In the case of Panthers left tackle Taylor Moton, the general consensus among analysts and reporters, including your humble correspondent: time was ticking, and the likelihood of any long-term extension before Thursday’s deadline felt remote.
Life happens fast in the NFL.
By mid-afternoon on Thursday, just short of the league’s official deadline for extending franchise players to long-term deals, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the details: Carolina and their rising star on the right side had agreed to a four-year extension (essentially a 5-year deal) worth $72 million. It appears that a $43 million guaranteed bonus is due at signing, a report that was confirmed by multiple outlets throughout the afternoon.
Moton, a 2nd round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, has been widely considered by league insiders and scouts as one of the best players at his position. On tape, he is fluid and fundamentally sound, and demonstrates a high level of competitive fire through the whistle.
As a rookie, former Panthers offensive coordinator Mike Shula utilized Moton’s rare combination of power and balance in key situations, as the Western Michigan product became a bit of a go-to guy in Carolina’s 6 OL power sets.
As seen below, as the third tackle on the far right side of the line, #72 was the catalyst on this Jonathan Stewart touchdown.
Taylor Moton, on the left side of the screen, clears out a lane for Jonathan Stewart’s touchdown run
Moton opened the 2018 season at left tackle in Carolina’s season opener against Dallas. The following week, the natural-fit of a right tackle made the permanent switch back to his comfort zone. 668 pass block reps later, Moton finished his second season allowing a pair of quarterback sacks.
Over the last two seasons, Moton has molded into one of the best right tackles in the league, allowing just five sacks in 1300+ pass blocking reps.
The Panthers still have questions across the line, namely, the latest variety of mystery candidates to protect yet another Carolina QB’s blind side.
Brady Christensen, the third-rounder drafted from BYU, spent some time working at right tackle during OTA. However, the expectation is he will spend most of his time competing for a starting job at left tackle during training camp.
Other contenders include Trent Scott, a journeyman who played limited snaps last year, and former first-round pick Cam Erving, the latest in a long line of Matt Rhule revival projects.
Free agents pickup Pat Elflein will compete for the left guard job, while veterans John Miller and Dennis Daley will likely battle for reps at right guard. Miller, who fared well at times in 2020, could be a formidable sidekick for Moton, as they have experience working together.
#67 John Miller and #72 Taylor Moton
Panthers Training Camp opens on July 28, at which point, fans and those covering the event will begin to see these position battles take shape. For now, Panthers fans can breathe a sigh of relief that one of the best right tackles in the league is theirs until 2025.
He gave Panthers fans hope, if only for a minute. After a turbulent final month of 2020, Teddy Bridgewater no longer represents stability for a franchise suddenly in search of accelerated success.
By: John Ellis – @1pantherplace
Months into his first crack at any type of NFL job since 2012, the newly-minted coach of the Carolina Panthers held court, selling anyone within earshot on the value of first-round pick turned journeyman Teddy Bridgewater. All of this on the heels of Rhule’s decision, in collaboration with former GM Marty Hurney (and presumably owner David Tepper), to release 2015 NFL MVP Cam Newton, who was given permission to seek a trade in March–a trade he reportedly never wanted, and a request he reportedly never made.
"I believe in his arm strength...I believe in his decision-making."
Panthers head coach Matt Rhule. May 29, 2020.
Newton, in the middle of rehabbing his Lisfranc injury from early 2019, was apoplectic–as was much of the Panthers fanbase. Many viewed it as a needlessly premature conclusion to a largely memorable decade of performances by the first overall pick from the 2011 NFL Draft.
Perhaps in an effort to both appease fans while offering his new quarterback some degree of reassurance, Rhule spoke glowingly of Bridgewater’s game, speaking in almost hyperbolic terms, at times.
“The best players in the world bring out the best in their teammates,” Rhule said in a May 2020 interview on “Around the NFL”. “(Bridgewater) brings out the best in the people.”
Rhule, to Panthers team reporter Kristen Balboni in early April: “Teddy’s a guy who has won at every level he’s been at. Goes to New Orleans…wins again.”
A coach citing “QB WINZ” as a positive trait for a player feels a bit disingenuous, particularly in the case of Bridgewater, whose 5-0 record with the 2019 Saints was somewhat aided by superb coaching, a great defense, a strong running game and good weapons.
Rhule also underscored Bridgewater’s familiarity with new OC Joe Brady–and all that it entailed.
“When you watch him on tape, you see him execute the plays we’re going to run,” said Rhule
Emphasis on “PLAYS WE’RE GOING TO RUN”.
Clearly, Rhule and the Panthers brass had a sky-high expectation that Bridgewater, who played in New Orleans as Brady served on Sean Payton’s staff in 2018, would master Brady’s schematics, verbiage and general style of play.
There were flashes of excellence from Rhule’s dream duo early on: Teddy racked up 636 passing yards in his first pair of starts. On opening day, Bridgewater rallied Carolina from an 11-point deficit, passing for 116 of his 269 yards after the 3:00 mark of the third quarter–including a 75-yard double move touchdown by free agency steal Robby Anderson.
Trailing 34-30, with his quarterback fresh off a pair of impressive touchdown drives, Brady took the ball out of Bridgewater’s hands. Carolina opened the drive with a 15-yard “drive starter” run by Christian McCaffrey. This is not an uncommon strategy on late-game comeback drives.
Curiously, from their own 45-yard-line, with 3:22 left in regulation, the Panthers didn’t throw a single pass.
Four runs–a trio of 3-yard McCaffrey grinds, capped off by a predictable FB dive.
Via: NFL Game Book
To be clear, Carolina needed 10 yards for a new set of downs at the 3:22 mark. Hovering around mid-field, the Panthers, possibly aiming for a touchdown while leaving limited time for Las Vegas to mount a final drive, drained 1:59 from the game clock before failing to convert on a 4th and 1 to extend the game.
All the more perplexing is the fact that Las Vegas was in “single high” on each of these four runs. Brady had a golden opportinuty to exploit Cover 1 coverage with Anderson, DJ Moore, or any number of options. This would have been the ideal time to take a shot, or at the very least, mix in at least one intermediate pass.
Does that feel like trust?
A 119-second sequence of late-game diffidence served as a precursor to a series of situational gaffes from Brady’s otherwise prolific offensive attack. Carolina lost this game, and finished the season with a dreadful 2-8 record in one-possession games. With Bridgewater at the helm, the Panthers were 0-8 when faced with this combination of situational elements:
Offense on the field.
Less than 3:00 to play.
Trailing by one possession.
Now, in the interest of fairness, Carolina’s young defense (as expected) was horrible for much of season on 3rd down. The Panthers offense rarely benefited from a key takeaway, or a positive flip in field position.
Game
Punts forced
final score
Week 7: @ Saints
0
L, 27-24
Week 8: v Falcons
1
L, 25-17
Week 9: @ Chiefs
1
L, 33-31
Week 10: v Bucs
0
L, 46-23
During this four-game losing skid, Phil Snow’s defense forced 2 punts in 16 quarters. The Panthers lost 3 of those 4 games by one possession. To Bridgewater’s credit, he played some solid football during this stretch.
In fact, his two best games of the year (at New Orleans, at Kansas City) featured just one (1) punt from the two opponents combined.
The red zone offense sucked. Plain and simple.
Carolina ranked 28th in red zone efficiency, scoring touchdowns on barely half (50.9%) of their 57 trips inside the 20. Over their final seven games, Carolina was 11-of-27 in red zone efficiency, scoring touchdowns on a miserable 40.7% rate. They finished 2-5 down the stretch, and three of those losses were one-possession games.
Bridgewater suffered a knee injury in the first of those seven games, a 46-23 home loss to Tampa. Since then, his production took a nose dive.
Via Pro Football Reference
Situationally, Bridgewater made a mess of things in critical situations down the final stretch of the season. Prime example: the Minnesota game. Leading 24-21 with 1:56 to play, Brady opted for a passing play. The risk? Minnesota was out of time outs, and a run would have drained :35 extra seconds. The reward? If your QB makes a simple throw, your lead is then insurmountable.
Brady put the ball in Teddy’s hands, with the game on the line, and this is what happened:
The following week, Teddy led Carolina back from a deficit against Denver with three scoring drives in the 4th quarter. Bridgewater made several big throws down the stretch.
In crunch time, inside of 2:00, Bridgewater again failed to execute, with some degree of confusion as to why a play was rushed prior to the two minute warning–essentially a wasted play with Teddy throwing it out of bounds.
On 4th down, more of the same. Underneath the sticks, and behind Samuel on the shallow crosser. Teddy does a ton of good things between the 20’s. Crunch time just isn’t his deal.
The following week in Green Bay, more red zone issues. This time, Bridgewater tries to take it over the top, reportedly against the wishes of his coach.
Teddy Bridgewater did some nice things in 2020. No question, his knee was an issue post-Tampa. One year ago, Matt Rhule “loved his decison making” and raved about how much of a “winner” Teddy was.
Today, that same player–always overhyped by his coach, to no fault of his own–is reportedly being shopped by the same man who, less than a year ago, proclaimed: “I believe” in Teddy.
Personally, I knew what Carolina was getting with Teddy. The tape never lies.
In news first reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Carolina Panthers are expected to hire former Texans assistant Sean Ryan as their new quarterbacks coach.
Ryan, who spent the last two seasons in the same capacity with the Lions, will replace former Panthers QB coach Jake Peetz, who recently left Carolina to accept the offensive coordinator position at LSU.
A 13-year NFL coaching veteran, Ryan spent nine seasons with the New York Giants, fulfulling a number of roles (quality control, WR and QB coach) while collecting a pair of Super Bowl rings. Panthers coach Matt Rhule was an offensive line assistant on the same staff as Ryan in 2012, prompting speculation that Ryan would land the offensive coordinator role on Rhule’s inagural Panthers staff in 2020. (Joe Brady eventually got the gig.)
Sean Ryan (middle) with Deshaun Watson and Brandon Weeden.
The headline mentions the Texans. I don’t think you need an explanation as to why.
Ryan was Deshaun Watson’s first NFL QB coach, and was instrumental in Watson’s early pro development from 2017-18.
In Watson’s two seasons with Ryan by his side, the production was remarkable:
Watson thrived in his first two years under Sean Ryan. (stats via Pro Football Reference)
Ryan’s hire becomes notable for a number of reasons, including the uncertain status of current OC Joe Brady. Should Brady land a head coaching gig in the next 12 months, Ryan would be a prudent option to fill from within.
It’s also worth examining the timing: Carolina has now been linked to Deshaun Watson, who will likely seek a trade after a fallout with Houston management, by both NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, among others. Ryan and Watson shared a notoriously solid working relationship in Houston.
While Ryan is worth consideration on his own merits, this hire could serve as a signal from owner David Tepper to Watson, a star QB who has felt alienated and marginalized of late in terms of staffing decisions.
As outlined by Aaron Reiss from The Athletic, the Watson/Ryan dynamic is hard to ignore–on a day-to-day level, Watson and Ryan worked in harmony as much as any two people in the facility:
The buzz on that: Ryan reportedly didn’t see a viable path for play-calling duties under since-fired Bill O’Brien, via Reiss. Ryan subsequently interviewed with the Browns for their OC vacancy–Cleveland settled on Todd Monken.
With Joe Brady’s stay in Carolina expected to be brief, it’s a great opportunity for Ryan to get in the door with Rhule before the OC chair becomes officially vacant.
Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) sits on the bench with backup quarterback Tom Savage (3) during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game at NRG Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017, in Houston. ( Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle )
Deshaun Watson may never play a single snap in the Carolina black & blue. But with the hiring of his inaugural QB coach, as well as the owner’s endless resources + a publicly-stated desire to elevate their quarterback situation, the possibility simply can’t be ignored.
Ryan is one more context clue. Nothing more. Nothing less.
After the most expansive candidate search in franchise history, the Carolina Panthers are expected to hire Seahawks VP of player personnel Scott Fitterer to fill their GM vacancy, per NFL Media/NFL.com.
Fitterer, 47, has been with the Seahawks since 2001–Mike Holmgren was the head coach/general manager at the time, as Fitterer jumped into a front office structure rife with emerging stars, including Ted Thompson (VP of football ops) and John Schnieder (Director of player personnel).
Scott Fitterer (R) with Seahawks GM John Schnieder (L) and head coach Pete Carroll.
A two-sport star in high school, Fitterer played baseball (pitcher) and football (quarterback) at UCLA, and later LSU. Shoulder problems eventually derailed his baseball career with the Toronto Blue Jays.
As an area scout, Fittrer worked under then college scouting director Scot Mccloughan, who, ironically enough, also played for the Blue Jays.
Per the Seahawks 2020 Media Guide, Fitterer, who was the team’s college scouting director from 2011-14, was still heavily involved in Seattle’s college scouting efforts:
In his current role, Fitterer works collaboratively with Trent Kirchner in directing both the college scouting and pro personnel departments to manage and strengthen all aspects of the Seahawks roster.
As the director of college scouting he coordinated the Seahawks’ entire scouting operation and compiled all of the college scouting information required to set the draft board.
He is responsible for the evaluation of all draft eligible players nationally, oversight of the Seahawks college scouting staff and works closely with GM John Schneider and the Seahawks coaching staff regarding the NFL Draft and college free agency.
Before joining Seattle, Fitterer was a scout for the New York Giants from 1998-2000, where he worked in the same building as former Panthers head coach John Fox.
The Panthers interviewed 15 candidates for their GM vacancy, with Fitterer jumping into the mix as a late addition. Fitterer will oversee a front office currently led by a pair of recent hires: director of player personnel Pat Stewart and director of player negotiations/cap manager Samir Suleiman.
According to NFL Research, the Carolina Panthers are the first team in league history to use all seven drafts picks on defenders.
New Panthers defensive coordinator Phil Snow, who spent time with head coach Matt Rhule at both Temple and Baylor, is the beneficiary of two new interior DL (Derrick Brown, Bravvion Roy), a pair of safeties (Jeremy Chinn, Kenny Robinson), two new corners (Stan Thomas-Oliver, Troy Pride) and an EDGE (Yetur Gross-Matos).
Here is a pick-by-pick look at your newest Carolina Panthers:
One Panther Place 