When the Panthers walked off the field following a frustrating home loss to the Bucs just over a month ago, it was hard to see how they would get to the situation they now find themselves in.
At 3-2, they now have a winning record and sit just one game back in the division and have a real chance to really set themselves apart from the Bucs as the clear challenger to the Saints as they travel to London for the first time. However, it is also worth noting that they lost to this same Bucs team just over a month ago, so what do they need to do differently this time in order to come away with the win?
Pass Rush Needs To Get Back On Track
The Panthers managed a ludicrous 14 sacks combined again the Texans and the Cardinals – and while that is not a pace that they were every going to be able to sustain, the fact that they managed just three QB hits against the Jaguars is probably less than they were hoping for. Yes, the Jaguars did a good job of freezing the pass rush with the run game and generally got the ball out quite quickly, but there were other times where the Panthers either struggled to generate pressure or failed to rush with sufficient discipline to keep the quarterback in the pocket.
There should be little doubt about the talent on this defensive line, even with the loss of KK Short for the season, but that needs to translate to production on Sunday if the Panthers want to limit the Bucs offense. Jamies Winston has struggled under pressure throughout his career, but he has also shown the ability to pick defenses apart if given time in the pocket. During Week 2, the Panthers actually did a pretty nice job of pressuring Winston, getting three sacks and nine QB hits, but they need to be as good, if not even better, on Sunday.
The way to do this is a combination of players winning their individual battles and scheming pressure, with the latter being as much about how the defense disguises pressure and coverage pre-snap in an attempt to force Winston into holding onto the ball for that bit longer. The Panthers don’t need to come away from Sunday with ten sacks and 20 QB hits in order to be successful, but they need to prevent Winston from being able to consistently drop back with time to read the field.
Run The Ball, And Consistently
The Panthers have scored less than 20 points in two of their three games this season – these happen to be the two games where they failed to rush for 100 yards; 94 against the Texans, and 39 against the Bucs compared to 127 yards against the Rams, 173 yards against the Cardinals and, of course, 285 yards this past Sunday against the Jaguars. The first game against the Bucs is a particularly noticeable outlier from this group, as while they didn’t run the ball hugely well against the Texans – 28 carries for 94 yards at 3.4 yards per carry – the 19 carries for 39 yards against the Bucs signified both a much poorer yards per carry and far fewer carries.
This has a huge effect beyond simply the rushing production, as if the Panthers can’t run the ball effectively, that makes it easier for the defense to focus solely on defending the pass, eliminating the play-action game from the offensive repertoire and putting a lot of additional pressure on the offensive line as the pass rushers can then just pin their ears back and get after the quarterback, not something an offensive line without their starting left tackle and right guard needs. This was a major part in just how poorly the Panthers’ offense played against the Bucs first time around, and is probably the most important chance that needs to be made from that game in particular.
To do this, the Panthers need to simplify their rushing game, at least at times. The Panthers did have some success on a couple of runs against the Bucs when they looked to get the ball downhill quickly with an inside zone. Of course, these plays have a lower chance of gaining chunk yardage, but the primary purpose of the running game shouldn’t be the 84-yard touchdowns as much as consistently putting the Panthers ahead of the chains. The Panthers have produced just four drives of ten plays or more all season, and only one of those has ended in points – the worst rate in the NFL – and that is in large part due to the inability to use the running game to generate consistent yardage, that needs to change.
Up Next: Defensive Matchups and Holding Onto The Ball
