Tag: #Charlotte Hornets

Sports, Thought Leadership

Panthers back to Earth at 4-4, Hornets (3-4), Crown loses 1-0, then Wins 7-6 in penalty kicks

by gshorkeyblt2Leave a Comment on Panthers back to Earth at 4-4, Hornets (3-4), Crown loses 1-0, then Wins 7-6 in penalty kicks
Didn’t actually get a good read of the World Series, Attaboys! to Jays ,but while few know what ‘s under a Wizard’s hat. Shorkknows had a tough week of NFL football.

Okay, the question of Loserville being in Charlotte professional sports rear view mirror- NFL, NBA, MSL for starters- was actually rhetorical. ‘Escape velocity’ is still down the line.

QB Dalton (ehhhh) and RB Dowdle (!! Canales!!) are difference makers mas or menos, but seriously, nothing negative about Chuba or Kalkbrenner.

Halloween tricks probably won’t continue into Sunday’s game against Green Bay for Panther fans, and although 13 points might entice bettors, there are plenty of alternatives for this long-time sports bettor. No sense worrying about the home team when the Raiders are only getting 3 pts. from the Jaguars and the Giants (-2.5) are only getting a couple from the 49ers. While the Giants have screwed me religiously my entire betting life- and my 50th high school reunion was only a month ago- I won’t take Panthers game either way. Its more about the Hamiltons than Benjamins at this point, and although I’ll watch and cheer for them, no sense letting a good parlay get torpedoed.

Actually, scratch that ‘tude. Made Ed. Note- Just after kickoff, recognizing I couldn’t be a weenie about Panthers predictions, ‘If Bryce *doesn’t* blow things up and have to play from 14 pts. behind- just saying, we know that’s been a problem. Pass rush HAS to arrive today, taking good O-line making long drives, T-Mc and all others catching vs. dropping, Yes, Panthers beat the spread by scoring average 21.

Denver (-1.5!) in Houston sure feels like a gift, with 36 sacks by defense and Bo Nix picking up where he left off rookie year, which was pretty damn good. Whether it would be a sportscaster jinx for anyone in the TV booth or for a writer to suggest Colts QB Dan Jones (formerly an unappreciated Giant) could be a Comeback Player of the Year candidate- usually the domain of injured players vs. just hated for contract-production of wins negativity- suggesting Indy continue best practices, yeah, BUT… Maybe they open the proverbial can of whupass on the Aaron Rodgers Steelers, after Tomlin’s Monday Night’s performance. Give minimal three points? Done.

I’d also suggest taking the Lions (-8.5) against the Vikings, because Detroit is still working off a couple decades of being thumped by the Vikes and Packers. There’s no reason to believe Mr. Shough (really? the ending sounds like a K?) will have anything except ugly from pretty early against the Rams.

Guess what? Panthers game is only one I backed that pulled its weight. Its not 100% make a difference in season moment yet, but over .500 would certainly be progress, and just sayin’, Over-Under for Panthers W is only 6.5. https://www.foxsports.com/articles/nfl/2025-26-carolina-panthers-odds-odds-to-win-super-bowl-nfl-playoffs-division

‘The Other Guys’

In the MLS playoffs, Charlotte’s 4th seeded Crown lost the first game at home 1-0 to #5 seed NYCFC on a 34th minute goal by Alonso Martinez. Charlotte FC forward Wilfried Zaha, who was red-carded in the season finale and missed this game, was a considerable loss offensively. They went to NYC for the second leg of a cumulative score series Saturday, and evened the series with a 1-0 penalty shootout (7-6) win. Charlotte FC Goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina stopped Agustin Ojeda for the finale. Teams will have an extended time before Game 3 Friday.

The Hornets, who hit a terrific 18-3s and nine players with double figures in their season opener against Brooklyn Nets, were much less prolific in second week of the season, are now 2-3 after being whacked by the Miami Heat 144-117, and Orlando Magic (2-4) last night, 123-107. Kon Kneuppel, who had five of the Hornets triples in opener, had one last night, and five points in 27 minutes, avg. 30 min. court time and shooting 41% from 3. Center Ryan Kalkbrenner continued his solid play with 17 points and 7 rebounds, and definite rim protector. Lorenzo Ball had a 17 point, 13 assist night, and is averaging 26.3 pts., 9.5 asst, 8.3 rebounds, Moussa Diabate had ten points and six rebounds. He and Kalkbrenner could become a tandem.

Loserville might be a state of mind, but in the betting world, you are frequently either the predator or the prey. The Panthers opened the season at +400 regarding winning the NFC South (FanDuel) is currently +700. Go figure…The Hornets (3-5) after losing 116-112 to Pelicans, is playing in the sorry Southeast Division, +2200 to win their division, ahead of the (honestly, still listed as an NBA team?) Washington Wizards at +25000, the Magic at +100.

Panther Football, Sports

Panthers are days away from ACTION! Charlotte Hornets Summer League was Beyond Pretty Good

by gshorkeyblt2Leave a Comment on Panthers are days away from ACTION! Charlotte Hornets Summer League was Beyond Pretty Good
Fans won’t be able to see Panthers practices on field downtown this season or next. This is a scorching reminder for anyone who ever attended a practice in Spartanburg. This is like 9:30, and people are in the small sliver of shade, you just stood there, talked some, and sweated.

Its obviously been a looong minute since Charlotte has cared this much about both its NFL and NBA franchises. With kudos for a couple seasons of solid management all around, and showing major promise in getting to There in 2025, burying Loserville tag on two vibrant, moving forward leadership groups will make for a hotter, more satisfying rest of sports year. (Knights are 11-9, 4th in International League East)

Lots of Moving Pieces, Others will do Sweating

While Hornets fans will possibly swoon at the 22 Pt./12 Reb./6 Ast. and generous ladling of attaboy! Sports Illustrated put on Liam McNeeley’s Summer League debut, https://www.si.com/nba/hornets/news/hornets-may-have-the-steal-of-the-2025-nba-draft-and-it-s-not-kon-knueppel its not quite time to do Oscar-type ‘play them off’ for local NBA crew.

7/21/25 https://www.nba.com/news/nba-2k26-summer-league-kings-hornets Well now, 6-0 is actually more than anyone expected, and I’m kind of laughing at those who dissed KK after mediocre first game. Whether a reasonable, happy news result is coming about last years French product at #6 still seems in doubt, https://www.nba.com/player/1642275/tidjane-salaun but just knowing Ryan Kalkbrenner is available to become the rim-protector Hornets have lacked forever isn’t a fact that will diminish before next season.

Being a 4x Defensive Play of Year in Big East isn’t luck or coincidence, and if they want him on perimeter shooting threes like a Euro-center, that’s probably the least of his traditional back-to-basket, guard your man mission. Not considered a great rebounder? Giannis was 11.9 rpg, what’s great ? Everyone should be on the boards, evv-very-one! Moussa Diabate can’t shoot much? Get some glass, keep other guys honest. Sion James will be a force on the defensive perimeter and boards – 8.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game (Duke, 2025) .

The Hornets now have *plenty* of shooters with Knueppel, McNeeley, Miller, Sexton, and as far as anyone knows, Melo. Tre Mann, Josh Green and Nick Smith, Jr. will need to battle, Mason Plumlee might be one Dookie too many after scanning early roster.

Hornets President Jeff Peterson is Donald Glover’s character in ‘steely-eyed missile man’ category re: Rich Purnell Maneuver (‘The Martian’, 2015).

Original moniker was applied to NASA flight controller John Aaron (Apollo 12, 13), and refers to calm, crucial solutions and decisive actions – his ‘Switch SCE to Aux’ – after a lightning strike threatened to scrub Apollo 12 launch is legend. In movie, its a gravity slingshot around Earth for an impossible mission – 553 days longer – to save a left-behind astronaut.

7/17/25 Yeah, that is about how far Hornets had seemed from Success. GShorkknows

Contracts and Expectations, Many, many names

Whenever a naysayer opines that *everything* is riding on this Panthers team blowing 6.5 wins out to insure GM Dan Morgan, HC Dave Canales, and Pres. Brandt Tilis don’t lose their jobs, I let them know that football operations are doing just fine, #MrTeppers$ hasn’t been that rip everything up by the roots owner for a while. Lots of names will pass through Panthers roster before first game (Jax) in September, Hornets have some numbers to trim as well.

Yes indeedy, there are loads of Expectations here in the Buckle of the Bible Belt, and YES! Morgan did an admirable job, showcasing an A+ rated draft of documented production defensive and offensive talent, after substantial filling of defensive gaps with qualified FA personnel. Dang! about Josey Jewell leaving in concussion protocols after seven months.

There isn’t an unsigned tag on #2 pick Nic Scourton any more, and he’s done all previous training thus far. Camp starts Wednesday, so it wasn’t a hold-out per se. https://www.on3.com/pro/news/2025-nfl-draft-contract-details-revealed-for-panthers-second-round-pick-nic-scourton/ The NFL knew Morgan needed to draft a ‘he can hurt you long’ receiver at some point, his selecting AZ All-American wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan at #8 in 1st rnd. an indicator why (IMHO) he’s got inside track on Executive of the Year. Addressing defensive needs got handled as best practices. Just sayin’.

Offensive lines get talked about until there’s no need to, and the Panthers now stack every position with a replacement. Austin Corbett and Cade Mays will have a battle for center, luck on staying healthy hasn’t been Corbett’s best friend. Chuba Hubbard is the teams Alpha-Lead Dawg, if that’s necessary to state, although having another 1,000 yard guy back there shouldn’t be a struggle.

Will we determine whether Bryce can see even better down field behind this line, or will Panthers move him around to open up passing lanes? (He sees fine).

Young’s ten TDs-no turnovers in final three games still hits key chord in growth estimations. The most effective aspect of a play action pass is the reality of the quarterback actually giving the ball to runner for a healthy gain. Panthers Hubbard keeps that uppermost in a defenses concerns, adding variety with open playbook becomes a fact with QB Young and Head Coach Canales on same wave.

DEEE-fense! arrives in Charlotte – Damn straight!

Fact Panthers defense surrendered a stupendous amount of rushing yards – over 3,000 – well, Derrick Brown is again the Sheriff, and there are defensive ends and nose tackles now with documented stats and history with DC Ejiro Evero’s 3-4 model. No, Shy Tuttle wasn’t the answer at the nose position, though he figures to stay on roster as a rotational player. GM Morgan isn’t passing out #MrTeppers$ to just anyone, and the $100MM contract that Jaycee Horn earned after an All Pro, injury-free year, speaks to how things should now be done in Charlotte. Looking at you Mr. Moton.

You probably haven’t heard many of the 90 names on camp roster who project as second half of keepers on final 53-man roster, and its going to be Panthers taxi squad (15) that will make a difference through 18 week regular season.

Going into Wednesday, its been noted there is a plethora of choices in the WR room, and most of top six seem like no-brainer keeps. At no point will Panthers try and stash Horn on a taxi squad. Yes, T-Mac will learn what REAL July humidity feels like in Charlotte. The physio-people will be on top of everything – Ooops! almost said ‘No sweat.’

Is that Rozeboom guy from Rams really a 135-tackle bad ass?

Its been noted there is a plethora of choices in the WR room, and most of top six-seven seem like no-brainer picks for roster. At no point will they try and stash Horn on a taxi squad. If he wants to imitate Stevie SuperStar starting with returns, lets go! No ego, he played opposite a Heisman guy.

Yes, T-Mac will learn what REAL July humidity feels like in Charlotte. The physio-people will be on top of everything – Ooops! almost said ‘No sweat, T-Mac,’ but no, ain’t gonna be AZ dry heat.

Did doubling up on young stud defensive edge rushers (Nic Scourton, Round 2, #51) and Princely Umanmielen, Round 3, #77) mean Clowney was expendable? Apparently yes, though there was a moment of concern about a slip-possible injury immediately post-cut. All the linebackers have downfield speed for coverage, how well sacks are produced will be a subject of much counting from Game One.

The Panthers have been bottom three in sacks for years, but just FYI, team record is 60, held by 1996, 2013 teams. In Peppers superman 2008 campaign with 14.5 sacks, they had 50. With the recognition that Evero’s projected safety tandem (Moehrig, Ransom) are recognized thumpers, don’t be surprised what a professional, career as well-regarded defensive coach, can come up with, maybe blitz packages, when his personnel is closer to genuine NFL grade.

Yes, Expectations will be way higher than last, well, seven years. I’m a #BoomerwithAttitude, so thumbs up for Football Operations. Go Hornets, thoughts for Melo…

Panther Football

Lakers do Doncic-Davis dance, LaMelo-Young in Charlotte is different

by gshorkeyblt2Leave a Comment on Lakers do Doncic-Davis dance, LaMelo-Young in Charlotte is different

East will never meet West on the scale of what Lakers have ALWAYS done about getting players they want-need compared to Charlotte Hornets, who continue to wander the backstreets of mediocrity. Hornets were willing to trade a center (Williams) who has been constantly out of lineup with injuries for a decent shooter (Knecht), because they (hopefully) can’t get down to Bullets level of badness for top picks.

Hornets picked #3 last year in draft and selected a 19-year old Frenchman, not a superstar 25-year old with a recent NBA Finals on his resume. ‘Nuff said?

The NFL season is officially over, and while the Eagles 40-22 triumph over Kansas City Chiefs wasn’t a complete surprise – or really that close – the Carolina Panthers had a very real chance to upset Philly earlier in the season, the difference being a non-catch by Xavier Leggette. Losses to Chiefs, Eagles, Tampa Bay were maybe less-dark spots on record, but starting his 2025 year, GM Dan Morgan made a first, minor change to the roster by signing kicker Matt Wright (15-16 FG for three teams in 2024), meaning Eddie Pinero, now a free agent but statistically the most accurate kicker (89.38%) in NFL history after three years here, may be gone.

More-Better Personnel, especially DEEE-FENSE! for Panthers, Hornets…?

Its easy to see the difference between how almighty Lakers swing a deal and how Morgan (and Hornets GM Peterson) work things in Charlotte. Lakers traded C Anthony Davis to Mavericks for an accomplished, younger (25 vs. 31) Doncic, after a Finals appearance (playoff avg. 28.9 ppg/9.5 reb/8.1 asst) that would usually make it unthinkable. Following up with a trade for good-numbers-when-not (but often) on-injured-list Hornet center Mark Williams, while sending sweet shooter Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, a 2031 unprotected first round pick and a 2030 pick swap east, was huge NBA news.

After Williams didn’t pass his physical (back) with Lakers, the trade being rescinded didn’t help the Hornets at all. Williams (and Ball) not having played perhaps one-third of games for several years due to injuries, is an undeniable fact of Hornets limping along with a familiar feeling 13-39 record. If Lakers saved Mavs from a $345MM+ max contract this summer with Doncic, coach J.J. Reddick is going to earn his paycheck relying on small ball, James, and better than average shooting until Davis’ defensive presence and 24.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.3 blocks a game averages is somehow mitigated.

Whether that situation could change this year, or next, or (insert criteria and date) for Bugs is debatable, but Carolina Panthers are a team that visibly improved in second half of season, when previous regular target of dissing, QB Bryce Young returned to the controls, so lets talk about Next for them. #MrTeppers$ has *still* not bloviated regarding anything that smacks of ‘meddling owner’ in 2025.

‘The best thing about freshmen is they become sophomores’

It’s a memorable line by former Marquette basketball coach Al McGuire that brings a quantity of hope, that Carolina Panthers and HC Dave Canales 5-12 squad will indeed become a more competitive NFC South team in Year Two. 10-7 took the division for Tampa Bay, a much easier task than NFC North, where long-suffering but now proud and proficient Detroit Lions (15-2), the reborn Sam Darnold, waiting on a big contract somewhere after a career year (14-3) with Minnesota Vikings, and the Packers (10-4) will determine whether new head coach Ben Johnson in Chicago means as much to QB Caleb Williams as Bears fans hope he will.

BETTER IN YEAR TWO is the attitude, and everyone – especially Young – will be judged against HC Canales’ second year Success. WR Jalen Coker was a real UFA pickup, Xavier Leggette (4 TDs receiving) a fine first round prize going forward, TEs Ja’Tavian Sanders and Tommy Tremble contributed three TDs. The early free agent guard tandem of Lewis and Hunt, LT Ikem Ekwonu (again, after lousy 2023) and RT Taylor Moton (still da Man), and ace slot receiver Adam Thielen’s decision to return constitute progress. Chuba Hubbard (250 carries/1195 yds/10 TDs) holding up the running game HC Canales said was going to happen. That makes continuing Panthers reboot of offense more than just a pipe dream, even though RB Jonathan Brooks (#2 pick from TX) barely saw the field before reinjuring an ACL, and #3 RB Rahim Blackshear didn’t see much action.

Triple crown receiver Tee Higgins of Bengals (124 rec./1,708 yds./17 TDs) deciding to relocate to Charlotte because Cincy couldn’t come up with the $$MM to keep him paired with Joe Burrow, that would be a pipe dream.

Defense was brutally, historically bad – Next must change that in BIG way

Without stretching out the numbers, Panthers were dead last in yardage surrendered (404.5 ypg/31.4 pts.) while allowing 61 TDs; #23 against the pass (224.7 ypg/35 TDs), and yeah, they punched an awful lot of running back tickets while surrendering 180 ypg. Ravens were not surprisingly #1 against run (80 ypg), while Saints (#31, were at 141), and for perspective, the Jets (#17/121 ypg) and the Browns (#21/130 ypg), so the NFL put up *big* stats on the Panthers.

The Super Bowl Champion Eagles were #1 against the pass (174.2 ypg/22 TDs) and #10 (105.7 ypg) against the rush, and considering the beat down they put on Chiefs for three quarters, an ‘almost win’ in Philly still meant same thing – a loss – as 40-7 thumping by Commanders or 47-10 to start the season. There will be a lot of unfamiliar names leaving on defense, and a LOT of new names before final roster in August, don’t sweat who, what, why until then is legitimate.

Spending on guards Lewis and Hunt produced essentially the kind of offensive line safety Young needed, and even with the injury to C Austin Corbett after moving from guard to center and then Cade Mayes taking his role, the Panther O-line was their best unit overall. Chuba Hubbard proved his worth to Panthers, earning a new four year/$33MM contract.

Free agent defensive personnel seldom came through after the loss of stud defensive tackle Derrick Brown in Game One. Jadeveon Clowney had 5.5 sacks but didn’t hold the edge as hoped; D.J. Woonum (4 sacks, only played in 8 games), A’Shawn Robinson (320 lbs., 5.5 sacks) and Josey Jewell (3.5 sacks, 51 solo tackles) were useful when available. Shy Tuttle was never close to the answer as an NFL nose tackle, and MLB Trevin Wallace (8 starts, 64 total tackles, 1 sack, 2 fumbles forced) played in 13 games before a shoulder injury ended his season, will benefit long-term from getting the injured Shaq Thompson’s reps in the middle this year.

In his first year here, Morgan accepted the charge that he’d short-changed the defense while focusing addition of players that would improve Young’s offensive efforts. That Ejiro Evero’s 3-4 defensive strategy was constantly bull-whipped, after a 2023 season where they finished ranked #4 (293.7 ypg) – and before the meat of Panthers linebacking corps (Burns, Luvu, Grosse-Matos) left in free agency – is the singular reason Evero is still in Charlotte. Teams can understand a string of injuries will drag a team down, but none of the seven new head coaches would demand the guy who – relatively speaking – directed the Titanic, come work with them.

Even if ’81 Colts (33.3 ppg) surrendered ONE point less that Panthers new record, but in a 16-game season.

Sports

Panthers 7-0 After Rainy Monday Night Almost Slipped Away

by gshorkeyblt2Leave a Comment on Panthers 7-0 After Rainy Monday Night Almost Slipped Away

Two essential Truths about unbeaten teams are that not everything is going to work perfectly, so sometimes you’re going to have to buckle it on *strong* and WIN the game, dammit! Secondly, clutch field goal kicking is going to figure in there significantly.

For the vast majority of Monday nights 29-26 victory, in front of an above-average crowd that endured steady and sometimes heavy rain (bless their hearts), the vaunted Panther defense made Indianapolis QB Andrew Luck look exceptionally human. The Colts had only 40 yards passing after three quarters, and he leads the league with 12 INTs after Carolina picked three, including the gamer in overtime. After Cam Newton’s TD pass (16-of-35, 248 yds., 2nd TD- Philly Brown) to Greg Olsen, the 23-6 lead looked like a kickin’, even though Gano missed the PAT.

Luck’s final yardage was 231, but overtime belonged to the kickers. The Colts Adam Viniteri, showed his chops with another clutch kick in his career-long string, thumping a 50-yarder, then Gano answered with one. After Kuechly, who dropped an interception possibility at the end of regulation, grabbed one in OT– Ted Ginn also dropped a possible TD in admittedly lousy conditions– Gano took care of business with a strong 52-yarder.

If the game looked kind of ‘Done Deal’ after the Olsen TD, its going to help Charlotte (and fans) in the future, because it became a game where that ‘unbeaten’ could have come off their resume. When they beat Seattle two weeks ago, that certainly charged expectations up, Seattle being a constant pain over the last couple meetings. Of COURSE there’s a whooooole lot of ‘Can they beat Green Bay/Aaron Rodgers?’ now, and thats a legitimate question. Should it make any difference that Rodgers had an ugly night vs. Denver and might have a chip on his shoulder when he gets to Bank of America stadium? In a word,’No’, because stopping his usual surgery on offense will test whats been the teams strength–its D– and you *HAVE* to nullify his big plays to win in all cases.

Moral victories don’t count, and no denying Green Bay is a premier team. It will be a massive game, and there’s every reason for a full stadium till the end, which is, or should be, a standard for this level of event. The Panthers haven’t been ‘Lucky’ yet in getting to 7-0— even without Charles Johnson (knee) and Kuechly (out three games, concussion protocols), the defense has been flexible with personnel, AJ Kline and Shaq Thompson stepped up, and opportunistic– two of ace cornerback Josh Norman’s 4 picks were returned for TDs. While TV analyst John Gruden continued to sound pessimistic about having Newton run as frequently as he has this year, his 41 looked good, and his 3rd down conversion rate has helped Carolina’s running game all season.
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The Hornets have picked up their game with a 2nd win, after stumbling out of the starting game 0-3. Last night they rode (Less Big?) Al Jefferson’s 15-18 shooting for 31 points to bury the Dallas Mavs 108-94. Much has been made of Al being 25 pounds lighter this season, but it was an excellent team scoring effort, which was essentially the Hornets ‘must fix’ problem from last year. Marvin Williams-17, Kemba Walker-14, Cody Zeller-11– and with ALL due respect for Jeremy Lamb’s 16 off the bench— Coach Caldwell can continue blending process on where points come from.

Frank Kaminsky hasn’t been overwhelming yet, and losing Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (MKG) to a shoulder injury at end of pre-season are adjustments to continue. Caldwell, who is dealing with many new and clearly talented parts very successfully, feels getting roles set is a priority, even after a 7-1 preseason that included a pair of victories in China.

Sports

Booing for W’s? Nahh, Otherwise Philly…

by gshorkeyblt2Leave a Comment on Booing for W’s? Nahh, Otherwise Philly…

As I’ve maintained throughout the Bobcat years– especially when owner Bob Johnson complained about not getting the community love he’d expected– if there is anyplace that knows what good hoops looked like, it was North Carolina. I also opined that since people could watch at least two ACC games/their alma maters a week for free, ‘supporting’ over-priced nobodies (sorry Mr. Wallace) that even Hubie Brown couldn’t coach wasn’t high on a lot of people’s lists.

Yes, the home opener featuring the return of Hornets name and that knowledge base presented a mixed emotional bag; the crowd certainly had expectations for Victory #1, since Milwaukee was last years worst club. In the third quarter theHornets were down 24 and playing lousy enough to elicit significant boos says something; giving them props for actually turning things around for a 108-106 overtime win is equally legitimate. While Kemba Walker went 9-28 FGs, he nailed both the tying trey in regulation and the gamer; the chances of very many more victories will diminish with 31% shooting nights. Its every fans right to express displeasure in the product being presented– as Madden memorably said, “Philly fans even boo Santa Claus.” (I saw the game, it was a pretty raggedy, stupid acting Santa), and I salute the crowd for their candor, especially since it worked.
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There must’ve been a couple fans who were willing to try motivating more inspired play by expressing displeasure at the big Thursday night Panthers-Saints game as well. The final was 28-10, but if you watched it, you never got any feeling the now 3-4-1 Panthers would come out on top. Okay, nice that Cam’s running effectively again, his big stretch to stick a TD in at the cone another of those things we will definitely cheer, and become antsy about when its lacking.

Two weeks ago commentator Howie Long said this wasn’t the 2013 Panthers #2-rated in league defense, which provided the backbone to their 12-4 record. If you allow (I don’t) for “we don’t have Greg Hardy” laments, the secondary hasn’t been getting toasted as regularly as many might’ve suspected; clearly, getting field goals offensively instead of TDs has killed them, even more than fact other teams keep putting together multi-play drives on the D. Moral victories for defensive intensity in a 13-9 loss the previous week to Seattle Seahawks mean nothing– I was pretty sure those 3 FGs by the Panthers Gano would be cancelled out if Russell Wilson of Seattle put a single drive together, and thats exactly what happened.

There was some booing done Thursday, although my noise at home was more groaning-griping about Panthers trying to cover Saints freaking star tight end Jimmy Graham one-on-one. I’m a Drew Brees fan, and he probably could’ve passed to someone else if Graham was doubled, but it looked like pitch and catch at times. This moves the Saints back into divisional lead, but almost everyone in the NFC South is still in the hunt on that point.

I’ll reserve booing at this point, although I believe it actually made a difference at the Hornets game. If booing always worked, Philly would be a dominant contender in every sport; right now I WOULD actually boo if that would eliminate the next 150 Hagan-Tillis ads I’ll inevitably be subjected to between now and Tuesday night. This Senate race is a STUNNINGLY ugly piece of negativity– there’s not a commentator in the country that doesn’t mention the mudslinging that **$200 MILLION** in outside funding has financed. How does that *obvious* a twisting of ‘voting voice’ truly relate to that of the North Carolina electorate? I don’t know, but yeah, I’d boo! it.

Glenn S.