Are you afraid of Washington? Carolina’s next road trip is a
Week 6 contest against the Washington football team. They are not the scariest
match-up on
paper
Christian
Miller Baltimore Ravens Jersey , but Cincinnati taught us last week that
not every tiger is what it seems. Washington is going to be a tougher game than
you might expect.You’re going to hear a lot in these columns about trap games.
2018 is full of them. The idea is the team could get caught looking past one
opponent because a tougher one is on the horizon. Week 7, for example, is
another trip north. The Panthers will face the reigning Super Bowl Champion
Philadelphia Eagles — a team which handed the Panthers a bitterly close loss
last year. I don’t think that will be the case with this game.Alex Smith is the
former 1st overall pick turned average journeyman game manager that everyone who
isn’t honest with themselves thinks Cam Newton should be. He can run a little
and he can throw short and intermediate balls pretty well, but he’s not known
for leading heroic fourth quarter comebacks or striking fear into the hearts of
defenses with his deep ball accuracy. He shouldn’t be a game breaking
concern.Adrian Peterson is no longer the guy that wins games all by himself. He
has lost a step in his old age. Even if he hadn’t, the Panthers have
traditionally done very well defending against him. His best game against them
required 20 carries to total 84 yards and a single touchdown in 2011. That was
three careers ago for most running backs.If it seems weird to you that I am
pointing out all of the reasons why Washington shouldn’t be frightening in a
column that is supposed to point out all of the reasons why Washington is
frightening then you may have forgotten who their opponent is in Week 6. This is
exactly the kind of team that Carolina would lose to. Their kryptonite is
middle-of-the-road-at-best players and teams that step up and have career days.
Remember Thomas Rawls and Andre Brown.Regardless of who is on the schedule or
when, the Panthers have a time honored tradition of winning games they had no
business being in and losing games they shouldn’t. Their loss to the Bears last
season comes to mind.It even features a similar formula with an uninspiring
offense and a highly competent defense. This isn’t 2015. The Panthers have yet
to prove they are a cut above the rest of the league. I hope I’m wrong, but this
game feels all too familiar. The East-West Shrine Game is a good chance to see
some of the NFL Draft’s lesser known prospects display their talents. The game
will kickoff Saturday, January 19 at 3 p.m. ET on NFL Network."WhiteFanposts
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RoomPanthers 2019 NFL Draft2019 NFL Draft: 5 players to monitor during the
East-West Shrine GameNew,19commentsThe East-West Shrine Game is a good chance to
see some of the NFL Draft’s lesser known prospects display their talents. The
game will kickoff
Saturday
Greg Olsen
Jersey 2019 , January 19 at 3 p.m. ET on NFL
Network.ESTShareTweetShareShare2019 NFL Draft: 5 players to monitor during the
East-West Shrine GameJay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY SportsThe NFL Draft calendar
spans 365 days a year, but the scouting process really began to heat up this
week in St. Petersburg during the practices of the East-West Shrine Game. This
event isn’t as high profile as next week’s Senior Bowl, but there is always
talent to be found. Some notable alumni from last year’s event includes Phillip
Lindsay, Poona Ford, Kenny Young, Chase Edmunds, DaeSean Hamilton, and Avonte
Maddox. Here are five names to keep an eye on during tomorrow’s game. Daniel
Wise (DL, Kansas)Daniel Wise is the younger brother of Patriots edge rusher
Deatrich Wise. Wise has been a consistent force during the practices according
to several people in attendance. When watching his
film
Blue Greg
Olsen Jersey , Wise displays plenty of quickness to work himself into the
backfield. Wise is also known for his ability to disengage from blockers thanks
to his strong hands and leverage when taking on blockers. Wise lined up in every
position on the defensive line for the Jayhawks. His best position at the next
level will likely be at 3-technique. He can leverage his quickness on passing
downs, but he also has the functional strength to disengage and force stops
against the runs. Daylon Mack (NT, Texas A&M)The former Aggie’s strong
practices in St. Petersburg has not gone unnoticed. He received an invite to
next week’s Senior Bowl in Mobile as a result. Mack was mainly lined up as a
1-technique or nose tackle in A&M’s defensive front. My first impressions on
his film did not go well. Granted, Clemson has great talent on their offensive
line but Mack didn’t play with enough leverage to win against power. I’ll be
curious how Mack does during next week’s Senior Bowl practices, but for now I
was uninspired by his play.Devine Ozigbo (RB, Nebraska)My favorite prospect from
this year’s Shrine game is Devine Ozigbo. Rotoworld’s Josh Norris compared him
to Matt Breida and I totally see that comparison. Ozigbo has burst, short area
quickness, and runs after contact very well. He has issues in pass protection,
but his skill set is appealing. Terry Godwin
(WR
Kawann Short
Jersey 2019 , Georgia)Godwin was part of a productive offense in Georgia,
but he didn’t put up eye popping stats. He’s short in stature, but he can
produce big plays for an offense. He works through contact at the line of
scrimmage and then shows the ability to separate downfield. Godwin also has the
short area quickness to catch defenders flat footed. He has precise footwork,
but also wonderful burst to outrun defenders. Olisaemeka Udoh (OT, Elon)A small
school offensive tackle prospect from North Carolina who was on my radar last
year was North Carolina A&T’s Brandon Parker. This year’s version is Oli
Udoh, who was invited to the Senior Bowl yesterday. I had no experience with
Udoh prior to this week’s practices, but when footage like this came out it
caught my attention. Next week’s Senior Bowl will provide a better glimpse into
Udoh’s overall game against better competition, but he should certainly be on
your radar leading up to April’s draft.
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