Carolina Panthers Defeat Miami Dolphins 2012 Preseason Week 2

The Carolina Panthers defeated the Miami Dolphins 23 – 17 in the second week of the 2012 preseason. Cam Newton got off to a much stronger start in his second preseason game. Newton completed eight passes on 11 attempts for 119 yards and one touchdown. DeAngelo Williams had a nice game with four carries for 25 yards and a 6.3 yards per carry average. Newcomer Mike Tolbert had a solid game with three carries for 15 yards with a 5.0 yard rushing average and he also had one reception for 14 yards. Unfortunately, Mike Tolbert did have one fumble in the game, but I don't expect that to be a issue come regular-season. The Panthers defense was much improved from the first preseason game. The Panthers rush defense held Miami to just 37 yards rushing. Rookie cornerback Josh Norman also looked very solid in his preseason debut. The Miami Dolphins chose not to throw it his way because of his solid pass protection. If Josh Norman is able to maintain his current level of play he should end up as the week one starter opposite Chris Gamble.


The Carolina Panthers next outing is against the New York Jets at New York. The game will be played on Sunday, August 26 at 8 PM Eastern time on NBC.

Carolina Panthers 2012 Kicking Competition

The Carolina Panthers have a fierce kicking competition currently involving the punters and kickers. The kickers are incumbent Olindo Mare and former CFL star Justin Medlock. The two punters are rookie out of Wisconsin Brad Nortman and 12 year veteran Nick Harris. Both kicking competitions should come to a conclusion by the end of the preseason.

Justin Medlock has been more consistent on deep field goals compared to Olindo Mare however, Olindo Mare has been better on kickoffs. During the last preseason game against the Houston Texans Justin Medlock had a kickoff fall 10 to 15 yards short of the end zone which led to the Texans kickoff return for a touchdown. Olindo Mare performed better on kickoffs with the ball sailing deep in the end zone mostly resulting in touchbacks. Even though Medlock had a bad kickoff during the Texans game he was consistently kicking the ball 5+ yards deep in the end zone during the most recent practice sessions which is a very positive sign. Ideally I would prefer Medlock win the kicking competition considering Mare missed multiple long field goals last year that caused the Panthers to lose a couple games. Justin Medlock is much better at long field goals. Also Justin Medlock has a much friendlier salary cap number which is always a plus.

As for the punters, rookie Brad Nortman has looked very good. His kicks are long and with a lot of hang time. He has also been working hard in camp at his directional kicking. Nick Harris, a free-agent signing by the Panthers during the off-season, is also battling Nortman for the position. At this time, it is definitely Nortman's position to lose. I would expect Brad Nortman to win the competition considering he was drafted in the sixth round of the NFL draft and he has youth on his side. The Carolina Panthers face the Miami Dolphins tonight August 17 at 8 PM EST on Fox. Tune in to see if anyone gets a leg up in the kicking competition.

Carolina Panthers 2012 CB Position Battle

One of the big position battles for the Carolina Panthers in 2012 is at the CB position. The players that are in this competition are Captain Munnerlyn, Brandon Hogan, and Josh Norman. Captain Munnerlyn has been the starter but the Panthers are looking to move him to nickelback. Ideally the Panthers would prefer either Brandon Hogan or Josh Norman to win the starting job because Captain Munnerlyn is a undersized corner to be a starter. Currently Captain Munnerlyn has been working with the first-team because Brandon Hogan and Josh Norman have been injured.

Brandon Hogan was drafted in the 2011 NFL draft in the fourth round out of West Virginia. He slid to the fourth round in the draft because he had a knee injury but his potential is very high if he can stay healthy. Brandon Hogan only participated in a couple games last year with zero starts. Brandon Hogan has been held out of almost all of the off-season activities this year because he has been recovering slowly from knee injury. I would consider him a long shot to win the starting job however, I expect him to be a solid contributor during the 2012 campaign.

Josh Norman was selected in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL draft out of Coastal Carolina. He was considered a top prospect coming out of the NFL draft, so his potential is great. During practice on August 14 Josh Norman had four interceptions which showcases his potential. He possesses the size to be NFL starter unlike Captain Munnerlyn. Tonight August 17 against the Miami Dolphins Josh Norman has an opportunity to participate in his first NFL preseason game. Captain Munnerlyn will start the game but Josh Norman should get multiple opportunities to show if he is ready to be a NFL starter.

Overall I am very excited to see how this competition plays out. In my opinion I believe Josh Norman will win the starting job because he possesses the size and ball hawking skills that are required to be a starter in the NFL. Tonight's preseason game against the Miami Dolphins should give us a glimpse if this will become a reality. If you are in the local market you can watch the Panthers preseason game tonight August 17 against the Miami Dolphins at 8 PM EST on Fox.

My Thoughts On The NFL And Devastating Hits

Just recently the NFL decided to levy harder punishments against players who perform devastating hits. Devastating hits are helmet to helmet hits that often result in a player getting a concussion. The league recently fined James Harrison $75,000 Dunta Robinson $50,000 and Brandon Meriweather $50,000. The league said starting Sunday the 24th they would also start suspending players for devastating hits. As far as I am concerned I think the league it treading on then ice. They fined these players excessive amounts without any warning. Brandon Meriweather's game check is for around $32,000 a game so fining him more than a game check without warning is crazy. I do agree he should have been fined especially for his second hit against Ravens receiver Todd Heap who was defenseless. Meriweather's hit was late and unnecessary but worst of all he went helmet to helmet. I think the league should definitely be harsh against a hit like this however it was Meriweather's first offense so you have to be stern but be able to give someone a second chance to correct what they were doing. The other hits in question were Harrison's and Robinson's which I felt both were clean. Robinson lead with his shoulder and his helmet slid up slightly which can and will happen. There was no intent to hurt the player Eagles star receiver DeSean Jackson.  His fine of $50,000 is excessive since he has never been fined for any such contact before. He will be appealing the leagues decision. James Harrison is a repeat offender though I feel the hits he had against the Browns were legal. His $75,000 dollar fine is the highest fine I recall seeing for any hit. He decided to sit out of practice today Wednesday the 20th to consider possible retirement do to the leagues sudden policy change. From what I have gathered most players feel this is a bad and abrupt change to the game. Surprisingly the people on the receiving end of these hits the offensive players were the first people to jump to the defense of the defenders. I understand player safety I am all for that but this is something you review after the season and not make a sudden change in the middle of the season giving players no time to adapt to the new and ultimate game changing policy. At the end of the day to me it is football which is a violent game and these hard hits do happen. Don't take away from what has made this game so special. At the same time there is no room in the NFL for hits like Meriweather's hit on a defenseless player and those are the type of hits that must be met with punishment and not the ones by Dunta Robinson and James Harrison. The NFL needs to tread more carefully on this subject and get the players input since they are the ones putting there body's on the line and not Roger Goodell which by his body of work as commissioner has seemed nothing short of a power hungry executive trying to rob the players and the fans of everything they have loved about football.

Back and Better Than Ever

I took a very long break due to job and life situation but now I am back and am ready to commit to putting more and better articles than I have before. I will be writing about anything from politics to sports, and anything else inbetween. Also I would love to hear any and all feedback on what I can do to make things better and if you see a article you like or dislike just leave a comment and say whatever is on your mind. I am gonna post things about what I like but I also would like to get your imput on things you would like to hear about and be updated about. Do you wanna know where the best vaction spots are or could you care less and would rather know about your favorite football team? Would you like to know the Dow is down 50 points or the Yankees go down 2-1 against the Rangers? Like I said I am gonna start out writing about what I like and care about but am more than willing to write about what you want to read about.