The Panthers are 2-0, and while they may not have played a perfect 120 minutes of football, the wins all count the same. They now open up divisional play with a home game against the New Orleans Saints, led by stalwart Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees and bringing to town a defense that finished last in passing yards allowed and second to last in points allowed in 2016 and are on the same track through two weeks of 2017. While the Panthers offense has been, shall we say, interesting thus far, the Panthers have not played well enough to be sustainably successful throughout the season so improvement is certainly hoped for against a reeling Saints defense.
Five Panthers we have questions about:
#84 Ed Dickson, Tight End
Can he replace Olsen in the passing game? Will he be wide open and Newton will overthrow him again? Will the Panthers use him more as a blocker and try to find a different replacement for Olsen in the passing game?
#69 Tyler Larsen, Center
Will he be able to hold down the middle of the offensive line or will we see the line slowly break apart like last season? Is Newton creating a secret handshake with him a sign that the two are getting closer? Can he get a stronger push as a run blocker this week?
#75 Matt Kalil, Left Tackle
After a rather poor week two performance Kalil has been the topic of a lot of conversations. Moving forward, he will continue to be a player to watch every week. Can he get his season back on track without his brother in the line up? Will we see him switch sides or positions in an attempt to keep him from seeing as many good speed rushers? If so, who would take over the left tackle spot? Can Kalil do enough to keep Alex Okafor off of Newton?
#96 Wes Horton, Defensive End
After two solid weeks in a row Horton has become an intriguing player to watch. Is he this years Mario Addison? Will he see an increased role? If so, who does he take snaps away from? Will he continue to be efficient and productive if his role does increase?
#40 Alex Armah, Fullback
Now that Armah has been brought up from the practice squad he becomes an interesting prospect for a number of reasons. Will he play some tight end? Will the Panthers offense become more run-centric while taking deep shots on long developing routes? Will his presence help in the red zone? Will he even be active on Sunday?
Four important matchups:
P.J. Williams vs Kelvin Benjamin
With both Marshon Lattimore (concussion) and Sterling Moore (chest) question marks to play, can the second-year undrafted free agent contain the 6’5″ Benjamin, who appears to be picking up steam after posting six catches for 77 yards against the Bills last Sunday. If Williams does pull his another start, how effective will he be after being less than efficient against the Patriots last week?
Cameron Jordan vs Daryl Williams
Daryl Williams
With the focus on Matt Kalil’s early struggles it is important to remember that he is not the only offensive tackle on the team and, quite frankly, not the only one struggling to make a real impact. Can Daryl Williams hold Cameron Jordan at bay? If he doesn’t, Cam Newton could be in for another week of constant pressure. On the flip side, if William’s can turn in a good run blocking performance then the Panthers offense could be in for a surprisingly strong outing.
Mike Adams vs Coby Fleener
These two former teammates will be a fun matchup to watch come Sunday. Both have started the season in good fashion and both will know the other’s play style and tells, so who will win? If Adams wins the matchup, the Panthers defense could be in a position to make it three straight weeks without allowing a touchdown.
Devin Funchess vs Russell Shepard
Russell Shepard and Devin Funchess
Both have had strong performances this year and both have been players that can step up and become the true second option in the passing game with Olsen out. Watching these two will be important as the season continues because who sees more targets early in the season will likely see more targets when it matters more.
Three things the Panthers need to do to win:
Control the clock
The key to beating the Saints has always been the same: keep Drew Brees off the field as much as possible. Thankfully, the Panthers lead the NFL in time of possession thus far in 2017. In order for the Panthers to win, they will need to control the clock as well as actually use their time as an offense to score points, which leads me to my next point.
Score
The last time the Panthers held the Saints to under ten points was October 19, 2008, which was 3,260 days ago. I’m going to say something that should be a given, but with this unit it feels like it needs to be stated. In order for the Panthers to win, they will need to score some points. If they can convert in the red zone and build an early lead, it will make the defense’s job significantly easier.
Keep the Saints in front of them
The Saints offense is predicated on Drew Brees’ ability to progress through his reads instantly and find the most damaging player to get the ball to. So it should come as no surprise that the Panthers best plan of action is to play smart and conservative. If they allow players like Coby Fleener and Michael Thomas to get behind them, the Saints will have an avenue to make big plays, which will in turn open up the rest of their offense, which will then in turn will put more pressure on the Panthers offense to keep up.
Two reasons they will lose:
The offense can’t put up points
If the Panthers offense has another 0% red zone conversion touchdown rate, they will lose this game. The Saints’ defense is on a historically bad pace, so there will be no excuses for the Panthers to fail. If the Panthers find themselves on the lower side of 20 points, it will be time to start seriously worrying about the state of this team and how they will fare going forward.
Drew Brees gets into a rhythm
One of the best things to watch as a Panthers fan on Sunday will be Luke Kuechly and Drew Brees adjusting their units before the snap; if Kuechly outplays Brees before the play then the Panthers defense looks fantastic. On the other side of that, however, is what happens when Brees gets into a groove? Easy. He shreds the Panthers defense and this game becomes a shootout in a hurry.
One Bold Prediction: Julius Peppers records an interception, but doesn’t record a sack
Welcome Back Pep.
In the 2009 season finale, with the Panthers leading 23-10 and the Saints twenty yards away from making it a one score game, Peppers took any hope of a comeback away by making a diving interception. This was his final play in a Carolina Panthers uniform for eight years.
Want to do some positional deep dives on the Saints/Panthers matchup? They’re right below this sentence in the “Related Reports” section.
