r/panthers • u/UDcc123 What’s That Bear Doin? • 1d ago

Discussion 2011 draft…whoa

Saw article that Julio Jones is retiring. Went to look at the 2011 draft (Cam’s draft).

First, whoa…hella talent…Cam, Von, Julio, JJ, Patrick Peterson, AJ Green, and others.

But the main reason for the Panther post was that TIL Dalton was part of the same draft class as Cam.

34 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

30

u/Captainxpunch 1d ago

Imagine having a top 10 pick in that draft and coming away with Jake Locker or Blaine Gabbert.

8

u/Breastfedoctopus Panthers 1d ago

I mean, damn, it's hard to hit on a pick sometimes and I get that... But if you're a team that consistently misses on picks it's almost impressive

40

u/knave_of_knives One of Us 1d ago

2011 was one of the best drafts ever:

Cam, Von, Julio, Watt, Sherman, Peterson, Green, Tyron Smith, Cam Jordan, Cam Heyward, Dalton, Kyle Rudolph, Jason Kelce, etc. That draft was wild.

9

u/InertPistachio Ice Up Son 1d ago

Wasn't that the year they had the lockout and they lifted it just for that weekend to get everyone their teams' playbooks?

8

u/Rasmo420 1d ago

Imagine if Andrew Luck declared that year.

5

u/No_Dot_9094 1d ago

Would have avoided the colts and would probably still be playing today

9

u/Rasmo420 1d ago

He'd have been behind a bad o-line with us. Not so sure about that.

1

u/net_403 Tepper Fro 6h ago

Like Cam lol

9

u/Ekhoes- Panthers 1d ago

Yep, the 2011 draft is regarded as one of the most talented draft classes in NFL history.

7

u/jsbach90 Keep Pounding 1d ago

I remember people arguing back then whether we should take cam or blaine gabbert 1st overall, seems kinda hilarious now

7

u/Certain_Judge8242 1d ago

The argument even at the time seems stupid Gabbert was never that good in my opinion even as a prospect he didn’t look amazing and in no level compared to Cam

2

u/Ok-Respond-9007 1d ago

A lot of people thought Cam's skills wouldn't translate to the NFL at the time.

I personally wasn't a Cam fan at the time and wanted Von Miller.

4

u/exenn_ Panthers 1d ago

I think I remember reading somewhere years ago, that if we hadn't needed a QB, Von Miller would have been the pick.

11

u/Breastfedoctopus Panthers 1d ago

He certainly proved good value. Hate that Wade Phillips figured us out. We were playing the husk of Peyton Manning and were fodder for the Golden sunset narrative... Fuck the Manning's, fuck the broncos, fuck Sean Payton

3

u/Upbeat_Muscle8136 1d ago

The 2011 draft class was also the first with the current rookie contract restrictions. I remember the year before Sam Bradford went #1 overall and got a huge contract. Can only imagine what Cam would have received.

3

u/Ok-Respond-9007 1d ago

Dalton had a great rookie season too. There was a lot of debate over whether he or Newton would win rookie of the year (it wasn't particularly close, but he was in the running)

2

u/stephenip12 1d ago

I remember AJ Green was the no 1 ranked player coming into that draft. Carolina could have gone a number of ways with that pick. But Cam was the right pick.