Pro. Jake Delhomme

[PantherCanada]

OK - will do, I'll stop over when I have articles to post

[PantherCanada]

LeFors emulating Delhomme
August 15, 2005

By Brett Borden
Panthers.com



Perhaps there really is something to this Baby Jake stuff.

Panthers rookie quarterback Stefan LeFors, given that nickname because of the fact that he hails from the same region of the country as starter Jake Delhomme, is starting to play like him on the football field, at least in the preseason. He may not talk the Cajun talk, but his two touchdown passes at FanFest and two versus Washington in Saturday's 28-10 victory at Bank of America Stadium certainly suggest he can walk the walk.

LeFors, the Panthers fourth-round draft choice, completed five-of-eight passes for 51 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 120.3. Not bad considering his very first pass bounced to a wide open Efrem Hill.

"I'm not going to lie, I was nervous," said LeFors of his first pass as a Panther. "I knew he was open, and I just choked. That's all there is to it. But after that first play, I got that bad ball out of me. After that, I just went in there and just had fun and played the game like I have before."

It was reminiscent of FanFest, where LeFors connected with wide receiver Drew Carter twice for long touchdowns. The two hooked up again Saturday on a one-yard play to break open a 14-10 game early in the fourth quarter. Then LeFors found Aaron Boone from 26 yards away to finish off the scoring.

"I can't say I'm surprised," said Delhomme, who threw for one touchdown in two series of work. "(Stefan) made some plays. Late in preseason games, if you're in his situation, that's what you have to do. That's all I ever played in for my first six or seven years in the League, and you've got to take advantage of it. You've got to run around and make some plays - and that's what he did."

Head coach John Fox said that fans are merely getting a replay of what he and the Panthers coaching and scouting staffs saw of LeFors last season, when he led the nation in completion percentage and finished second in quarterback rating at Louisville, with 20 touchdown passes and only three interceptions.



"The guy was a playmaker at a high level," said Fox. "There is something sparky about the guy. That is what we saw, and that's why we drafted him in the first place."

Like Delhomme, LeFors won't wow anybody in practice, when quarterbacks wear red jerseys making them off-limits to contact and they have time to go through progressions more often than not. But throw him to the wolves and he becomes a predator himself.

"In practice, you can only simulate so much stuff," said Delhomme. "When you're live, things are different. You can't always drop back, set your feet, and throw the ball. It doesn't happen in this League, not with the way defenses move around and guys play. You've got to be able to move around back there and make people miss and find your guys. I think Stefan does that extremely well."

First passes aside, LeFors has, so far.

"I bring the ability to make things happen when things aren't going right," he said. "The coach always says he grades us on when things don't go well. He says 'What are you going to do next? Are you going to make things happen or let one mistake lead to another mistake?' I think I make things happen."

link

[Turbine]

Thanks PantherCanada.

You know Jake has a history of first pass jitters as well, so there might be something to this Baby Jake stuff.

[PantherCanada]

Oh yes.... who can forget the Pittman INT vs. the Cowboys - welcome to the NFL boy

I prefer to call it a "tip", not an INT.... but the record books don't care..... LOL

[PantherCanada]

Another article, similar...

Monday, August 15, 2005
Cool Under Fire: Rookie quarterback LeFors shows Panthers that he can step up his play when the action is for real

By Joe Menzer
JOURNAL REPORTER

Some players simply perform better in live action than in practice.

Jake Delhomme of the Carolina Panthers knows all about it, as it has been said about him. He doesn't deny it, either.

So no one should have been shocked last Saturday night when the guy some call "Baby Jake" - rookie quarterback Stefan LeFors - came off the bench to throw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes in the Panthers' 28-10 preseason victory over the Washington Redskins at Bank of America Stadium.

"I can't say I'm surprised," Delhomme said of LeFors, a fellow Louisiana native. "He made some plays. Late in preseason games, if you're in his situation, that's what you have to do. That's all I ever played in for my first six or seven years in the league, and you've got to take advantage of it. You've got to run around and make some plays - and that's what he did."

Playing most of the fourth quarter after the Panthers already had played Delhomme, Chris Weinke and Rod Rutherford at quarterback, LeFors completed 5 of 8 passes for 51 yards, threw touchdown passes of 1 yard to wide receiver Drew Carter and 26 yards to wide receiver Aaron Boone.

Most impressive, perhaps, was the fact that LeFors shook off a shaky start. On his very first snap, he dropped back and bounced a pass attempt to wide receiver Efrem Hill, who was wide open.

"I'm not going to lie; I was nervous," LeFors said. "I knew he was open, and I just choked. That's all there is to it.

"But after that first play, I got that bad ball out of me. After that, I just went in there and just had fun and played the game like I have before."

LeFors played like he was back in college at Louisville, where he was the top-rated passer in the nation as a senior after completing 74.5 percent off his passes and throwing 20 touchdown passes against three interceptions. He played like he was back in high school at Christian Life Academy in Baton Rogue, La., where he threw 28 touchdown passes as a senior.

General Manager Marty Hurney said the other day that one of the things that impressed the Panthers about LeFors when they were scouting him before the NFL draft was that LeFors always played at a high level in games. Despite his lack of physical size - he's listed generously at 6-0, 201 pounds - and the fact that LeFors didn't always wow NFL scouts or even his own college coaches in workouts, the quarterback answered the challenge in games every time Louisville toyed with replacing him over his last two seasons.

Coach John Fox agreed that LeFors has a certain quality that most successful quarterbacks possess. Asked about LeFors' NFL debut against the Redskins, Fox added: "The guy was a playmaker. He was a playmaker at a high level. There is something sparky about the guy. That is what we saw, and that's why we drafted him in the first place."

The Panthers spent a fourth-round draft choice on LeFors last April, indicating that they have high hopes for him. Yet he has looked awful at times during training camp at Wofford College.

But just when it seems he's an undersized scrambler who is too quick to pull the ball down and run, or too short to throw accurately over onrushing defensive linemen, LeFors improvises and makes something wonderful happen. Sometimes it's with his legs, other times it's with his left arm.

During the Panthers' intrasquad scrimmage at Bank of America Stadium two Saturdays ago, LeFors completed every pass he tried and threw the only two touchdown passes of the afternoon.

"I bring the ability to make things happen when things aren't going right," LeFors said. "The coach always says he grades us on when things don't go well. He says, 'What are you going to do next? Are you going to make things happen or let one mistake lead to another mistake?' I think I make things happen."

Again, it's no surprise to Delhomme, who has watched LeFors struggle at times in practices but has never doubted his ability to make big plays in clutch situations during games.

"In practice, you can only simulate so much stuff," Delhomme said. "When you're live, things are different. You can't always drop back, set your feet, and throw the ball. It doesn't happen in this league - not the way defenses move around and not the way guys play. You've got to be able to move around back there and make people miss and find your guys. I think Stefan does that extremely well."

link

[NewsCopy]

Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme met with the media Tuesday and discussed several topics, including the end of training camp.

On training camp: It was good. It went by fast. It was tough, and by tough I mean going against our defense every day. It's a battle every single day. It makes you better. The game feels like it goes by a little slower. I think we had a good, productive camp. Hopefully, we can finish it off and have one practice tomorrow (laughs) and get ready for this weekend.

On if he feels he has a better grasp of the offense this year: Yes. I felt that way last year, too. The reason I felt that way is that it took me a while, but once you get it, you get it. I played a whole season running the offense, whereas in New Orleans, I'd work with the offense all offseason and all of training camp, then I wouldn't run it again until the following spring. You'd run the scout team in practice. That's a huge difference between running an offense out there every day on the field. You just get comfortable. You see a certain look, you think, Okay, keep your head looking to the left because you know you're going to come back to the right.' Little things like that, and going with the same guys. I don't want to say you try different things, but you develop a sense for what things are probably going to happen. Your receiver probably has a good understanding, too. That's what makes it fun.

On wide receiver Keary Colbert: He probably doesn't get enough credit, because he does the right thing. He shows up, he keeps his mouth shut, and doesn't get in trouble. When somebody does all of that, they tend to get overlooked. That's the sad part about this business. He does it right. He knows what to do, where to line up, where to motion to, how to run a route, and how to catch the ball. He and Ricky Proehl are our two best route runners. The other receivers will tell you that. He's good. He catches the ball away from his body extremely well, as evidenced the other night on a back shoulder throw. That's just Keary, and he's only going to get better.

On how good the thinks Colbert can become: I think he can be very good. He didn't even dress for the first game last year. He goes over to the X receiver, and does very well. He played hard on an ankle that he hurt pretty bad in the Tampa game. He never said anything about it. He went through the entire season and played through it. I think he can be a very solid player.

On Julius Peppers: He's a freak. He's good. He works at it, though. He doesn't take plays off. He does things in practice and games, like that play against Tampa Bay last year where he ran down Michael Pittman. That doesn't happen. It's not supposed to happen. I remember watching it on the screen because I normally don't get to watch our defense during a game, and thinking, "That just doesn't happen." He does things in practice, too. He jumped up and intercepted a screen the other day with one hand. I threw it up high thinking, "There's no way he's going to get it." I thought wrong.

On what having Stephen Davis back in practice means: Hopefully, it means a lot. We expect him to be back. Stephen's good. He has unbelievable vision. That's why the lineman love to block for him. If he sees it, he hits it. There's no hesitation. He hits it and goes. Look what he did a couple of years ago. If we can get him back, he makes us a better football team.

Panthers.com

[PantherCanada]

How thrilled am I with this??

What a week for Louisiana's favourite son to end up on the cover, but I'm darn proud - thought I'd give you guys the heads up....

[Turbine]

I saw the cover this morning but didn't read the article.

Anyone subscribe?

[CDeb]

I subscribe, but haven't gotten to read it yet. Heck, I'm still reading the Panthers article in last week's issue.

[PantherCanada]

Here's the cover....