-  The Carolina Panthers came off a 12-4 season in 2008 where they reached the to begin a 2009 season with high expectations
-  They began the season 0-3 and many blamed Jake Delhomme for throwing so many picks
-  Delhomme was eventually replaced later in the season as starter after compiling a 4-7 record. Matt Moore, Delhomme’s replacement, won 4 of his 5 games at the end of the year.
-  The team finished 8-8 and are poised to head into 2010 with Matt Moore as their starting QB

-  Matt Moore is positioned to be the teams starter from week 1 unless he is surprisingly supplanted by one of the two rookies
-  During  his 5 games started Moore threw for 1,053 yards and 8 TDs
-  Steve Smith injured his shoulder playing flag football but when he comes back he is clearly the best receiver on the team
-  The TE position was a position of decent output for the panthers with both TEs, King and Rosario, having 25 and 26 catches respectfully

-  The Panthers biggest strength was their run game. With two stars in the backfield, DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart the Panthers have one of the best running games in football
-  As a team the team had 2498 yards on 535 attempts along with 18 TDs on the ground.
-  The team ran the ball 53% of the time last season, so look for a similar ratio with a first year starting QB

-  Matt Moore looks like he could be one of those diamond in the rough type finds in the Tom Brady like mold
-  Moore compiled a 98.5 QB rating over his 5 starts last season
-  Moore threw for 1,053 yards at a 61.6 completion percentage while throwing 8 TDs to only 2 picks
-  The Panthers drafted two quarterbacks to be the future of their franchise. Jimmy Clausen was drafted in the second round when he was expected to go in the 20 range. Tony Pike was also drafted to add depth and competition to the position.

-  The Panthers have two dynamic runners in their backfield with Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, both former first round picks who had nearly identical years
-  Jonathan Stewart rushed for 1,133 yards on 221 carries at a 5.1 Y/C clip. He also scored 10 touchdowns on the season
-  DeAngelo Williams rushed for 1,117 yards on 216 carries at 5.2 Y/C. He scored 7 rushing TDs on the season

-  The Panthers most viable threat on the outside is from a receiver who can’t stay healthy when not playing tackle football. That being said when he is on the field Steve Smith can be explosive.
-  Steve Smith grabbed 65 passes for 982 yards and 7 touchdowns
-  Mushin Muhammad retired leaving a void at the 2^nd WR position. Who will step up? The most likely candidate is Dwayne Jarrett, former second round pick from USC.
-  Who else can step up and catch passes for Matt Moore?

-  The Panthers got solid production from their TE position with three over the 200 yard mark
-  Dante Rosario caught 26 passes for 313 yards and 2 TDs
-  Jeff King caught 25 passes for 200 yards and 3 TDs
-  Gary Barnidge had 242 yards on 20.2 yards per catch

-  John Kasay will handle the kicking duties for the Panthers in 2010. in ’09 Kasay was 22/27 on field goals and made 31 extra points.

-  Jon Beason led the team with 142 tackles, Richard Marshall had 88
-  The Pantehers had 31 sacks last season
-  Leading sacker was Julius Peppers with 10.5
-  Who will replace the pass rush with Peppers now gone??
-  Richard Marshall and Chris Gamble led the team with 4 INTs each
-  Team forced 23 fumbles
-  Team forced a total of 45 turnovers

Analysis:  They are a collective group of crushers.  They’re as comfortable opening holes as they are protecting Delhomme.

Analysis:  This team sets up the passing game by establishing the run.  They should put up similar numbers as last year with an offensive line that is among the best in the league at opening up holes and protecting their QB.  

June 23, 2010

Signed DL Eric Norwood.

June 22, 2010

Signed QB Tony Pike.

June 17, 2010

Signed DE Greg Hardy, S Jordan Pugh and CB Robert McClain. Waived TE Andrew George, S Matt O'Hanlon, RB Daniel Porter, T Mark Ortmann, P Blake Haudan and PK Aaron Pettrey.

June 15, 2010

Signed WR David Gettis and CB R.J. Stanford.

June 10, 2010

Announced the retirement of WR Muhsin Muhammad.

June 8, 2010

Signed LB Thomas Davis and CB Richard Marshall to one-year tenders.

May 1, 2010

Signed RB Josh Vaughan and WR Trent Guy.

April 28, 2010

Traded S Chris Harris to Chicago for LB Jamar Williams.

April 16, 2010

Claimed KR Brian Witherspoon off waivers from Detroit.

April 12, 2010

Signed S Aaron Francisco.

April 6, 2010

Signed PK Todd Carter.

March 17, 2010

Agreed to terms with DE Tyler Brayton on a three-year contract.

March 15, 2010

Signed T Rob Petitti and DB Marcus Hudson.

March 8, 2010

Released FB Brad Hoover.

March 5, 2010

Released QB Jake Delhomme, DT Damione Lewis, DT Maake Kemoeatu, LB Na'il Diggs and LB Landon Johnson.

March 4, 2010

Released DT Damione Lewis

February 17, 2010

Signed DT Ed Johnson to a one-year contract.

January 30, 2010

Named Jeff Rodgers special teams coordinator.

January 21, 2010

Named Tyke Tolbert wide receivers coach.

January 18, 2010

Announced the retirement of receivers coach Richard Williamson.

January 14, 2010

Fired special teams coach Danny Crossman.

We are firm believers that strength-of-schedule analysis is essential when ranking players at every position.  We applied this system (without the 5% NFL draft impact) in hindsight to last year's schedule as we were curious how well it could work.  The notable results were that Michael Turner and the Falcons had a #32 ranked (easiest) rush schedule last season and DeAngelo Williams and the Panthers were #30.  

Our SoS considers three factors when determining rankings for schedules for the upcoming year:

80% weight is applied to the quality of defense from the previous year.  We determine quality of defense based on fantasy points given up (run and pass).  However, before we get to that number, we factor in the quality of teams that these defenses faced (basically a strength-of-schedule for the previous year).  This was all done by hand.  Let's just say our boy, Stitchface, has a bit of the carpal tunnel-syndrome going on.    

15% weight is applied to Free-Agent movement.  We ranked each free agent's impact to their former team (2008), and then ranked each team according to whether they added or lost talent overall.

5% weight is applied to the NFL draft impact.  It's tough to gauge a rookie's effectiveness which is why we valued it so low.  Certain teams not only drafted defensemen well in '09, but also will be sliding those guys into highly deficient positions from '08, and usually, anything is an upgrade when you are starting a rookie. 

If you trust Stitchface's formula (and you will eventually), all you need to realize is the following... The higher the SoS number, the easier the fantasy schedule. 

Ranking:  1=easiest  32=toughest