We bring you another round of questions on July 4th!
Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! Its July 4th, you had a few really solid questions this week. If you happen to be chilling out by the pool or enjoying a BBQ, come for some light Panthers reading!
PantherBlueBlood: Will Chuba eclipse the 1000 rushing yards mark this season?
I’d actually go as far as to say 1k rushing yards should be the expectation for Chuba. He racked up 902 rush yards in 2023 and 1195 in 2024, a season where he was rewarded with a 4 year, $33.2 million contract extension. He also had 1135 and 1366 yards from scrimmage in those prior two seasons, respectively. While Carolina did opt to sign Rico Dowdle (also coming off a 1k yard rushing season) to a one year deal, and draft RB Trevor Etienne in the 4th round, the Panthers very much put their money where their mouth is with the Hubbard extension. If he remains healthy all season, 1,000 yards on the ground should be very doable. The only reasons I see it not happening are an injury, or Dowdle/Etienne take up more snaps than many have forecasted, which would bode well for the team anyway if the Panthers were to boast an effective 3-headed monster at that position.
right_turn_clyde: Which former Panther (player, coach, etc.) currently employed by another team will have the biggest impact (positive or negative) this year? I’m going negative with Jonathon Mingo because he’ll take up a roster spot without providing any value for the Cowboys.
I hate to do this, but I expect both Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield to turn in another season that makes the Panthers decision to part with them look bad. I could see Darnold also having the biggest negative impact if we see the version of him from the 2024 playoffs and not the almost MVP caliber year he had during the regular season. As far as non-quarterbacks, lets go with Brian Burns and Frankie Luvu. Burns is going to be on a defensive line that should take a ton of attention away from him and allow him to specialize as a pass rusher, which could see him getting a career high in sacks. Luvu is on a Washington team that seems to be going for broke to get into the Super Bowl, and they signed several defensive pieces to help around him, including long time great LB Bobby Wagner.
Bruce Guild: Do you ever see Brad Izik calling plays and truly running the offense on gameday or will it be that as long as Dave C is our coach he will maintain that role?
I don’t think that role is going to change any time in the near future. Part of the reason is Dave Canales definitely specializes on the offensive side of the ball, and he’s still growing as a play caller. Second part is he’s definitely allowed Ejiro Evero full autonomy with the defense. If Evero ends up getting a head coaching job (or fired), we could see Dave devote more of his attention to the defensive side on game days. But even if that never happens, and even if offensive coordinator Brad Idzik is handed the reigns as the play caller, its still going to have Canales’s philosophies all over it. He’s Dave’s right hand man, so it probably wouldn’t change a whole lot of the big picture aspects of the play calls.
allstarr: Hey Brian, will you name two NFL player’s names that you like or that seems to fit their position. One from Panthers teams, and one from the league such as Rocket Ismail, Booger Mcfarland, etc.
I always liked Chris Harris as a hard hitting safety for the Panthers and even for other teams. Chris “The Hitman” Harris just had a certain bite to it when you’d get the announcer call and him clocking a ball carrier/poor soul who got in his way.
Going back to the safety position, Brian Dawkins just had a name that seemed to fit his play style. Obviously, “Weapon X” was a great nickname too, but the name just fit so well with his hard hitting style. I’ll also throw in Bob Sanders and Kam Chancellor.
None of these names have any kind of word play connotations, but as a defensive back guy, the name just fit with the style of play they had on the field.
Schrodinger’s black cat: What do you make of the Steelers’ off season? They’re maybe the most measured, patient franchise in the league. Is there any way to read this wild off season other than desperation? Is pinning some very short term hopes on a roster on the brink of retirement signalling the inevitable impatience of even the most patient ownership? Or even more significantly, is it possibly signalling the end of the Tomlin era?
I thought every decision they made before the Aaron Rodgers signing made sense from a long term outlook. DK Metcalf still has a lot of juice in the tank, George Pickens seemed to be the latest WR to need to move from, their Draft was very “Steelers-esque”. Then, they signed Rodgers, and then they traded for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith, while shipping off Minkah Fitzpatrick who I think has never gotten enough love as a safety. The moves only make sense if they think they will push for a Super Bowl this year, but then their moves prior to that didn’t really parallel with it. I think Rodgers held them hostage during the off-season so they really couldn’t pull the trigger on going for broke until they knew they had him or some other QB that could make them competitive TODAY.
@WTMealey: To get hyped for next season what game would you rewatch from last season?
What non playoff Panthers game do you think about most often when reliving former Panther glory?
Honestly, even though it was a loss, that Chiefs game was really exciting and my favorite rewatch from last season. The defense had a surprisingly good day against Mahomes aside from the waning moments of the game. Overall, a very solid and complete effort that definitely showed this team can step up in the future.
I’ll always love the 2013 regular season 49ers game, and the 2013 playoff clincher against the New Orleans Saints. Both embodied Cardiac Cats and really called back to stingy, tight defensive football. And if you have any friends who are Patriots fans, the 2013 win against them where Luke Kuechly made a totally smart, great, LEGAL defensive play will always be a highlight.
Happy 4th, Panthers fans! Enjoy the fireworks, stay safe, and KEEP POUNDING!