I thought all you Texan fans would get a chuckle out of this light-hearted look at the Panther's unorthodox QB duo: http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070802/NEWSREC0105/708020304/1024/GTCOM Don't look! Panthers QBs hard to watch * [print icon] Print * Email this Article Email this Article By Mike Cranston The Associated Press ADVERTISEMENT "It's a weird ball coming at you because you are used to it coming over the top and it's coming out like a slingshot. But you get used to it. It's a very catchable ball when you understand it." former Ledford and Western Carolina standout Brad Hoover, on the Panthers' sidearm-throwing quarterbacks SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Aspiring quarterbacks shouldn't go to the Carolina Panthers' training camp to learn how to throw a football. First, Jake Delhomme will lob the ball down a sideline with his unorthodox delivery. Then, it's David Carr's turn to show off his sidearm throwing motion. Kids, cover your eyes. "We look like two guys who are just out of the freaking boat, just swinging out there," Carr said Wednesday. While Carr is a major upgrade over Delhomme's former backup, Chris Weinke, his awkward delivery is the complete opposite of Weinke's textbook throwing motion. "He does throw a little sidearm, but he's very accurate and he throws a good ball," Delhomme said. "Then you have some of the other ones who can drop back and boy, they look good, but they can't play dead. Can you get it done? That's the biggest thing. And he gets it done." Carr has had a smile on his face for much of camp, despite being a backup after five years as Houston's starting quarterback. Carr, who signed a free-agent deal with Carolina in April, said one thing he enjoys about being with the Panthers is that quarterbacks coach Mike McCoy hasn't tried to change his throwing motion, as the Texans' coaches did. "We go through footwork drills and work on putting arc and pace on the ball, but the actual mechanics of me throwing the football, he hasn't touched," Carr said. "That makes a world of difference for me." Head coach John Fox also doesn't seem concerned with the way the throws look, as long as they get to the intended receiver. "I've been in this league a long time now, and there have been some guys that have been pretty good who have had funny throwing motions," Fox said. "Bernie Kosar comes to mind. That's a hard position to evaluate, and it's not always the biggest and strongest arm that makes a good quarterback." That doesn't mean Carr hasn't drawn some funny looks for his throws to his new teammates. In a practice earlier this week, it almost looked as if he threw underhanded to a running back in the flat. "I can't say too much," Delhomme said. "I try to throw some of those, too." But it takes some adjustments. Receivers who have adapted to Delhomme's off-to-the-side delivery also have had to adjust to Carr's style. "It's a weird ball coming at you because you are used to it coming over the top and it's coming out like a slingshot," said fullback Brad Hoover, the former Ledford and Western Carolina standout. "But you get used to it. It's a very catchable ball when you understand it." Carr said he never caught too much grief about his motion until just before the NFL Draft, when his delivery was picked apart and concerns grew that too many of his passes would be knocked down at the line of scrimmage. But every time Carr has tried to throw with a traditional over-the-top motion, it feels uncomfortable and he struggles with his accuracy. "It's really just been the last couple of years people have tried to work with it," Carr said. "I can't tell you how relieving it is that Mike (McCoy) just lets me go out and play ball." And while it may look ugly to fans, Carr doesn't cringe when he watches himself throw on film. "It looks natural to me," Carr said. "Other people are looking at it and closing one eye maybe, but it comes out pretty good, I think. I've never had a problem with it, honestly."
thanks for letting us back at Houston know what the problem was. We all just thought you sucked ass, but it was the coaches all along! duh!
Yeah, it was his throwing motion. It had nothing to do his never reading a defense or his locking in on one receiver during a play. Or his utter incompetence in the pocket, running into his own blockers, tripping and falling into sacks. Nope, none of that. It was Kubiak telling him to throw the ball right.
i'm so tired of that stuff. i shouldn't have read this article...i should have put my fingers in my ears and yelled, "LALALALALALALALALALALALALA"
it was actually a shot at palmer. during carr's first camp, palmer had him throwing over ladders. ladders. in case defenses threw the... ladder blitz at him or something. i have no idea. mcnair should have had all those participating in and/or sanctioning such an utter waste of time fired on the spot. as i've said 1,934,729 times - coaches coach. if the guy has an unorthodox delivery, coach around it; find a way to minimize it, do SOMETHING to justify those twice monthly deposits the team makes into your checking account. and by "something" i don't mean going to the home ****ing depot for ideas. great, now i'm angry again; i just punched my admin.
"It's a very catchable ball when you understand it." I might have to start using that quote on a regular basis.
Well, the whole Palmer idiocy deserves all the vitriol anyone can muster. I read his diatribe as whining about the collective five-year experience, but if he was picking on Palmer specifically it's certainly justified.
I think this was a legitimate concern and it turned out to be true. I don't know if I saw a QB get more passes knocked down at the line than Carr. It surely wasn't due to his height. Drew Brees and Jeff Garcia are much shorter than Carr and don't have that problem.
i wonder if that's because you watched carr more than any other QB. nah, you're right: he was probably setting the standard... it just speaks - nay, yells to the age old adage: if you can't coach the big things, coach the small things.
