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Panthers Draft History Review: The First Draft Gem

This the 2nd in a series leading up the 2011 NFL draft in which we review and vote on the 'busts' and 'gems' from past drafts. We started with the First Bust of the Panthers organization back in 1995. Now we look at the candidates for 'gem' of the 1995 draft. What do I mean by 'gem'? I'll leave it up to you but I imagine it could be the best 'value' pick from the draft based on draft position. Or you could make your pick based on best player selected in the draft. It's your call. Once we get through all the drafts up to 2010 we'll run a poll of all the winners to pick the #1 Gem and #1 Bust of the Panther All-time.

So here are the candidates. Though he got votes for the bust of the draft he was out first pick so let's see how many fans actually think he was a gem:

 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.

Same with Tyrone Poole, who actually only received a few votes for 

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.

Star-divide

4 (133) C Frank Garcia - Garcia made 84 starts at G or C for the Panthers over 6 seasons. He was a quality starter but not a Pro Bowler. He played three more seasons after leaving the Panthers before getting suspended for popping ephedra on a whiz quiz. He never returned to the league after the 4 game suspension.   

7 (209) S Chad Cota - Though Cota ended up having a fine NFL career he did little for the Panthers his 1st two seasons. He had a very nice season his 3rd year, making 16 starts. The NFL apparently didn't maintain tackle stats for Cota so I'm not sure how productive he was. 

So those are our candidates for the 1995 Gem of the draft.

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Poll
Which draft pick was the 'Gem' of the Panthers 1995 draft?
QB Kerry Collins
17 votes
CB Tyrone Poole
56 votes
C Frank Garcia
48 votes
S Chad Cota
44 votes
There were no gems in this draft
48 votes

213 votes | Poll has closed

Comment 11 comments  |  0 recs  | 

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As much as I like Cota and Poole I think Garcia was the best gem out of all of them

After looking over their careers here in Carolina I can’t overlook a guy who started 84 games for the Panthers

by James Dator on Apr 6, 2011 6:59 AM EDT reply actions   1 recs

Though I voted Poole, you make a good case

Garcia being a 4th rounder makes it a ‘value’ pick as well

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by Jaxon on Apr 6, 2011 9:29 AM EDT up reply actions  

Garcia?

Didn’t Garcia have a major drug and alcohol problem that caused the panthers to keep suspending him… or was that another ol. I am not talking about kerry “tom” collins. Lol

by Panthster on Apr 7, 2011 10:10 AM EDT up reply actions  

That was Chris Terry I believe...

Garcia was a pretty steady guy from what I remember.

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by Tomthehomer on Apr 7, 2011 10:52 AM EDT up reply actions  

lol'd @ "tom" collins

One cries because one is sad. For example: I cry because others are stupid, and it makes me sad.

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by BW Smith on Apr 7, 2011 2:54 PM EDT up reply actions  

wow..poll results are surprising spread across all selections

We need more votes to bring clarity!

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by Jaxon on Apr 6, 2011 9:28 AM EDT reply actions  

I think Chad Cota was a real gem, especially considering he was a 7th round pick

I always liked his nose for the ball. It seemed like anytime a tackle was being made, he was either doing it or at least in on it. He was an over-achiever for sure.

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by Tarheel Soldier on Apr 6, 2011 10:15 AM EDT reply actions  

Cota in a tight race...

mainly because of where he was drafted vs. what he became; that was a hard choice though between him and Garcia….

Nobody fucks with the Jesus! -Big Lebowski

by Tomthehomer on Apr 6, 2011 11:12 AM EDT reply actions  

Its funny, I voted Collins for both bust and gem in these two threads

As much as Collins’ fallout screwed this franchise over from the late 90’s to early 2k’s, the deep playoff run in early existence seriously jumpstarted the fandom of this team. If he wasn’t here, it simply would not have happened. His drafting was a very important part of our franchise history and the development of the fandom of this team.

by ppalm on Apr 6, 2011 12:08 PM EDT reply actions  

cota or Collins

Collins got us to the nfc championship game and I believe he made it to the pro-bowl which makes it hard not to vote for him. Course you could argue about cota because of his game winning interception that sent us to the playoffs. The whole stadium was emptying out including me who always stays till the end. I stopped and went down to the endzone seats and watched Cota make his play about 20 feet in front of me. It was awesome to say the least. Seconds left, other receiver catches ball= no playoffs and Cota rips it away in mid air and manages to hang on for int. We let Cota and Poole go to soon.

by Panthster on Apr 7, 2011 10:24 AM EDT reply actions  

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