You can't help but like Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme.
The guy is personable to a fault, and when he comes off a bad game he's willing to suck it up, admit his mistakes and deal with the abuse.
"I'll take all the bullets and swallow the sword," he said after his five-turnover performance in a 38-10 drubbing by Philadelphia in Sunday's opener at Bank of America Stadium. "But I've got to be a man and get ready to go back to work."
During most of his tenure with the Panthers he's alternated between being a Golden Boy and object of ridicule, showing great leadership at times and looking completely lost on other occasions.
In the last two games that matter, he's looked completely lost.
The terrible performance against Arizona in the playoffs last season caused the boo birds to flock to Charlotte, and they seemed to be in even greater number over the weekend.
By the time John Fox yanked him it was already too late. Philadelphia had built a 31-7 lead in the first half and put it in cruise control the rest of the way.
Fox says Delhomme is still the starter, which is a vote of confidence for the embattled QB but a cause for consternation among Carolina fans.
The problem is, unless Delhomme suddenly regains the magic that he once possessed -- a magic that led the Panthers to the Super Bowl -- he and his team are dead in the water.
Josh McCown was brought into the game against the Eagles, but after suffering a knee and foot sprain, he's gone for the year.
Third-stringer Matt Moore finished out the contest and looked nothing like a man ready to take the reins of the offense.
And now the club has signed journeyman A.J. Feeley, who will replace McCown on the 53-man roster.
The bottom line is there is no Plan B for Carolina. That was made apparent when the club signed Delhomme to a five-year extension good for more than $40 million.
It was a move that said, "Jake's our man, and we'll sink or swim with him."
First impressions can be deceiving, but by the looks of this team on Sunday the Panthers are going to spend a lot of time trying to keep their heads above water.
Fox insists Delhomme's showing wasn't entirely his fault, and he's right. It's hard to get off a pass when you have four defenders hanging on your shoulder pads.
Still, Delhomme isn't getting the job done even when he's safe in the pocket. And now you wonder if he has the support of his team.
None of his mates have thrown him under the bus, but few are pulling him out of the way, either.
"Jake is struggling right now," receiver Muhsin Muhammad said. "Obviously he needs to look at himself and everyone else in the locker room needs to look at themselves -- me included."
So far, it's not a pretty sight.
(Contact Scott Adamson of the Anderson Independent-Mail in Anderson, S.C., at adamsons(at)independentmail.com.)
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