Sunday, March 6, 2016

Second Quad from Fuji - #5 Panthers Quad

Here's the other Panthers quad - let's see what it brought to town:
First up is Mushin Muhammad - he's a heavy favorite here, as he was quite the Panther.  Moose spent 11 seasons with the team, 9 straight after he was a 2nd round pick in 1996 and then another 2 to end his career between 2008-2009.  He made a the Pro Bowl with 96 catches in 1999, and then led the NFL with 102 catches in 2000.  He would make the Pro Bowl one more time in 2004 thanks to an NFL leading 1,405 yards receiving, which got him a contract with the Bears.  In short, he was a very underrated WR, who quietly put together 11,438 yards and 62 touchdowns over 14 seasons in the NFL.

Issac Byrd was a less successful WR, but was also less heralded as a 6th round pick of the Titans in 1997.  He spent 3 seasons there, including the 1999 Super Bowl versus the Rams (he grew up in St. Louis) before finishing his last three years in Carolina.  His most yards in a season was the 2001 Panthers season with 492, so he was never a major receiver, but he did do a little damage in the NFL.

And the back:
Charles Wesley Walls, like Muhammad, was a fan favorite.  He was, suprisingly to me, a 2nd round pick by the 49ers in 1989.  He caught a Super Bowl touchdown in his five years with the team, but was behind Brent Jones on the depth chart and was out all of 1992 and 1993 on the injured reserve.  That's how the Saints signed him in 1994, and after two years there (and a team record) he moved to Carolina where he became amazing.  He had five Pro Bowls in seven years, really settling in as one of the top tight ends in football.  When he finally reached the end of the road, he signed on for one more season in 2003 with the Packers as a swan song.  All in all, it was a very impressive 14 year career.

Which is more than you can say for Chris Weinke.  He won one game with the Panthers in his 2001 rookie season, and then lost another 15 over two years.  In 2003 Jake Delhomme took over as the starter, and Weinke never even saw a stat in 2003 or 2004.  He won one game in 2006, which might have influenced the 49ers to sign him for 2007.  But he lost his only start there, and then his career was over.  Much like his minor league MLB career, which spanned six seasons and got all the way to AAA - where he batted an overall .213/.302/.343 and decided to go back to football.

So who wins the card?  It's close, because Walls did well, but I pick Muhammad.  He shone quite a bit brighter overall, albeit at an easier position to shine.  Third place would be Byrd, because dang Weinke was bad.

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