1) Tim Tebow - In all honesty, I really wish this guy well. I hope someone gives him a chance and he takes advantage of it, shutting up all the naysayers and nitpickers over his throwing style, body type, running speed, etc. The kid’s an amazing athlete. Put him out there and see what he can do. Now, do I believe the Panthers should take him? Not unless he’s fallen pretty far on draft day. But even then, he might be a value pick. You never know. I think it might be intriguing to see a run-capable QB like Tebow under center along with our RBs. I don’t know that his arm would improve our passing game that much. But, he’d be sitting behind Matt Moore anyway and have time to work and practice. So who knows?

2) Armanti Edwards - I want to see somebody give this guy a chance, too. For all those people who questioned that Steve Smith could be anything all that special (other than a special teamer), why can’t Edwards do the same? And for all those people who thought Chris Johnson would be too small to be an every down back for the Tennessee Titans…or that Deangelo Williams wouldn’t be able to capitalize on his collegiate success to translate his game to the pro level…or that Captain Munnerlyn was too small to be an effective CB in the NFL…why can’t guys like Edwards (and Tebow) do the same? For once, I’d like to see the talking heads shut up and let a guy go out and prove what he can do at the next level, instead of just automatically making assumptions about it and talking down about him and never giving him a legitimate chance. So, should the Panthers take Edwards? I’m going to go out on a limb and say yes. The kid has skills. He’s got a following that could resonate well with local fans. He might be a better answer at KR/PR (but we’ll need training camp to assess that). And, as long as we don’t reach in order to get Edwards in the draft, why not take him?

3) Fox on the Hot Seat vs. A Rebuilding Year By Going Young - In all honesty, I think the Panthers have made a conscious choice to turn the page on some of their aging veterans. They want to shake things up again…though a fair amount of that went on last year just from a coaching aspect (particularly on defense). I think some of this is about Ron Meeks getting the guys he wants in place to do even better down the road. Some of it is parting ways with Delhomme, Muhammad, and Hoover in order to start building for the long-term, continued success of the team. And some of its just giving young guys a chance to finally get on the field and see what we’ve got. Is that going to pose a threat to Fox’s tenure as Carolina players continue to go through some growing pains? Yes…especially if we fall flat on our face and people start questioning the release of proven veterans like Hoover and Muhammad who played such a key role in the success of the running game from a blocking perspective. Is Fox going to feel any pressure from that? I seriously doubt it. He’ll be same ol’ Foxy and demand the same level of effort from his team as always. But, at the same time, it’s also apparent that by clearing the roster and trimming it down to the younger guys, the team will be in a position for another coach to take over if Fox is eventually replaced…and the new guy will immediately be able to start building the roster with “his” guys. So the Panthers have sort of hedged their bet a little.

3a) Will the Panthers Challenge for the Division This Year? - I think they’ll be competitive. But, are they going to be favored? Not really. I expect most people to pick us as finishing 3rd, behind the Saints and the Falcons, but ahead of the Bucs. As we’ve gone young, we’ve lost experience. The Saints are going to try and maintain their Super Bowl talent level (for the most part) in hopes of repeating. And the Falcons are trying to build on what they’ve got rather than starting a bunch of new guys. Even so, the Bucs are still way behind in readiness to challenge for the NFC South…despite all the roster moves the Panthers have made. Can Carolina win the division? Anything’s possible in the NFC South. The crown changes hands almost every year. It’s really going to come down to how easy our schedule becomes this season and whether or not we can split with New Orleans and Atlanta.

4) Signing Tyler Brayton - This was a wise move on the part of the Panthers. The guy wants to be here. He comes cheap. He’s got a motor that never stops running and he’ll leave it all out on the field for you. He’s also experienced. He’s the sole returning starter from last season on the D-line. Why wouldn’t you want to retain him? It’s a no-brainer.

5) Nitpicking Peppers’ In-Game Motivation - It’s both true that it’s a reflection of his personality that his demeanor on the field isn’t as “rah-rah” and fired up as other DEs and pass-rushers. He can be a game-changing force. He may even become one for the Bears (and I suspect he might as long as he’s not the sole focal point and more of a complimentary piece in their defense). But he was no longer the right fit for Carolina. The money issues were just going to hamstring us forever. The fans were split on hating/supporting him. And I think most everyone at this point rationally believes we can find someone just as good or better in terms of what Julius was providing for our team on the field over the past couple of seasons at a lesser price (which means we spend that remaining money on improving the rest of the team). Also, Peppers was getting up in years…and, if we’re going to turn a page and make the whole team younger…now was the time to let Peppers go, as well. Let the Bears get what they can out of him, and they can deal with any aging issues that start to slow him rather than us.

6) Delhomme in Cleveland - I really do wish Jake all the best. I believe he already gave us his best stuff and it took us really far. The Matt Moore era is here and we all need to embrace and see where it takes us, too. In the meantime, I absolutely agree with Holmgren’s assessment of Jake. He just may be the leader the Browns need. As long as he can control his turnovers and make sure his arm and mechanics are sound again, he could help that team make some noise if they start putting some other pieces in place around him. With Holmgren at the helm, I fully expect Cleveland to improve. I think Jake can be part of that improvement. And I hope he will be. God bless him, his family, and all those millions he’s going to pull down. Couldn’t happen to a classier guy.

But that’s just my nickel-plus worth,
—Neil