So, this is more of a "nail in the coffin" type of post because I'm really getting about as sick of discussing David Gettis and Brandon LaFell as I am arguing with Tater that Armanti isn't going to be our backup 3rd string QB and likely might not be with the team this year (I kid, tater!). So let's all do one thing first and foremost...

Take a step back, breathe, and be happy we have two up-and-coming young WR talents.

All this poppycock about who is "better" and who can theoretically be the #1 after Smith and on and on and on... Let's be excited about their potential instead of fine combing their faults. I mean, let's face it, we're going to draft more WRs later and all we are doing is puffing out our chests and siding with one over the other. I'm excited about both of them. And why shouldn't we be? So, instead of constantly trying to point out the minute faults of each one, let's celebrate how good the two are instead. After all, this is only their 3rd year and they're already looking very good.

With that being said, on to the two young wide outs...after the jump...

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Ah, summer time... The draft is done. Free Agency is practically over. The days are long and the sun is sweltering. Or at least it will be come July and August in the upstate when the Carolina Panthers head into training camp. Last I saw reported, we had at least 90 people on the roster and only a chosen few (53 to be exact) will make it to the team. Even now though , I can see the makings of some extremely tough camp battles that are just going to come up from the numbers.

Let's take a look...

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It's an interesting time for us at CSR. We've had a huge influx of new members thanks to a certain rookie QB and our editors have begun to look to expanding the staff. But even for those who don't want to join on as regular contributors, there have been a great number of new articles recently and I thought I would share a few pointers on how to make a good article even better with some really easy tips and tricks.

Full disclaimer: By no rights is this a condemnation on people who choose to forgo this advice. I like to think I write a pretty good article. You can take my pointers and run with it or ignore them as you please. All up to you!

Making Good Use of Headers

That one got your attention right? Well good, it was supposed to. Think of headers as titles of individual "chapters" in your article. They provide a couple really useful things for the reader. First and foremost, it allows you to break up the flow of you article a little bit better and provides information to your reader about what the following topic will be about. Remember way back when your English teacher used to stress that whole "3 points to make a good argument" idea? This is where that can come into play. Each header can be used as an individual main idea that helps make up your article.

But you can't just go all willy-nilly putting these things everywhere. They have to be substantive enough to justify their use. Too many headers and your article becomes cluttered and it actually makes it harder to read. Too few and you get into the dread "text-block" situations. While we're on the topic, it should be noted that paragraphs work much the same way. Their purpose is to make the article easier to read. However, if you have a paragraph after every sentence, you're not helping. And if you have no paragraphs, no one will read it. People will skip over parts of your article if you don't use any or even if you use too many.

Unless it's a single point at the end or beginning of a section, avoid using one/two sentence paragraphs and certainly don't make them individual sections with headers. (See how I covered myself just now?)

What is the Jump?

I see a lot of people take the jump out of their article all together. If you aren't thinking about your article being moved to the front page, it probably doesn't make a whole lot of sense to you. The jump's whole purpose is to divide the introduction of your article from the main body. Simply put, it's that first paragraph or two that describes what you're talking about and what your ideas on the matter may be. I like to try to raise people's interest with it by asking a subtle question and then answering it in the body, like baiting a fish and reeling it in.

That's great and all, but why is it important? Well, when the editors move your article to the front page only what is before the jump is shown. If you are thinking ahead of time, it does a few things. First of all, you can purposefully phrase your introduction to hook people into your article. Secondly, the editors won't come banging on your door asking for dues for editing your article and putting the jump in an appropriate place. It's almost always more natural if you write your article with the jump in mind though.

It can be tricky to maneuver around the Jump. If you click below it, just hit Enter/Return to give yourself a bit of space to come back down below it later. If you delete, just use the Undo button (or Ctrl+Z), and it'll come back. There used to be a button for the jump I thought... but I can't seem to find it for now...

Pictures, Videos, and Tables! Oh my!

Inserts are great. They can really help make your article stand out. They can also detract from your article. If you put a huge picture in that takes up the entire page, it will take up the entire page of your article. Put that before the jump? It'll put the entire image before the jump if your article is moved to the front page. At that point, it's just a distraction. The best advice is to make sure they are sized appropriately. There is a whole article on inserts at the bottom of the "Inserts" tab in the editor help. Just click "Show Editor Help" and a lot of nifty information will pop up.

As far as tables go... they are very finicky things, but absolutely amazing for organizing sets of data. But they can be difficult to get to work right and I'll be honest, I'm no expert with HTLM or SB Nation's code. I simply make a table in Microsoft Word (I'm sure any editor that supports them would work) and I copy the table directly in from there. I hear a rumor that BW and Jaxon may know more on that topic. (If said rumor is true, feel free to email me and I'll make an addendum to the article with an in-depth how-to here).

Obligatory Spelling/Grammar Advice

It's pretty common sense, but try to be semi-formal in your writing. Don't use slang or poor grammar and run a spell check before you finish. There is one built into the SB Nation FanPost creator. Of course, we don't expect you to be an expert on grammar. Use proper capitalization, try your best not to have run-on sentences, and make sure you utilize proper punctuation. These might sound small and asinine, but it does help. Clarity is key in a print-medium.

Hopefully this was in some way helpful to everyone. Like I said before, I didn't write this because I saw things wrong in other threads. The articles have been great so far. Hope to see the same quality throughout the next few seasons as we continue to grow the community and become one of the major blogs on SB Nation.

With Eli Manning now making a return trip to the Super Bowl, Cam Newton will get his very first Pro Bowl of his career during this, his rookie year. With most analysts all-but proclaiming Newton as the Offensive ROY, Newton will become only the 3rd player (and the only Quarterback) in NFL history to win both awards in the same year, joining Marshall Faulk and Adrian Peterson.

It's just one more notch for the record books. It'll be a bit longer before he can take a crack at some of the career-achievement records, but how long do you think some of those will take? Like Michael Vick's current 5,216 career rushing yards or maybe even Tom Brady's single season TD record of 50 in a year.

After the jump, I'll give a quick list of all the NFL records he's broken.

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There are a few things from the Houston game that I think are pretty important as they impact our draft next year. Overall, it was a great game. The defense played big making some grand stops and forced some crucial turnovers that we have been missing all year long and the offense clicked when it needed too but more importantly didn't turn over the football.

That game leaves us 5-9 on the season and we will probably end up picking in the 7th to 12th range by seasons-end. It will really depend on if the Saints play their starters for the finale or not. But regardless of where we are picking, some key points stick out for me from the last game...

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Do I have your attention yet? I'm going to be making the case for why Cam Newton, our phenom rookie QB, should be voted into this year's Pro-Bowl. In my mind, it's still an uphill battle. There are plenty of other QBs putting up very good numbers (even the likes of Alex Smith deserves to be in consideration). But simply put, Cam's performance is fundamentally more than just that of a simple QB and like Vick when he first entered the league, he is simply in a different league from other QBs.

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Originally, I wasn't going to make this into a Fan Post, but it finally grew large enough to where I figured it was worhty of one.

Several weeks ago, James brought up a point that has been really bugging me.  Matt Ryan, the man we wanted to trade up and draft, was graded 84/100 in one particular scouting report.  At the same time, Blaine Gabbert grades out to be an 85/100, an eerily similar grade.  So why was Matt Ryan considered a lock at the top, but people question whether or not Gabbert should be one?  Well, for one thing there was no competition for Ryan really.  The closest QB to him was Joe Flacco, whose stock rose only after combines and pro-days (similar to some of the other lower ranked QBs in this draft). 

But that wasn't enough for me.  I finally scratched that itch in their comparisons:

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Much talk has been made about Ron Rivera being interviewed time and time again, but never actually landing a head coaching position.  And why?  This is the man who was credited with the development of the former Philadelphia Eagles two-time Pro-Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Trotter.  He formed Chicago Bears into a defensive power house during his tenure where they finished 2nd (2005) and 5th (2006) in total defense (and they ended up 28th in 2007 after he left).  He has made his mark again in San Diego, where his Chargers finished with the best ranked defense in the NFL this year.

So what happened?

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The Panthers dropped the ball again on Sunday after a dominating first half, letting the Seahawks score 31 unanswered points against us.  We can clearly see, from this game alone, every single glaring mistake that has been our downfall the entire year.  The worst part is that it's not getting better.  We've been doing this for 14 weeks now and we haven't really seen any improvements from Week 1 to Week 12.

After the jump, we'll look at 5 steps to get us back on track this season...

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This is something that I've brought up a couple of times before, but week after week, I can't shake the similarities between our teams.  Of all the organizations in the last 5 years, the Chargers have been one of the ones I've always liked the most.  They are perennial playoff contenders and have dominated their division for the last 5 years, but some may forget how they got there.

Let's take a little stroll down memory lane...

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As first brought up by Jaxon in order to make this season a little more tolerable, I've devised a full blown drinking game based around our rookie QB, Jimmy Clausen.  The rules are simple.  You either choose Pro-Clausen or Anti-Clausen before the game and based on how he performs, you have to drink accordingly.  Those who are Pro-Clausen, will drink when he does something bad.  Those who are Anti-Clausen will drink when he does something good.  We'll amend the rules as necessary.

As a throw back to my college days, this game will be measured in "drinks."  "Drinks" essentially constitute one swig, sip, gulp, or whatever other word you use to describe when you take a drink.  The only exception to this is when a rule specifically states that you finish your beer.  In this case, you will consume the remainder of your beverage regardless of how much is left in it.

Do you dare support your rookie in this game?

Poll

Which side will you be on?

80%

Pro-Clausen baby. Gotta support my rookie.

42 votes

19%

Anti-Clausen. I've seen enough and he's washed up.

10 votes

52 votes | Poll has closed

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