While the Panthers face one of the NFL’s only seven 2-0 teams in the Bengals this Sunday, they will likely fancy their chances of a home win after a mixed but promising first two games of the season. However, as should be immediately obvious from their record that the Bengals are not a team to be taken for granted, but there are areas where the Panthers might be able to have success. So what should the Panthers’ game plan be for Sunday’s game?

Passing Game Starting To Click

It is easy to think of the 2015 Panthers’ passing attack and forget how long it look that offense to really click, with the returning Ted Ginn and rookie Devin Funchess taking some time to settle into a rhythm – it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect the 2018 Panthers’ passing attack to take a similar chunk of time to mesh together before performing to their potential. Let’s not forget, this is a passing attack with a lot of new faces – CJ Anderson, Ian Thomas, DJ Moore, Jarius Wright and Torrey Smith were all new additions to the offensive this offseason and even among those who were members of the 2017 Panthers’ roster, Curtis Samuel and Damiere Byrd both missed significant time with injuries in what was their first season of real playing time.

Given all this, it really wouldn’t be that surprising to see the Panthers’ passing game take the best part of half a season before it can be expected to really hit the heights fans might be looking for after 2015; what Panthers fans can expect, however, is continued growth and development.

The passing game is unlikely to suddenly spring forth all of a sudden but rather grow from week to week. Cam Newton spoke about some miscommunication issues during last week’s game, and beyond these mental mistakes there will be continued adjustments with regards to route timings and depths. This is arguably the most talented skill position group Cam Newton has had during his career, and there should be a real expectation that, given health and decent offensive line play, this can be one of the NFL’s best passing offenses.

Some of this will undoubtedly involve a change in roles as the season progresses, and while Samuel and Byrd are may continue to be out with injuries, expect DJ Moore to see a bigger role against the Bengals as Norv Turner works out how to get the most out of his newest and shiniest toy.

Stop The Run

Photo Credit: Andy Doster/USA Today Sports

The Bengals have put up 209 yards on just 48 carries with a touchdown so far this season (4.4 yards per carry) – given the Panthers’ struggles with gap discipline and tackling against Atlanta, especially on outside runs, this could pose a real problem for the Panthers and force them into defending short third downs where the odds move towards the Bengals. However, for the Panthers there is a ray of sunlight, as the Bengals are expected to be without their leading rusher, Joe Mixon, on Sunday – remove Mixon’s numbers from those given earlier and the Bengals have just 30 yards on ten carries so far this season with no touchdowns, let alone his six catches for 57 yards. Without Mixon, the Bengals will likely be forced to lean on Giovanni Bernard and newly-signed Thomas Rawls to provide their running game.

While neither Rawls or Bernard are bad running backs as such, neither of them offer the same threat that Mixon does – should the Panthers struggle to stop the run this week, this will likely reflect more harshly on the Panthers than it will positively on the Bengals. The Panthers certainly have the talent to stop the Bengals, as the front seven should be one of the strengths of this roster, but they have to be more disciplined in terms of gap-fitting and tackling. They did an excellent job of this against Dallas for the most part, so a performance like that as opposed to what we saw in Atlanta should get the job done.

If they are able to limit the Bengals running game, this should also play into the passing game, as by forcing the Bengals into longer third downs the Panthers’ defense will be better able to pin their ears back and go after Andy Dalton. The Bengals were able to prevent the Ravens from sacking Dalton even once last week, allowing him to throw for four touchdowns against a Ravens’ defense that had obliterated the Bills on the opening weekend. By contrast, while the Colts were only able to get to Dalton twice, they did manage to limit his passing game to some degree; even if that was somewhat undone by allowing Joe Mixon to rush for 5.6 yards per carry. The lack of pressure on Matt Ryan was another reason for the Panthers’ defensive struggles last week, and while this Bengals’ offensive line isn’t bad, the Panthers would certainly hope to get more pressure this week – especially with the Bengals missing their center.

It might not be a novel idea, but if the Panthers can force Dalton into throwing consistently by stopping the run effectively on early downs, the Panthers will also be able to attack the Bengals passing offense more effectively and hopefully show a return to the form of the Cowboys game rather than another poor showing as was the case against the Falcons.

 

Up Next: Coverage Capability & Offensive Line Improvement

Vincent Richardson on Twitter
Vincent Richardson
Managing Editor at Riot Report
Fan of zone coverage, knee bend and running backs running routes. Twitter: @vrichardson444