It was not the fast start the Panthers offense was hoping for, but it was a promising one.
Speed on the outside, largely missing since the departure of Ted Ginn, had seemed plentiful throughout the preseason. That depth took a hit earlier in the week with the Curtis Samuel medical report and when Damiere Byrd got knocked out early and then again late with a helmet to the knee, that ability to stretch the field was further hampered. Add to that the departure of Greg Olsen after the first quarter and three of the space creators for this offense were unavailable; even with the Panthers offense unable to connect on a single play of twenty yards or more through the air, the cornerstones of the offense are in place and Norv Turner appears ready to deploy the best of Cam Newton.
There was no hesitation, Week 1 or otherwise, by Norv Turner to call Cam’s number on run plays. Especially early.
We saw familiar read options, a triple option, and some new twists in the mold of Ian Thomas and Christian McCaffrey lead blocking a QB sneak. Cam led the team with 58 yards on 13 rushes, but Turner was also careful with his QB at times. Cam was under center for a third-and-two sneak, as opposed to the all too common shotgun hop-and-go QB draws that often led to Cam taking big shots in recent years. The blend of called runs and easy completions to McCaffrey got Cam involved early. Turner also got the ball to his fullback, Alex Armah, for a goalline score – a perfect note to occupy every defensive coordinator’s scouting reports for the rest of the season.
Hard to focus on #1 if you’re afraid of 40 and 22.
One of those primary weapons, McCaffrey, was confirmed human during the game, but still managed 95 total yards – on 16 touches by the way, a far cry from 25-30. While the jury remains out on McCaffrey’s ability to carry the mail as a traditional runner, Turner was able to get him the ball in space routinely, allowing McCaffrey to thrive and prompting a broad smile from Cam after one particular nifty run.
CMC’s early fumble inside the Dallas five was only a portion of the points the Panthers offense left on the board. The sequence at the end of the half, with McCaffrey unable to get out of bounds to preserve the Panthers final timeout, led to a mad scramble and culminated in the Panthers not even taking a shot in the end zone and settling for a field goal – again inside the Cowboys 10 yard line.
Amini Silatolu also offered a kick save on a JJ Jansen extra point snap to keep the Panthers from opening a three score lead to start the fourth quarter, a key mistake that avoided the spotlight when the Panthers defensive line mauled Dallas on two straight late possessions to secure a victory.
Both Jarius Wright and CJ Anderson proved their mettle, with Wright the early clubhouse leader to become a go-to guy for Cam if Greg Olsen’s absence is prolonged. Anderson was visibly upset – in a fun way – when he fell less than a yard short of his first Panthers touchdown, but ran the ball well, matching McCaffrey with five yards per carry. And no one would’ve bet on Ian Thomas having more catches than DJ Moore.
16 points is no outburst and won’t be good enough later in the season – it likely won’t be good enough next week in Atlanta – but for an offensive coordinator and a QB in their first game together, with injuries piling up around them and some ill-timed penalties, it was good enough this week.
Certainly good enough to tune in for the next episode.
