Rules are simple. I'll start by posting a fun and interesting news story. You can reply with one of your own as long as it isn't X-Rated material. Have fun guys!

I'll start!

A 33-year-old man who struck customers with light sabers at the Toys R Us at Hayden Island has been sentenced to 45 days jail and possible mental-health treatment.

David Allen Canterbury told Judge Kenneth Walker that he is already seeking mental-health treatment. Canterbury also apologized to his victims.

Portland police said Canterbury swung the Star Wars sabers — one in each hand — at three customers on Dec. 14 at about 9:50 p.m. at the store at 1800 Jantzen Beach Center. He then carried the light sabers outside the store and swung at police. Officers tried to use a Taser to subdue him, but Canterbury successfully deflected one of the wires away.

Police eventually wrestled him to the ground before taking him into custody.

Today in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Canterbury pleaded no contest to fourth-degree assault and resisting arrest. The judge dismissed charges of interfering with a police officer, theft and disorderly conduct. The judge also sentenced Canterbury to two years of probation and a mental-health evaluation that could call for treatment.

Canterbury has been banned from Toys R Us. The judge did not give him additional time for violating the terms of his probation for a previous heroin-possession conviction.

Let me provide you a statistic that may just blow your mind upon you hearing it. Eli Manning and the New York Giants finished 32^nd in the league in rushing. That’s right. They finished dead last. And now they’re Super Bowl Champions. For all of those people out there that want to claim Eli Manning as an "Above Average" QB that lives in the shadow of his older brother and rides on the back of an elite team, your argument is pretty much done now that Eli has brought home his 2^nd Lombardi Trophy. The fact they’ve both been against the hated New England Cheats is just a little bonus credit for us Panther fans.

The Giants offense has lived and died on the back of Eli Manning this year. And he has brought them results. The question is no longer "Would Eli Manning have his job if it wasn’t for his last name." But rather, "Which one do you want quarterbacking your team in the Super Bowl?"

Career statistics and more after the Jump!

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If you look about 20 comments down from the main post you'll see my comment talking about why, but this guy truly irritated me today. Who is he to talk about what Cam Newton is and isn't allowed to say? I'm pondering making a direct response to that article tonight, but I would like to get your guys input on this and see what you guys have to say about it. The link to the article is right here.

Sammy Watkins is the new Jacoby Ford. Dwayne Allen is a NFL Caliber TE. "I'm a real boy" Tajh Boyd is going to crush the enemy with his cannon of an arm. Virginia Tech plays in Bank of America Stadium in order to get revenge for their one loss during the season. They have a good running game, I expect them to put up lots of points against my Tigers. As long as Dabo Swinney doesn't screw it up, we should win this game.

Go Tigers! Go Clemson! Woooot. Been waiting all week for this one.

May his name be praised! The almighty one has returned to us in human form! Jesus Christ has finally found a host to come to visit among us mere mortals. May the sinful be washed away in holy light, the righteous among us following Tebow to the promised land! Where the Clemson Tigers win every game, every year. And where the Panthers always make it to the Super Bowl!

Once there was a man in Carolina who salvaged a season thought completely lost. A man who with the brief time he was here, restored faith in our team and hope for the future. He was a man who was constantly held back in the depth chart due to the incompetence of John Fox and injuries beyond his control. A man we knew that if given the chance to play games and develop, he could become a starting quarterback in the NFL.

I'm talking about the most heartbreaking release of 2011, Matt Moore. I always believe that he received a bad rap with our team. Of all the players ever hurt by our propensity to play old veterans instead of talented ones during the John Fox era, Matt Moore is the most important. Now that he has gone to Miami, we are beginning to see the kind of talent he's capable of in producing stat gaudy wins against Kansas City, Washington, and Buffalo. Six touchdowns and 1 interception in the last three games with over a 70% completion rating. Absolutely astounding.

As a Panthers fan, I can't help but wonder what would have happened if Matt Moore had been given a better shot. When Matt Moore went 4-1 in the latter end of the 2009 season, he should have been our trusted starter. There should have been no question about it and Jimmy Clausen shouldn't have been drafted when he fell to us in 2010. Matt Moore had been with the team for four years. He was a veteran. He had paid his time on the depth chart and now it was time to receive his due. Instead, John Fox ripped him out of the starting lineup after two games and then threw resident pretty-boy Jimmy Clausen into the fire. The results could be seen from a mile away: Disaster.

So the Panthers go 2-14 for the rest of the season. Instead of letting Matt Moore develop in a starting situation, the Panthers decided to move on from him too quickly and it helped contribute to our terrible season. It's most important that we as fans learn from the mistakes that John Fox made during his reign and not rush to a conclusion with Cam Newton. We need to give him time to develop under center. Sure, his career hasn't started out the way we wished in terms of wins and losses. He hasn't delivered in the clutch when we were looking for one last score to win the game. However, he has genuine talent and we've got to give him time to develop it, an offensive line to protect him, and talented receivers that can't only catch his balls but also make plays after the catch.

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Let's pretend for the moment that Steve Smith is going to be here forever. That's all fine and good, but he's alone. Since Moose has gone, he's the only really good receiver here. A champion and a god among his peers. David Gettis, Lafell, Edwards, and none of the others are the answer. Once Steve is gone, the Panthers don't have a true #1 receiver to go to and that will hurt our offense. In turn, it will hurt Cam Newton. Think of all the passes Cam Newton has thrown this last week, almost half of them have been to Steve Smith. And when you think of all the Super Bowl teams of the past, many of them have at least two good receivers. The Patriots had Randy Moss and Wes Welker. When they didn't have Randy Moss, they had Deion Branch. The Steelers had Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward. The Giants had Plaxico Burress and Hakeem Nicks. The Colts had Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison. The lists of examples are endless and they prove one important thing: If you want to win a Super Bowl, you've got to have two great receivers to go with an excellent QB.

Fast forward to the 2013 Draft. The Panthers have been building up their team for a while now. Their defensive unit is one of the stoutest in the league thanks to picking up key players in free agency and great early choices in the 2011 and 2012 drafts. Steve Smith is a bit older at 34 years old, but he's still got the talent to gain separation from the other guys on the field. But he's still alone. The Panthers have ignored the WR position year after year while Steve Smith has piled on the receiving yardage. But now, they're finally willing to dedicate a 2nd round pick to a talented receiver in an effort to solve this problem. They realize that Steve Smith cannot solve the passing offense on his own and without a retired Jeremy Shocking and an aging Smitty, it's only going to get worse if they aren't willing to do something about it.

In walks Revshawn's new knight in shining armor, Sammy Watkins.

There are those among you that might not understand my jokes I crack about Jacoby Ford. So I will explain. I am a die-hard Clemson fan. Let me be perfectly clear to you all, there is no greater Clemson fan on Earth than me. Remember that one guy that was caught crying over Clemson's loss and he was a media sensation for a while? He's nothing! I tore my shirt and wore sackcloth and ashes for many moons following Clemson's loss to Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship.

Three years ago, I began the bandwagon for Jacoby Ford to be selected by the Carolina Panthers in the 2010 Draft. My reasons were simple. The entire NFL Scouting agency along with the agencies of all the various NFL Teams....were all on weed. Here you have a future star of a receiver with legit 4.2 speed and great hands, yet the NFL Scouts are docking him for silly stuff such as him "Coming from a program without a history in developing future WR stars in the NFL," and "His 5,9 height." The exact same crap that scouting agencies hit Steve Smith for that dropped him to the 3rd round and led to him becoming a star receiver for the Carolina Panthers.

Thus, Jacoby Ford was automatically the next Steve Smith. It was a freaking draft goldmine.

Imagine my surprise when the Panthers select Brandon Lafell in the 3rd round when Jacoby Ford is still on the board. This is a slap in the face of Clemson fans everywhere. "At least it's a receiver." I supposed. Though I had never heard of the guy nor did I care, he filled a need. But later on in the draft, I thought we needed another receiver. It's the 3rd round after all, receivers taken there are no sure deal. Maybe if Jacoby Ford fell to the 4th round we could get him there.

Then shit hits the fan. The Panthers trade up to the 89th spot in the 3rd round.

"THIS IS IT!!!!" I loudly declare to my friends on CSR.

It was a perfect scenario. The Panthers waited and traded up some of their late round picks in the draft to move up from their 4th round spot to grab my hero Jacoby Ford. They weren't gonna put all their eggs in one basket with Brandon Lafell. At long last, my Panthers weren't taking the heavily hyped receiver coming from a big school! They were picking a player with true talent! True greatness! Our special teams woes are finally solved, they want to draft my hero Jacoby Ford. Steve Smith finally has a worthy protege just like him! Joyous days!

"With the 89th pick in the 2010 Draft the Carolina Panthers select...."

"JACOBY FORD!!!" I loudly yelled to my television.

"...Armanti Edwards!" Roger Goodell said with a confused look on his face.

The entire Clemson nation shouts out their anguish to the heavens. Just what the hell were the Panthers thinking? You pass over a receiver with legit 4.2 speed and great hands over a player WHICH NEVER PLAYED A DOWN AT RECEIVER IN HIS ENTIRE NCAA CAREER!?!?!?! You pass over Ford for a player that played in a crappy conference? For a player that was chosen for no other reason than 'because he was an athlete?'

Honestly? That's what you're going with here? Thank you John Fox, you are officially a jackass.

The outcome of what happened was very predictable. Even hilarious when you think about it. Jacoby Ford would later be taken by the Raiders in the 4th round for no other reason than because he's fast. He'd go on to score multiple kickoff and punt return touchdowns for the Raiders while Edwards played in the same role and let them hit him in the face. Jacoby Ford would move on to score almost 500 receiving yards as a rookie while Armanti Edwards was busy trying to learn how to itch his rear. He should come close to doubling it this year, but Armanti Edwards is still wondering the empty fields of Bank of America stadium, grazing for attention from the fanbase that loves him for himself, despite the fact he has yet to do anything on the field.

I myself was heartbroken for the entire month. The Panthers had missed the obvious talent in their orange backyard of Clemson University. Death valley had been thrown to the dogs in favor of the Mountains and our Panthers would react by going a humiliating 2-14. What great dishonor!

But....for a team that has so disregarded their neighbor in the heart of South Carolina....there is still hope. For here comes the greatest receiver to ever come out of the football-loving state of Florida, the home state of my birth. His name is Sammy Watkins and his is going to be the right arm of the Clemson offense for years to come. He is going to be the beast of the ACC and the fear of defenses everywhere. Just last Saturday, he contributed greatly to Clemson beating the Auburn Tigers and stopping their 17 game winning streak to the tune of 10 catches for 155 yards and two touchdowns.

But the NCAA is going to shoot him the bird. After all, he's not with one of the great schools with star receivers to come out like Auburn, Florida, or Georgia. So he's going to fall to the early-middle second round after he declares as a Junior in the 2013 class. So today, I am officially starting the Sammy Watkins banwagon, three years in advance. My Panthers will not screw me the way that they did in 2010 with Armanti Edwards. I see talent when I look at it. Sammy Watkins is the real deal!

If the Panthers pick him in 2013, he will not be a bust. He will start and he will be a Pro-Bowler for our team within three years. He can be the Padawan that Steve Smith has wanted forever. He can be the future #1 for our team! We'll start this so early and get this gravy train rolling so early that the Panthers will have no choice but to pick him in 2013!

Sammy Watkins 2013! The team in blue finally get a little orange too! WOOO!

While the lockout seems to be reaching near its end, 75 NFL Retirees have recently hit the NFL with a lawsuit claiming that the NFL withheld information for years about the dangers of concussions.

“The suit alleges the NFL knew as early as the 1920s of the harmful effects of concussions but concealed them from coaches, trainers, players and the public until June 2010. It also names helmet-maker Riddell, the NFL’s official helmet supplier.”

Let me ask you guys something. I’m sure that this kind of question will blow your mind and give the world a brand new meaning. Let me make this absolutely clear: This very question alone will change your entire viewpoint on football. You will never be the same again.

Did you know that football is a contact sport?

That’s right. That bulky padding you wear and the hardhat you wear on your head isn’t there to make you look bigger and prettier for the camera. It is meant to protect your body from harm. That little list of players who can’t play each Sunday called IR is made for players that have suffered broken legs, fingers, arms, and god knows what else. When you throw your body against someone else helmet to helmet and do it for 10 years to expect to come out on the other side with absolutely no injuries at all, you are insane.

Are you really trying to tell me that the NFL is supposed to warn you about concussions? Really? What the heck is the NFL supposed to say?

“Good evening! This is a National Football League public service announcement! Ramming your head continuously into another person make cause internal brain injuries! Make sure you take precaution! Also in the news, fire is hot and water is cold! Staying in the sun for too long can cause skin cancer! Cats are fun to pet, but petting lions are dangerous!”

I mean goodness, what else is there to say? Hell, let’s say I was driving down the road and I ran over a pothole. I should sue the state government for not putting a sign pointing down at the pothole saying “LOOK! THERE IS A POTHOLE HERE! DRIVE AWAY FROM IT OR YOU MAY GET A FLAT TIRE AND CAUSE HARM TO YOUR VEHICLE!”

Use your common sense.

Why stop with the NFL? We have a big money train going here! Why don’t we sue the NCAA for not letting their college players know that running into other players at high speeds may hurt you? Aren’t they just as responsible for the NFL for letting players know that they might incur injuries if they play a sports game?

Why don’t we sue the high schools for neglect and mistreatment of minors? What happens if they get a concussion and end up in a wheelchair the rest of their life? They get NOTHING! That's right! Nothing! Because they never grew up a famous person and they were never good enough to get into the NFL! They get squat because they never became a household name!

This is a terrible game that promotes hurtful violence in our society and therefore it must be banned before it corrupts the young people with evil! We must establish love and comfort circles in our schools to replace sports so that our children can gain entertainment by hugging each other instead of playing these hateful, ignorant sport games where 50% of the players involved are sad because they lost the game.

Apparently in this world today, no one is responsible for the consequences of their actions. Everyone has to point the finger at the other person and say, “It’s their fault!” instead of looking at themselves, the results of the decisions they’ve made in life, and figure out how they can solve it themselves

That is why lawsuits like this exist.

Thus ends my rant.

My name is Revshawn and I have been a fan of sports ever since the Panthers made the Super Bowl in 2004. I am a passionate Clemson fan and an even more ravid Panther one. Throughout my days, I am consistently going over games from last year and checking up on other sports, studying up on my football knowledge and statistics. But through everything I’ve seen and everything I’ve done, nothing compares to this.

Search your memories my brothers and remember the 2010 NFL preseason. Remember the ugly haircut of that certain star out of the University of Florida, Tim Tebow. Everyone thought that his haircut made him look like Friar Tuck and that he must have went on some sort of spiritual search for Christ during the offseason or something. For those that don’t remember, here is a picture of it.

That is some ugly stuff.

But casually browsing Rotoworld this world, I have finally found something that could top it. The latest picture of Bengal's Cedric Benson is hideous. Literally disgusting. It looks like he wove a firecracker under his dreadlocks and let it go off. It’s that bad.

Please man. You’re a good running back and that is to be respected in the NFL. But there is no way that you can go around representing your team like that. You’ve got to get yourself fixed up. It looks like you were going for the samurai bun look and then you were attacked by a master of disaster.

Seriously is this some kind of joke? No man can go into public looking like that. It might be kind of elaborate prank with the Rotoworld guys. Maybe someone has gotten bored and had fun with photoshop or something. Maybe it looks a little better when you view the cut from the side or something. But goodness my first impression upon seeing this picture was to raise my eyebrows and loudly cry foul. This kind of stuff should be illegal.

This is what happens when you are in an NFL lockout. You start freaking out about people's hair. The end has to be pretty near now. I can see the bright light. Wait for me Bessie, I'm coming home!

I'm not gonna go too much into philosophical crap, but right now I'm probably a very upset Shawn right now. Darin Gantt always churned out article after article, truth after truth. I'm highly irritated that they moved Darin off of the Carolina Panthers, so I decided to provide a nice contrast between the quality that is Darin Gantt's work and the crap that is the modern media. So here is part of an article from Brian Billick, former head coach of the Baltimore Ravens on the Panthers.

It is good/news bad news for the Carolina Panthers who have the first overall pick. The good news is that there is a wide variety of talented prospects at every position to choose from. The bad news is they need help with just about all of them.

The Panthers were the worst offense in the NFL last year and on defense, and will work to re-establish a new 3-4 defensive scheme with first-year coach Ron Rivera, who came over from the San Diego Chargers.

Offensively they have solidified the interior of the offensive line by putting the franchise tag on fifth-year center Ryan Kalil. They have long had one of the best one-two running back punches in the league but risk losing DeAngelo Williamsto free agency. Two big issues remain: What are they going to do at quarterback and whom will he throw to. Unfortunately, neither is likely to be addressed with the first overall pick.

The drafting of quarterback Jimmy Clausenwith the 48th pick in last year's draft was the first time the Panthers had selected a signal caller in the first three rounds this decade. Clausen’s play may give them pause this year, but it is likely they will address that issue via free agency, rather than the draft, even though the first pick in the second round may have some interesting names left on the board at that position.

They may also take a look at the tight ends in the second day of the draft with some good value likely still on the board in the third round. Tight end is a position that they have never really addressed in the draft, other than Mike Seidman in the third round in 2003, who never panned out.

Rivera has to rebuild a defense that will face Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and Josh Freeman twice a year. In addition to the tough NFC South schedule, they also have to face the NFC North and AFC South in their out-of-division games which means more skilled passers in Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, and Jay Cutler as well. The Panthers likely will address their pass rush first after losing Julius Peppers to the Chicago Bears in free agency last year.

I mean...honestly? He thinks we run a 3-4 defense? That Jimmy Clausen's play will 'give us pause?' Is that supposed to mean that he played well, because that's the farthest from the truth that you can get. We have our tight end already, so all of his talk about taking a tight end in the second day of the draft is bunk, especially since we don't have a second round pick. And we're NOT going to take a QB, in spite of all the INT's that both QB's have thrown. Are you serious?

This is what we have to look forward to folks. It's all downhill from here on out. Bring on armageddon baby! I'm coming home grandpa! Heaven, receive my spirit!

Ladies and gentlemen, we are moving closer and closer to the date of April 28^th when the Panthers have the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. With the #1 overall pick comes a fair degree of importance and prestige. People are going to be googling the Carolina Panthers far more than ever, as well as a numerous amount of other search words that will inevitably bring up this blog site, bring new readers to the site, and new chatters to our comment board.

This is not a bad thing. On the contrary, an intellectual discussion thrives on the addition of new arguments and ideas into the conversation. However, when new people come to a blog site like our own there needs to be an outline on how to properly debate in a rational way. Jaxon has taken a lot of time to make sure that there are a set of rules for the site to be governed by, and those rules are there to make sure that the site does not become a back-and-forth battle of shooting insults and accusations toward each other without any real discussion being had.

So in order to help you guys preserve the orderly conduct of debate required getting along with people on this blog, I will give you guys a quick course on how to debate with other people!

First off, what is the point of a debate? It is to come together against your debate opponent with a well-thought argument in order to try to persuade him and the 3^rd parties to your point of view. Whether or not you think this is actually possible, this should be the goal of every debate and should say things to further your progress toward that goal.

What is a "Well thought-out argument?"

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Glorious elation breaks out in the Carolina today this morning as the Carolina Panthers ship two draft picks ((undisclosed)), David Gettis, and Armanti Edwards to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for Jacoby Ford, one of the fastest receivers in the NFL. This is big guys. From DWI lazy receivers like Dwayne Jarrett to free agent flops like DJ Hackett, we finally have someone on the other side of the field to take pressure off of Steve Smith.

Marty Hurney was on Panthers pulse later on that night in order to explain the move, and he provided his usual brilliance in this epic stroke of genius that is sure to affect the Panthers for years to come.

"With the introduction of the new rule moving the kickoffs back 5 years, you're starting to see a real value drop with kick returners throughout the league like with the Chicago Bear's Devin Hester and the Brown's Jordan Norwood.  Once Jacoby Ford got to the point where he was within our reach and after talking the matter over with Ron we got to the point where we could see ourselves making a deal for him. He's a talented, quick receiver with a future in this league and I believe in time he can develop into the heir for Steve Smith."

The interview was followed up this morning with a press conference as Ron Rivera provided the official unveiling of Jacoby Ford's new jersey together with the man himself. Jacoby Ford was wearing a grin the size of Texas himself as he made his first Press Conference with the Panthers.

"You have no idea how happy I am to be back on the East Coast. I'd like to thank the Oakland Raiders for the faith they had in me when they took me last year in the Draft, but I'm so happy to be closer to my family and closer to my home. Charlotte is a wonderful city, and I know I'm going to make lots of good memories here. Glad to be back on the East Coast baby! Wooo!"

Ron Rivera was next to the podium, his usual poise and confidence blanketing the room in awe.

"We made the move to go grab Jeremy Shockey at tight end when he was released, giving us a do-it-all guy who can both block and catch the ball. Now we got another deep threat in Jacoby Ford that can threaten the deep ball in every single play. Yep. I'd say we're just about good for the 2011 season. Now all we need is a QB. No offense Clausen."

Clausen was spotted in the corner of the room, his head tilted down in agony.

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Today is the last day that the NFLPA and the NFL meet with each other for negotiations. They have 3 choices: To make a deal, to extend the negotiations, or to end it and wage a fiscal, legal, and information war with each other.

Both sides have their own differences, but the major dividing point is money. Owners want an additional 1 billion dollars from the previous CBA and the players are all like "Nao way! >:l" The NFL is represented by the 32 owners and the NFL staff, including their Executive Roger Goodell who has no background in playing in the NFL. The players are represented by themselves, former players, and a lawyer in DeMaurice Smith who has no background in playing in the NFL.

I got a question for you guys. Who represents us at that negotiating table? Who represents the average fan that goes to work and watches the game on his Sunday off?  Who represents the young entrepreneur with the Sports Bar whose best business is when the NFL is playing? Who represents the various businesses which sell sports equipment, uniforms, football padding, and game equipment? Who represents the common-sense man that understands that sports and politics need to be individual, separate things?

We have no representation at the negotiating table, and that's the biggest problem of all! We are their consumers: The one who pays their paychecks. Without us, there would be no NFL. Yet they do not seek our opinion. Money is what separates the two sides and to hell what we think! They call us the best fans in the world until the two sides start arguing about who gets our money. Then suddenly it's all about them. It's all about who is right and who is wrong. The players are being tortured by the owners! The owners are trying to make the players their slaves. Information war all around us! Rawr! Rawr! Rawr!

You want to know what we think owners? You want to know what we think players? You suck! That's right! You suck! That's what we think. You're willing to put who gets our money above playing the football we love in the first place.  You don't really care about us! You just want our money! It sickens me, it's disgusting, and it makes me want to puke. How dare you try to play us for fools! How dare you try to get us to choose a side. WE ARE YOUR EMPLOYERS! We don't care about your petty disputes! Shut up and play football like we pay you to do! Freaking girlymen.

I am Revshawn, the greatest Clemson fan on Earth. And I happily say: Screw you! That's what we would say if we were there at that meeting.

Screw you.

And shame on you NFL and NFLPA on both sides! For putting greedy men in charge who have never played a down of NFL Football in their lives. That's about as derp as this entire situation in the first place. Positions like that should be reserved for educated men that served in the trenches! People who spent decades of their lives playing and coaching in the NFL. For putting incompetent, hardheaded men like this in charge who stroke their own egos instead of working on a deal. You should be ashamed!

SHAME!

Today is the day of Cam Newton’s Pro Day at Auburn. It a day that may go down in infamy as the day where Cam Newton reassured all Panther fans that he is worthy of being taken as #1 overall and leading the Panthers to a Super Bowl. It is the day where we might finally know who the real #1 overall pick should be. Maybe it will be a day where we can finally stop arguing about QB’s and move forward towards the draft with an ever brighter future. ((And high value for our #1 pick in case we trade it away. =p))

The best part about all of this is that you can watch Newton and the Auburn Pro-Day live on ESPN3 starting at 1:30PM. We will see Cam Newton in his natural habitat instead of the foreign land known as the Combine. We will do our duty and see to it that he throws every route that a NFL QB needs to throw. Then we will all form our judgment on how he did and hopefully we will come to a consensus on whether or not we want Cam Newton in Carolina.

However, you guys have to remember is that this workout will be completely tailored to Cam Newton. This workout is going to be made to show off his strengths and prove that he is worthy of the #1 overall pick. If he is not confident in making a particular throw, chances are he's not going to throw it. Also remember that this is going to be more about our opinion rather than NFL teams. They’ve had 13 game films with Cam Newton in it to break down, so by now he’s either won the Panthers over or he hasn’t. This workout is more about the fans and is either going to solidify many of our doubts on this player and make the Blaine Banwagon grow ever stronger, or he’s going to make us double-take and wonder if we’re wrong about the guy.

Either way, I think Christian Ponder will be the best QB in the NFL Draft in April. But that's just my opinion! In any event, I will be watching and I hope you guys do as well.

As the #1 fan of the Clemson Tigers on this blog, I have watched all of their games. I've watched the players, I have studied their motions and the way they play their game. I have analyzed and over analyzed the juniors and seniors on this team and I have come up with my grades on all of the prospects coming out into the NFL Draft.

Unlike the rest of these Draft Guru's who I believe have been concentrating far too much on physical body size lately instead of actual skill, I will give two grades when I grade a particular talent! The first will be the ceiling grade. What is the limit this player can rise to as a professional football player? That's how I will rate them. The second will be the NFL readiness. This grade will be based on their performance on the field during the freshman years all the way down to when they finally declare for the draft. Are they ready for the NFL right out of the gate and reach their ceiling, or will they have to develop more? So....sort of like Madden!

With these two grades and my special knowledge about the team that I love, I will do my best to grade their players in a brutally honest, professional way. Not every player is going to be rate with a: "99! Oh my gawd! This player is the best player ever at his position just like every other Clemson Tiger!" I am a natural pessimist at heart, and I will let you know how I feel about my guys. A lot of it is going to go against popular opinion as well, but I assure you it comes from someone that has done his homework. At least as far as watching his players on the field are concerned!

DaQuan Bowers - DE - 6,3 280 pounds - Projected Top 10 pick

Ceiling Grade: 94  NFL Ready grade: 75

DaQuan Bowers had a excellent junior season. To try to deny this is to wear a dunce-cap and prance around as the greatest moron on Earth. 41 tackles, 15.5 sacks, an interception, and a forced fumble. Those are the statistics that seem to propel you into the top of the first round nowadays, and yet I find myself highly pessimistic about the player that made them.

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One video makes a interesting topic, and two videos mark a trend. Whether this ends at a fad or develops into a tradition is going to be an interesting thing to see. For now, here's Alex Tanney's trickshot video, inspired by the UCONN

Alex Tanney Trick Shot Quarterback - Better Than Johnny Mac (via Fightingscotstrick)

Quietly in the middle of the season last year, the NFL followed suit with the rest of the business world and created Facebook pages for each of their 32 teams. It's a trend you are beginning to see more and more in the world today. If you are going to survive as a small business, you need every advantage you can get! Websites such as Facebook and Twitter represent something that all businesses should crave for and cherish: Free advertising. And with millions of Americans hanging out on Facebook every day, each 'Like' you receive is a potential customer coming to your door and buying your crap.

But I digress! They made the move to Facebook and on NFL.Com they have added a ‘Like' button for each of the 32 teams in the NFL. This represents an opportunity. I thought that you would all be curious where your Panthers rank against the rest of the NFL, so I have created a nice little list for us all to look at. In order to decide the order on my list, I'll use the leading organization page for each NFL team on Facebook in terms of Facebook 'likes.'

Going through the list, I quickly noticed a few trends. Obviously, winning teams are more popular than losing teams. But it goes deeper than that. Older teams with a tradition of success are far more popular than younger teams that have only been successful a few seasons. Teams with that franchise QB typically have a lot more popularity than teams without the face of the franchise. Overall, if you're here longer you have a bigger fanbase.

1. Dallas Cowboys: 2,318,382 likes

2. Pittsburgh Steelers: 1,881,174 likes

3. New England Patriots: 1,677,529 likes

4. Chicago Bears 1,327,415 likes

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This is a story fresh off the pressers, so I'm trying to get this information to you as soon as I can before I head off to college. First of all, don't worry! This is voluntary from both sides. This isn't Washington coming in to take over the NFL and sell the company off to Canada or something. This is a 3rd party program offered by Washington in order to help both sides come to an agreement. It is an agency available to all companies to serve as the go-between for the unions that make up their workforce.

You can find more information about this program at the following link.

Hopefully this is a step in a positive direction, and a sign that negociations will resume very soon. Do not lose faith Panther fans! With a 3rd party helping to nudge them along, we may have our football yet!

*UPDATE*

The NFL and NFLPA have just agreed that after a full week of non-negotiation, they will enter a 7 day period of full on negotiations starting this today. Get your popcorn ready.

I was pondering yesterday, looking back on the John Fox era and looking forward to the Ron Rivera. Then it occurred to me just how much obvious talent was held back by John Fox’s preference to veteran’s complex that held us back for so many years. Some of the names that immediately come to mind are DeAngelo Williams, Greg Hardy, James Anderson, Sherrod Martin, Charles Johnson. And those are just the ones that managed to escape John Fox’s influence and show us how good they are. Imagine the countless ones that were never offered the opportunity to prove themselves such as Armanti Edwards, Kenny Moore, and Gary Barnidge.

DeAngelo Williams is a perfect example. All of 2007 he was kept behind DeShaun Foster, who managed a paltry 3.5 yards a carry throughout the entire year and cost us several games. DeAngelo Williams receives 100 carries less than he does and yet he finishes just 100 yards less than him with more touchdowns and over 5.0 yards per carry. If John Fox doesn’t keep DeAngelo Williams in the back of the depth chart, we never choose Jonathan Stewart in the 08 draft and we ride DeAngelo Williams to back-to-back winning seasons and a trip to the playoffs.

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