Matt Loede over at Panther Gab spreads a rumor that the Panthers would apply the franchise tag to Pro Bowl DE Julius Peppers if they are unable to get a long-term deal done.

Charley Casserly of CBS is reporting that the Panthers are going to apply the franchise tag on DE Julius Peppers, that is if the team can't work out a long term deal. The one-year franchise tender for Peppers - more than $17 million.

Having applied the tag to LT Jordan Gross in the offseason the Panthers are not afraid of using the pricey option. I have to say though $17M is some serious coin for a one year deal. I think it makes it imperative for the Panther brass to work a deal before this becomes a necessity.

Given Peppers is tied for 4^th in the NFC with 11 sacks the price isn't going to get any lower by dragging this out. I imagine the sticking point is the amount of guaranteed money, the incentive clauses and the length of the contract. I thinks its also a no-brainer that Peppers will be the highest paid player in Panther team history.

For any news reporter that should attempt to interview John Fox for his Monday presser here are a few pointers that might help result in a positive interview instead of an exercise in futility as demonstrated yesterday. Before I go further I have to say I'm a John Fox fan and feel he has a right to answer questions from the press in whatever manner suits him. I'm not passing judgment on his style because "It is what it is".

• Do ask Fox to describe the positives of any player of your choosing.
• Don't suggest that any one player was the reason for victory.

Q: Talk about the return game and how important that was in your coming back to win.

A: It's always important. We've had some good special teams' outings in critical times. It changes field position. That's what special teams are for, whether it's the punt return, which I think we averaged about 11 ½ (yards per return)

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Hello Buc 'em readers! Jaxon here with Cat Scratch Reader to answer any questions you may have leading up to our showdown on MNF. I knew at the beginning of the season this game would be big but I had no idea it would be THIS big. Not only is the division lead up for grabs but also a potential first round bye as the winner will essentially lay claim to the 2nd best record in the conference.

The Panthers will have plenty to prove having lost to the Bucs convincingly in Tampa earlier in the season. I don't care to recap that performance but lets just say the Panthers left plenty of room for improvement in all phases of their game.

Some of the positives I think the Panthers carry into this match-up as compared to the first game are:

• They have shored up the punt protection that was a major liability in the first half of the season
  
• The kick return game has vastly improved over the last couple of games as KR Mark Jones is playing well
  
• The offensive line is 100 percent healthy, unlike the first game. Both C Ryan Kalil and RT Jeff Otah have played the last two games
  
• The Panther run defense seems to have righted itself back to its earlier stellar performance (Warrick Dunn was the first RB to have a good day against the Panthers)
• The Panthers started moving DE Julius Peppers around in order to create mismatches. He now has 11 sacks on the season
  
• The Jake Delhomme to Steve Smith connection has heated up the past couple of games as Smith at times appears unstoppable. Since the Bucs are one of the few teams that have been able to shut Smith down in the past he will be looking to make a statement
• The Smash-n-Dash RB combo of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart has evolved into a legitimate concern for defensive coordinators on a weekly basis. If you don't wrap them up quickly they can take it to the house.
• The Panthers have started deploying a pass rush specific front line that focuses on speed in obvious passing situations 
• The Panthers are undefeated at home and are sure to be fired up given the MNF stage
  

Of course there are plenty of negatives but I'll leave that for you guys to talk about. So feel free to offer your questions or comments and I'll do my best to answer them objectively.

Go Panthers!

After Georgia Tech ended it's seven game losing streak to the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday nothing could upset me for the weekend. Even a last minute loss by the Panthers to the Packers would not have wiped the smile off my face. Yet my smile only got bigger because of this epic Panther tandem:

Jake Delhomme to Steve Smith

How many times have we praised this combo as the reason for victory over the past six seasons? The Panthers had no business winning that game against a Packers team that controlled every statistic in the game...except the one that counted... the score. The Panther defense did what it could in the building snowstorm, forcing early stops and preventing big plays. But they couldn't stop the dinking and dunking of the maddening West Coast offense once QB Aaron Rodgers got on track. Yet in the end the Cardiac Cats got it done yet again. More positive spin:

• RB DeAngelo Williams had his biggest fantasy day ever with 4 TD's and 72 yards rushing. All four were 1 yard plunges dispelling the notion he's not a goal line RB

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Here we are Panther fans, another Panther game day and today is another big one. The Panthers travel to the frozen tundra to seek revenge on a Packer team that put a butt-whipping on the Panthers last season. I do remember that one, it was one of our worst losses last season.

The Packers are regrouping after getting out-pointed by the Saints Monday night 51-29. The Panthers should have plenty of tape to analyze the Packers weaknesses.

The Panthers on the other hand have plenty of work to do regarding their slow starts and it looks like one answer has been to speed up practice:

"We changed up some things at practice and starting practicing at a faster tempo," said Lewis. "We're trying to get it corrected. I think guys came out with the correct mindset today of working. Guys were flying around, making plays and being where they're supposed to be."

Lewis said the defense had to think quicker in practice because the offense was setting up faster.

"I think it's more game-realistic," he said. "It seems last week (in a 45-28 loss at Atlanta) we were getting beat out of the huddle and a couple of times we didn't have our hands down on the d-line when they were snapping the ball.

Well let us see how it works. Everyone will be focused on how the offense gets going on their first drive. Me personnally I'm hoping they mix it up on 1st down so if their first play is a run up the middle you might hear a scream resonating from Charleston.

Lets hear from you Panther fans, what are your keys to a Panther victory this week?

Go Panthers !!!

Here's some links to post analyzing the Panthers Sunday game in Green bay.

If You're a Betting Person

An 8-3 record doesn't get you mush respect these days. If you like to bet on Panther games the line is Packers (-3) with the over/under set at 45 points.

The Bottom Line: I know the Packers are usually money at home, but the Panthers have a great defense and Aaron Rogers is throwing up too many interceptions.

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Packers Must Win to Stay in the Race

Both teams failed to live up to their potential last week.

"Five games to play, we're not out of anything," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "It's right in front of us. We need to win football games. We know that. That's our focus."

The Packers beat the panthers pretty handily last season so I'm hoping for a little revenge. One more loss for them and that fat lady may have sung for the Pack.

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Panther Defense Looking to Reduce their YAC

If the Panthers want to beat another team this season they have to do better at limiting their opponent's yards-after-contact, meaning tackling.

Damione Lewis doesn't remember his Carolina Panthers' coaches ever bringing up the statistic "yards after contact."

So when the defensive tackle heard the eye-popping number of yards the Panthers gave up to Atlanta Sunday after making an initial hit -- 193 -- it was jarring. It only got worse when he and his teammates had to watch it on film.

"You see guys coming in and hitting a guy and he's staying up," Lewis said. "We're not wrapping up. We're going in getting big shots on them and they're bouncing off and making big runs out of it."

That's not what we had grown accustomed to earlier in the season.

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Let's See More Gang Tackling

The defense is getting back to the basics this week in practice.

"There was a lot more sense of urgency running to the ball," cornerback Richard Marshall said. "That was a big emphasis (Wednesday) -- getting to the ball, running to the ball, guys getting there, because on Sunday, there were a couple of plays where guys weren't getting to the ball and all 11 guys weren't running to the ball, and that's something we preach here. 

"Our defensive coordinator (Mike Trgovac) and head coach (John Fox) preach that everybody's got to get to the ball.  That's something we want to do on Sunday.  So there was a big emphasis on that (Wednesday)."

I'll just be happy if they don't whiff on some key tackles.

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Packer Secondary Looking to Rebound 

After all, they just got ripped by the Saints passing game. The Panthers expect them to rebound.

"Those are some playmakers," said Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme. "They can catch the football. They've scored a lot of points. A lot of guys who play (defensive back) might have a little trouble handling the ball. But this guy Woodson has been doing it since college (when he won the Heisman Trophy at Michigan). The corners are just in your face and opportunistic, too."

I'm thinking they wait one more week for a rebound.

As a rule of thumb I don't draft Panthers for my fantasy teams because I'm such a Homer I always over-pay and then when on my team I always think they are going to have a good week. Looking at where Panther players stand in fantasy points show my strategy to be a pretty smart one this season. The Panthers do not have a single player in the top 10 for their position after week 12. With maybe one week left in the Fantasy regular season (depending which league you play in) there are still some Panthers that could score for you based on the match-up.

DeAngelo Williams is the 11th ranked RB (ESPN traditional scoring) with 145 points. Williams is averaging over 5 yards per carry on just under 16 carries per game. That number should go up over the next several games as the Panthers face a couple weak run defenses. Williams should be a good play the rest of the season outside of the Giants game. If the Giants have home field wrapped up then he may be a good play that week too.

You can read the rest of this post here via Cat Scratch Reader.

As a rule of thumb I don't draft Panthers for my fantasy teams because I'm such a Homer I always over-pay and then when on my team I always think they are going to have a good week. Looking at where Panther players stand in fantasy points show my strategy to be a pretty smart one this season. The Panthers do not have a single player in the top 10 for their position after week 12. With maybe one week left in the Fantasy regular season (depending which league you play in) there are still some Panthers that could score for you based on the match-up. Remember, you can get weekly fantasy advice at SBN's fantasy site Fake Teams.

DeAngelo Williams is the 11^th ranked RB (ESPN traditional scoring) with 145 points. Williams is averaging over 5 yards per carry on just under 16 carries per game. That number should go up over the next several games as the Panthers face a couple weak run defenses. Williams should be a good play the rest of the season outside of the Giants game. If the Giants have home field wrapped up then he may be a good play that week too.

Jake Delhomme is the 21^st ranked QB (114 points) who is sure to have a least a couple good fantasy days left in the season. The only problem is picking which games that might be as there is not rhyme or reason to his inconsistency. He has put up low scores against bad teams and good and vice versa. I'd like to think he could put up big numbers against the Packers and Broncos but who knows? Unless you have no other viable option I would stay away from playing Jake.

Steve Smith is the 12^th ranked WR (102 points), a low position for him until you consider he missed the first 2 games. Though Smith has been erratic too given he relies on Jake he should continue to be a good play most weeks. Smith is playing well, playing inspired and seems ready to put the Panther offense on his shoulders if Jake can just get him the ball. That will rely heavily on an offensive line that has struggled the past two weeks in spite of being healthy for the first time in a while. Honestly, if you have Smith on your team he's hard to bench and I would start him every game from here on out.

K John Kasay is the 13^th ranked kicker with 94 points and is essentially Mr. Automatic inside 52 yards. His point total is down from previous years because of the Panther ball-control offense that reduces the number of scoring opportunities. He is a good play against lesser defenses (Packers, Broncos & Saints) that should give the Panthers offense a higher number of scoring chances.  

Jonathan Stewart is the 31^st ranked RB (83 points) who suffers from limited carries that make him too inconsistent to start. He has had a few big games but it's hard to predict when that next big game will be. Stewart is also battling a toe injury and it's unclear how much it is bothering him. I would think the games against the Packers and Saints would provide the opportunity to play him but I wouldn't chance it unless you don't have a better match-up.

The Panthers have the 11^th ranked defense as they rely in low scoring and an occasional turnover. They have yet to score on special teams so there are not points coming from that phase of the game. They also don't put up a lot of sacks. Looking at their remaining schedule I think the only good play remaining would be the Bucs game on Monday night. I think the defense will be fired up for that one.

Musin Muhammad is the 30^th ranked WR with 78 points. At times Moose has put up big games but we've rarely seen it the past few weeks. Moose is good in the red zone though as Jake looks for the usually sure-handed Muhammad. Overall he might be worth a spot start against the Broncos or Saints.

Neither of the Panthers two TE's, Dante Rosario or Jeff King are ranked higher than 32^nd and therefore are not worth starting at any point remaining in the season.

So in summary I think Williams, Smith and Kasay are good starts most weeks and that Delhomme, Moose, Stewart and the Panther D might worth a couple spot starts.

Hello Panther fans. Today is one of my favorite Holidays for one main reason. No, its not the great food which would certainly surprise anyone that knows me (I like to eat) at home. No, its because its perfectly acceptable and expected to kick back on the couch and watch football after eating...all day. I absolutely love it.

So as we gear up for a key match-up on the frozen tundra this Sunday (aren't they all key now?) how is everybody feeling about the Panthers? I'm a little apprehensive given the way the defense has performed lately. I take comfort in knowing that the Panthers have responded with a win after each of their two previous losses. We are also facing a Green Bay team that may be down from a humiliating loss to the Saints on Monday night that was a big setback to their playoff hopes. At 5-6 the pack can really only hope to win the division as a wildcard may be out of reach (they would have to win out).

What about always having Detroit and Dallas play on T-day? Both games (Sea vs. Dal and Tenn vs. Det) could be real stinkers. Thank goodness they added the 3rd game at 8pm with Ari vs. Philly (if you get the NFL Network). Should both Dallas and Detroit get these homes games every year. Check my poll at the end of my post.

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