Flicken, Schenkies, Awards & Co. » Julius Peppers Jersey

Note: This is my first article as a contributor at Cat Scratch Reader. I’ve been an everyday reader and infrequent fan poster here for about ten years. It is an honor and pleasure for me to contribute and I hope you enjoy my content as much as I enjoy creating it.In this segment we’ll take a look at the progress and projections of each of the Panthers 2018 draft picks. Six weeks from now we’ll revisit this report and see just how each rookie stacks up against their pace from the first third of the season. Hopefully Russell Color Rush Shepard Jersey , we see some exponential returns as the game slows down for these first year Panthers.D.J. Moore, WR—Round 1, Pick 24 (No. 24 overall)Through six gamesReceiving13 receptions (18 targets)191 yards1 touchdownRushing46 yards (4 attempts)Full season paceReceiving35 receptions (48 targets)509 receiving yards3 touchdownsRushing123 yards (11 attempts)A D.J. Moore-type player was the answer to our prayers. Weapons to keep Cam Newton from having to drop dimes that clunk off the hands of Kaelin Clay in the playoffs were everything we could have asked for. Although Moore isn’t quite ready to be a stark contributor yet, he has the tools to be an absolute superstar in this league. Teammates have spoken glowingly of Moore and what he can bring to this offense, but patience is a virtue when it comes to the development of wideouts in this league. Nevermind what four-year Saban spawn, Calvin Ridley, has done on a pass-happy Atlanta team. Ridley may have a higher floor of potential, but his ceiling is dramatically lower than that of Moore’s. I stoutly believe that D.J. will surpass his current season pace as he continues to ramp up his responsibility under Norv Turner. Considering the play of Donte Jackson, the Panthers seem to have made the right choice with their first round pick. Outlook: Ice Up, Son 2: Rivera’s RevengeDonte Jackson, CB—Round 2, Pick 23 (No. 55 overall)Through six games3 interceptions1 forced fumble28 tackles5 passes defensedFull season pace8 interceptions3 forced fumbles75 tackles13 passes defensedThis kid can be special. Really special. The Carolina revolution continued with the addition of the fastest defensive back in the draft. With 4.32 speed and unmitigated swagger, this defense immediately improved with the addition of the former LSU cornerback. The most surprising aspect of Donte’s game has been his ability to tackle in open space. He makes this defense significantly more fun to watch, although the comparisons to Josh Norman are unreasonable. Josh wasn’t this impressive in his rookie year.Outlook: Dave Gettleman won’t be able to rescind his franchise tag, so we’ve got that going for us.Rashaan Gaulden, S—Round 3, Pick 21 (No. 85 overall)Through six games7 tackles, 1 TFLFull season pace19 tackles, 3 TFLWith their third pick of the draft, the Panthers decided to double down in the secondary, taking hybrid safety Rashaan Gaulden out of Tennessee. This pick had Ron Rivera written all over it. The intention of the coaching staff is to develop Gaulden into a “big nickel” corner to specialize in shadowing the freakishly athletic tight ends that we’ve seen popping up all over the league. Gaulden hasn’t played much this season, especially after the addition of Eric Reid, but I can’t say I’ve seen him make any major mistakes either. This is still the greatest highlight we have from Gaulden, and I’m okay with that.Outlook: Someone is going to have to lock down Travis Kelce in the Superb Owl.Ian Thomas, TE—Round 4, Pick 1 (No. 101 overall)Through six gamesReceiving10 receptions (16 targets)72 yardsFull season paceReceiving27 receptions (43 targets)192 receiving yardsThis may have been the Panthers most intriguing pick. Ian Thomas, a JUCO transfer, contributed sparingly at Indiana, but showed major potential through his sheer size and athleticism. The Panthers decided to kick off the third day of the draft by taking the heir-apparent to an aging and injury-prone Greg Olsen. This pick was all about upside, and similarly to his career at Indiana, Thomas has shown flashes but has yet to fully contribute. This is to be expected. Thomas was thrusted into a starting role in Week Two after Greg Olsen went down with a broken foot for the second straight season and, at times, looked like a deer in headlights. Thomas has made a number of mistakes at crucial moments, including a dropped touchdown against Atlanta and two quit routes that led to Cam Newton interceptions against Cincinnati. The kid is a work in progress but the ceiling is high. Let’s just hope Jason Witten can rebound in the Monday Night Football booth so ESPN doesn’t have to give Greg Olsen a call this offseason. Outlook: Somewhere between Brandon “Swole Bones” Williams and Antonio Gates.Marquis Haynes, DE—Round 4, Pick 36 (No. 136 overall)1 game activeThe all-time sacks leader at Ole Miss hasn’t seen much playing time this year. Marquis Haynes has been inactive for most of the season, and that doesn’t look to be changing anytime soon. While Haynes may be solid depth at the moment, if Hurney were to pull the trigger and trade for a pass rusher to boost this defense, Marquis could be on the chopping block. Outlook: Depth third down pass rusher Julius Peppers Jersey , but probably better off as a 3-4 outside linebacker.Jermaine Carter, LB—Round 5, Pick 24 (No. 161 overall)6 games active, 1 tackleJermaine Carter was an interesting pick here considering the abundance of talent the Panthers have at the linebacker position already. Once you get past the fourth round, all bets are off when it comes to drafting for need. A captain of the defense and numeric counterpart to DJ Moore at Maryland, Jermaine was highly respected by teammates and coaches alike. He led the team in tackles for three consecutive seasons. After a flashy preseason, Carter was able to achieve a spot on the roster and has had a substantial impact on special teams. The former Terrapin has also gotten a few snaps at outside linebacker, where he’s gotten to learn under some of the best in the business.Outlook: Solid depth at a position that could look at lot weaker after the Mayor of Charlotte chooses to get into politicsAndre Smith, LB—Round 7, Pick 16 (No. 234 overall)1 game active I’m a big Tarheel fan and, honestly, this felt like a steal in the seventh round. Andre Smith was spectacular at North Carolina before missing the final 10 games of his Junior season with a major knee injury. Making the roster was impressive, but this retention was based on potential more than anything. Especially in an absolutely stacked linebacker room. Thus far we haven’t seen much of Andre, especially since he is currently dealing with a hamstring injury. Look for him to potentially step in and make an impact on special teams sooner than later, especially considering linebacker Jared Norris was recently placed on IR. Outlook: Low risk, high reward potential special teams aceKendrick Norton, DT—Round 7, Pick 24 (No. 242 overall)0 games active, practice squadKendrick Norton hasn’t had much impact on this Panthers team. He was delegated to the practice squad after an underwhelming training camp. However, Norton quite possibly gave us the best quote of the season after being passed over by all 32 teams in the NFL draft numerous times. Incredible. He’s got a long way to go here, but hey, it’s only his year one. Outlook: Practice body with some fire in his belly.The Panthers drafted a lot of “boom or bust” players. Guys that have extremely high ceilings, while also presenting some risk to dud. In typical Ron Rivera fashion, this roster defers to veteran players. It’s been difficult to fully evaluate what a majority of this draft class will contribute (or not contribute) to this team yet, but the potential for greatness is there. Hopefully the next time I write this segment we have a much clearer view these players’ roles unobstructed by the bubble wrap placed on them by a coaching staff that predicates themselves on crippling conservatism. ATLANTA (AP) The NFL approved a new owner for the Carolina Panthers, passed a rule to eject players who hit with their helmets, and took steps to spice up the kickoff.Still to be resolved: a much more contentious issue.What to do, if anything, about players who kneel during the national anthem?”We recognize with our visibility and the interest itself that it’s taken a life of its own,” Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Thursday.”We ask the world, `Don’t turn your head. Look at us. Wait a minute. Look at the NFL. Look at everything we’re doing.’ And then when we have some issues we’ve got to work through, we realize we’ve asked you to look.”Let’s do as good as we can do.”At their annual spring meeting, league owners welcomed David Tepper to their ranks by signing off on his record $2.2 billion deal to purchase the Panthers from disgraced team founder Jerry Richardson, who abruptly decided to sell after the NFL began investigating alleged sexual and racial misconduct in the workplace.During a brief news conference in which he took only a handful of questions, Tepper immediately made a bit of news by seeming to imply he would be willing to listen to offers for a new stadium from other cities in North and South Carolina. The team has made no secret of its desire to replace 22-year-old Bank of America Stadium, and its lease runs only through the upcoming season.”What’s the name of the team? Carolina Panthers. It’s going to be the Carolina Panthers,” Tepper said. ”And that means this team has to have some kind of presence in the Carolinas and last time I saw, how many are there? That’s right, there’s two of them.”But Tepper DJ Moore Color Rush Jersey , a hedge fund owner who is worth a reported $11 billion, also reiterated several times that the largest city in the Carolinas is the ”logical place for this team.””As far as a new stadium, you’re asking me too much and the only thing I have a market on now is lack of knowledge,” he said. ”I’ll learn a lot more in the future.”Tepper’s purchase was the first order of business at the luxury hotel in Atlanta’s tony Buckhead neighborhood.That was the easy part.As a minority owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tepper was already familiar to the league’s owners and his approval was a mere formality. The vote was unanimous.Anthem protests are a much thornier issue.”We certainly want to make and will make a thought-out, deliberate decision,” said Jones, who has made it clear he opposes kneeling during the anthem and was one of the few people to speak with reporters in the hotel lobby after the meeting broke up. ”Whatever we do, let’s put the focus on what the NFL’s about and that’s playing football.”The owners began discussing the issue – which has reached all the way to the White House – and will talk more before wrapping up their meetings Wednesday.Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016, a quiet but powerful protest against police brutality and racial inequities in the justice system.Other players took up the cause, and the gesture carried on during the 2017 season even after Kaepernick left the 49ers and failed to land a job with another team.President Trump turned the anthem protests into a campaign issue , saying the NFL should fire any player who takes a knee during ”The Star-Spangled Banner.” The NFL hasn’t gone that far, but Kaepernick has yet to land another job and one of his former teammates and fellow protesters, safety Eric Reid, is also out of work.Both have filed collusion grievances against the NFL .”I think there’s certainly resolve and I can assure the issue is getting the very best of every owner and the very best look at all our constituencies with an eye first and foremost to our fans. That’s No. 1,” Jones said.”We know our fans want us to zero in on football, and they don’t want to think about or think that we’re thinking about anything other than football.”The NFL was reportedly considering whether to assess a 15-yard penalty against any player who takes a knee or conducts any other protest during the anthem.Another possible option would be to change up the pregame routine, keeping teams in their respective locker rooms until after the anthem has played.That is the protocol long followed by college football, preventing anthem protests from being carried out in its stadiums.The new kickoff rules are aimed at making the high-speed play a bit safer and perhaps more exciting.Players on the kickoff team can’t get a running start, while eight of the return team’s 11 players must start out in a 15-yard zone near midfield, forcing them to run down the field alongside the coverage players. That will make the play more like a punt and should improve safety.Wedge blocks – two blockers teaming up on the same player – will also be banned. In addition, any kick that hits the ground in the end zone will be an automatic touchback.The new rules will be re-evaluated in 2019 to determine their effectiveness, but the league doesn’t want to eliminate kickoffs altogether.”It’s part of the game,” said Atlanta Falcons President and CEO Rich McKay, head of the league’s competition committee. ”If we can make plays more competitive and safer, we should do it.”In another attempt to improve safety, any player who initiates contact with his helmet is subject to ejection after an in-game video review that will be decided in New York.Al Riveron, the league’s head of officiating, said a foul can be called regardless of where on the body – not just the head or neck area – that one player hits another with his helmet. The rule is not position-specific, so offensive players will be subject to the same criteria as defensive players.”This is about eliminating unnecessary use of the helmet,” Riveron said.If a player is ejected, Riveron and his staff in New York will use network camera angles to determine if the ejection is necessary. He promised that games will not become ”an ejection fest” every week.”Immediately when I learn in New York that there’s an ejection, I will ask the network to give me everything you’ve got,” Riveron said. ”I will take a look at it, I will rule on it and I will say yes, he’s ejected, (or) no, leave him in the game.”’—