Bud Light asked that we run a series of posts leading up to the draft on our past gems and busts. Sounded like a good idea since we are really scrapping to find something to write about. For arguments sake I'm only going to consider picks in rounds 1 through 3 for draft busts. For draft gems we'll look at the better picks from all levels of the the draft.

Let's get this started with the first Panthers bust. So let's harken back to 1995, the Panthers inaugural draft. They had four picks in the first two rounds and amazingly two of them are still in the league:

1 (5) QB Kerry Collins - Collins lasted three seasons in Carolina before his off the field activities, when combined with 49 INTs against 38 TDs, was too much to bear. He left with approximately a 65 QB rating. Collins remains in the league and has had some notable seasons in 2000 with the Giants and 2008 with the Titans.

more after the jump...

1 (22) CB Tyrone Poole - Poole has 498 total tackles and 45 interceptions over his 15 yr career. He had 170 tackles for the Panthers and 5 INTs, missing only 1 start in three seasons. Poole was a quality starter but his lack of size made him a risk in man coverage. 

1 (29) T Blake Brokermeyer - Made 58 starts in four seasons for the Panthers before leaving to continue what would be a 9 year career. I couldn't find anything written about why he left the Panthers but I was thinking he was injury prone. Yet he made 48 starts in 4 seasons, missing only 6 games in four seasons. He must have left for more money than the Panthers were willing to pay. 

2 (36) Shawn King - 57 tackles and 8.5 sacks in 8 seasons says a lot. He was more know for his numerous suspensions for violating the drug test policy, missing the entire 1998 season for it.

So would you call any of these picks 'busts' Panther fans? If so, which would you call the first bust of the Panther organization. Take the poll:

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