kerry is an American free lance writer born in Los Angeles, California. Kerry writes among others for Sportus.com - sports betting Odds and sportsbook, as well as Filmzone.com, a site dedicated to texas holdem poker

What a weekend of football. What started as two decently thrilling games on Saturday led to the best two games of this year's playoffs on Sunday. We were all stunned at how the Colts couldn't get it going early, how the Panthers dominated the Bears defense, how the Seahawks survived without Shaun Alexander, and how the Broncos finally handed Tom Brady his first postseason loss. Let's start with the Saturday games.

Washington Redskins vs. Seattle Seahawks

From the start of the game, it looked like the Seahawks were ready to take over. Matt Hasselbeck made some nice throws on the opening drive and the Seahawks were ready to punch the ball in for six. Then, Shaun Alexander lost his second fumble of the season - and second in two football weeks for Seattle. When Alexander left a few minutes later, I knew right away that he would not return from a concussion. Things almost got worse when Darrell Jackson had to leave the game, but thankfully he was able to return rather quickly.

The Redskins did not play a bad football game. They were underdogs on the road against arguably the best team in the NFC. After an embarrassing offensive performance against the Buccaneers, the Redskins somewhat returned to their potential. Although Mark Brunell was off-balance on many of his throws, the Redskins were able to get the ball to Santana Moss and Chris Cooley enough to stay in the game. Clinton Portis never really got things going, but Washington kept themselves in the game and almost made it 20-17 late in the game. After that, who knows if an onside kick would have worked or not.

The Redskins clearly need another receiver next year to go along with Moss. Brunell isn't the best quarterback, but he rebounded with an outstanding season by his standards after not showing up in recent memory. The Seahawks survived without Alexander, the MVP of the league. It would have pained me to watch Hasselbeck lose another game in the postseason in the final seconds of the game. It'll be tough to beat Seattle, especially with how loud their stadium can get.

New England Patriots vs. Denver Broncos

With all due respect to the Broncos, I still think the Patriots should have won this game. Both teams were very evenly matched and were playing competitive football until Kevin Faulk fumbled under two minutes. Granted, Faulk fumbling is the Patriots fault. The pass interference call on New England is what really bugged me. I know that the referees are human, but there was not even the slightest appearance of interference on that play, and the referee was standing right there. No, that doesn't mean he had a better "look", it just means he made a horrible call. If that absurd penalty is not called, the Broncos probably would have kicked a field goal and gone into the half 3-3.

After the half, the Patriots would not have panicked. They would have played like themselves still, Brady would not have thrown a long interception play in all likelihood, and New England would have gone on to win barely. However, you have to give all of the credit in the world to the Broncos for executing. Anytime the Patriots gave them an opportunity to make a play, they put points on the board. New England's defense pretty much shut down the Broncos in the first half, and the Patriots' offense pretty much had their way with them as well. When it came down to the critical moments though, accepting the fact that the penalty had to happen before the half, the Patriots blew it. Ellis Hobbs fumbled, Troy Brown fumbled, and Brady threw a pick that basically went the distance.

By the way, what a hustle by Ben Watson. I'm pretty sure that the fumble he caused went out of the end zone for a touchback, simply based on logical reasoning. However, since the cameras did not show a clear shot of that occurring, I have to agree with the referee's decision. In the end, I'm still not convinced that the Broncos are better than New England. The victory is what counts though, as we found out during Sunday's first game.

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Indianapolis Colts

I'm not trying to make excuses, but I really do believe this: if the Colts had played a meaningful game one week before facing the Steelers, they would have won this game. Granted, the Steelers brought the best gameplan they could against the Colts and Troy Polamula is one of, if not the, most exciting defensive player in football. The pathetic display of offense that the Colts showed throughout the first three quarters simply looked like a team that never played together though. Part of it was the Steelers blitzing, but when Manning throws somewhere and the receiver doesn't look, they're not in sync.

In that fourth quarter, I saw the Colts true offense. I know the Steelers played somewhat conservative, but Manning and his receivers were on the same page. If that was the case from the get go, the Colts could have scored three touchdowns in the first half if they wanted to. One thing you can't excuse is the Colts' defense though. Ben Roethlisberger was simply amazing and took the Steelers offense to a new level. The Steelers know that Big Ben has his best success early, so they wanted to jump ahead early and postpone their running attack until later. When the Colts got hot, what did the Steelers do? They ran the football, what was it, 11 straight times it seemed? That is where the Colts were definitely out-coached by Pittsburgh.

It seemed to be all over when Manning got sacked at the two-yard line on fourth down. I couldn't believe my eyes when Jerome Bettis carried the ball. I anticipated him heading into the end zone, when all of a sudden Nick Harper scooped up the ball and ran down the field. Why he did not continue running outside I'm not sure, but Roethlisberger sent his team to the AFC Championship with his tackle. The Colts should have been able to move the ball for a touchdown so that they didn't have to rely on Vanderjagt, who missed big time. Before I finish talking about this game, I want to mention the Troy Polamula "called-back" interception. As much as I wanted the call to be overturned, I knew Dungy was challenging simply out of desperation. What? It was overturned? That was the most shocking overturned call I've ever seen, but it only added to the most exciting playoff game thus far in the 2005-2006 playoffs.

Carolina Panthers vs. Chicago Bears

When I made my pick for this game, I was dying to predict it would be a shootout. I was somewhat influenced by the general consensus that it would be a defensive game though, so I went in the middle and predicted average offense by both teams. Although the game contained plenty of defense, this game was a shootout more than anything. The Panthers passing game couldn't be stopped, and the Bears passing game did surprisingly well.

Is it just me, or would Jake Delhomme rank up their with Tom Brady as the best postseason quarterback in today's age? He has not struggled in a single postseason game and always torches the opposing defense. His only playoff loss came in the Super Bowl two years ago, and he was amazing in that game too. It helps that he has some of the best chemistry in the league with Steve Smith, though. It was ridiculous how open Smith was after the Bears' defenders fell down, but why wouldn't you double cover him to begin with? The other Panthers' receivers didn't do too bad, but do they really concern you that much that you don't double Smith? The Panthers moved the ball with ease all day against the best defense remaining in the playoffs, even after losing Foster.

Rex Grossman impressed me. After falling behind by two possessions, I felt Chicago had no chance to come back. Grossman fired the ball downfield all day long to any receiver he could find, showing his potential for next year. Although he was unable to lead a game-tying drive to end the game, he was simply brilliant at times. The Panthers defense performed better than the Bears overall, but the most credit may have to go to the Panthers offensive line. After Delhomme was sacked eight times by Chicago earlier this year, pressure was not even an issue for him.

Final Thoughts

This week, we'll have the Steelers taking on the Broncos and the Panthers challenging the Seahawks. I seriously believe that two wildcard teams can make the Super Bowl for once, but all four of these teams seem so evenly matched. Both games should be competitive and thrilling to watch. Stay tuned to PFCritics.com by bookmarking our site or signing up to our free newsletter. We will bring you exclusive previews of the AFC and NFC Championship over the next few days.

Chris Pokorny owns and operates Pro Football Critics, and Purely Wrestling, http://www.purelywrestling.com/. He writes for KFFL and was the lead administrator at the former wrestling games website, Gaming Ring.

This weekend the Carolina Panthers defeated the Arizona Cardinals in an amazing show of run offense by the Panthers. Deangelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart came together as an unstoppable run offense combo. Deangelo Williams broke away for big runs all day and Jonathan Stewart pounded into the in zone. It's becoming apparent that every NFL team is going to have to start having two NFL starter quality running back's to be effective in the NFL anymore.

Steve Smith was active in the game, he caught a touchdown pass. His explosiveness kept the Cardinals on their heels all day. The past few weeks Steve Smith was saying that he didn't feel like an asset to the Carolina Panthers anymore. He is one of the biggest reasons that the Carolina Panthers have such an effective run game. He is so fast and so great at the wide receiver position that it takes a safety and a corner back to cover him and in some situations it takes a outside linebacker.

If the Panthers can get their confidence back up the Panthers will have a good season and maybe even make a run at a wild-card spot in the playoffs. What everyone wants to know is, who is going to be the quarterback for the Carolina Panthers next year? I don't believe anybody believes it will be Jake. Jake Delhomme is too inconsistent and throws too many interceptions. During the off-season if John Fox has the opportunity to sign a better quarterback he should take it. If you look at the past two years the Carolina Panthers had the opportunity to sign Brett Favre, Michael Vick and how many other rookie all-star quarterback's? Yet the Panthers are still sticking with Jake Delhomme.

What was going on with John Kasay the Kicker for the Panthers this weekend? He missed two 40 something yard field goals. John Kasay usually is effective even past the 50 yard line. Maybe it was just an off week for the field goal kicker. John Kasay is the last original Carolina Panther and he is one of the best kickers in the NFL.

The Panthers have ALMOST all of the tools they need to be a dominate team in the National Football League. With so many tools on offensive and defense it is time to evaluate the quarterback position for the Carolina Panthers.

It's time for the Panthers to fill in the missing piece.

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