The first wave of the Panthers' salary-cap related cuts has washed up ashore. The wave surprisingly did not carry Ken Lucas with it -- at least not yet -- but it did include RB Nick Goings, WR D.J. Hackett and OT Jeremy Bridges.
They all got fired Wednesday, and there will be more. The huge ramifications of committing nearly 16.7 million to Julius Peppers next season -- and the Panthers have to commit it at the moment, even though a trade may happen -- are only beginning to be felt.
Of the 3, I'll only miss Goings. He was a quiet, fine warrior for the Panthers. He made the team in 2001 as a free agent and stuck around for eight years -- an eternity for an NFL RB -- because he made himself so valuable. The season everyone remembers is 2004, when Goings finally got the call as the starting RB after 5 other players had gotten injured or performed poorly. He responded with 4 straight 100-yard games, including a 3-TD game against Arizona that included a 57-yard TD run.
Goings never had another year anywhere near that one, but he was tough and versatile and he'll be missed.
Some Panthers will also miss Jeremy Bridges, who had a good run as a starter here for awhile. I won't. What I'll mainly remember about Bridges is his off-field problems, including the one during the 2008 season when he sprayed Dom Perignon over some patrons at a fancy restaurant. I mean, c'mon -- in this economy?? That's a double slap in the face.
As for Hackett, what a washout that guy was! Hackett was supposed to compete with Muhsin Muhammad for the No.2 receiving role. Instead, Moose left him in the dust. Hackett didn't score a touchdown ALL YEAR, an embarrassment for someone who is supposed to use speed as their primary weapon. He only had 13 catches for 181 yards and was frequently inactive. Good riddance to him.
We're moving!
9 years ago
Posts
2 comments:
I agree Scott, Nick Goings was a valuable part of the Panther Special Teams unit, and filled in when needed in the backfield. He was, as you say quiet, and fit right in to the Panther image. Of the three, he is the only one I will miss. As far as Lucas goes, I heard they will save a little more than $2 million if they cut him... but he would still count $8 million against the '09 cap. That is a lot of money to pay a guy for not playing, as well as having to pay a replacement. I know some folks were down on him last year for his performance, but any chance if they can't work a trade, they will just keep him because of the $8 million?
Likewise on Goings. He was a valuable guy in the backfield and on special teams. Hope he catches on with someone. Bridges did a good job for us and I hate to lose any O-linemen that can play multiple positions. He made some bad decisions off the field but who among us hasn't? Hackett was very dissapointing assuming he was healthy. I'd love to see Galloway in the receiving core this season.
Post a Comment