Offense Still Struggling For Balance
The Panthers have scored exactly the same number of points, 71, as they scored through three games during their 15-1 2015 campaign; while 24 points per game might not jump off the page, it is an awful lot of points for an offense comprised of largely new pieces. Left tackle and left guard are all different from a season ago – with one not even being on the Week 1 roster; three of the six receivers on the roster are new, with two of the other three having missed much of last season to injury, as did the starting center; the secondary tight end and secondary running back are also both new and the team is also dealing with short-term injuries to the right guard, tight end and one of the returning receivers. All in all, the only pieces to have played in every game last season and all three thus far in 2018 are Cam Newton, Devin Funchess and Christian McCaffrey – that is an awful lot of change. Oh, and the offensive coordinator is new too.
Given this, it is probably not surprising that the offense is taking a little time to find their form, but with a week away from football to get into the playbook, this is an offense that should be expected to show fairly consistent improvement in the coming weeks, and that has to start against the Giants. One of the aspects of the offense which has been noticeably volatile is the run:pass ratio, with rushing percentages of 55%, 29% and 63% in the three games thus far. While some of that can be put down to the Panthers chasing the game against the Falcons in the second half, this is still a team that doesn’t yet have a clear identity.
The Giants defense looks to be slightly stronger against the pass than the run so far this season, but the Panthers should be optimistic about their chances to move the ball both through the air and on the ground on Sunday.
Spreading The Wealth
The Panthers spent their first and fourth round picks this year on offensive weapons in DJ Moore and Ian Thomas, and then followed this up by signing free agent running back CJ Anderson before offseason workouts. However, through three weeks, those three players have combined for 10 receptions on 17 targets for 112 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the air as well as 14 carries for 85 yards on the ground. While this isn’t insignificant; they account for only 17% of the team’s total yardage; it is probably less than the Panthers would have hoped for from three such potent weapons. While Thomas and Anderson have each had at least one drop, the limiting factor on their impact thus far appears to be touches.
Both Thomas and Moore appeared to get a reasonable amount of separation at times against the Bengals, and while Cam Newton certainly didn’t have a bad game, he could have done a better job of giving his young targets a few more chances to make plays. With Greg Olsen both likely continuing to be out for at least the next couple of games, these guys will likely continue to be given snaps in the coming weeks, and against a Giants’ secondary that struggles for quality beyond Janoris Jenkins and Landon Collins, they will both likely have a number of chances to get open and make plays.
For Anderson, the limit in carries likely comes down to Norv Turner, and as good as McCaffrey was on the ground against the Bengals, CJ Anderson is still averaging more yards-per-carry for the season – a ludicrous 6.3 compared to McCaffrey’s excellent 5.9 – and there is no need to run either of the two ball carriers into the ground this early in the season when the Panthers have the option of splitting carries more equitably without diminishing the impact. This is especially true in the red zone, where McCaffrey hasn’t looked as strong as he does elsewhere on the field, and if the Panthers are fortunate enough to get multiple trips into the Giants red zone on Sunday, they would be wise to use Anderson’s power to their advantage.
All in all, this has been a promising start to the season for the Panthers through three weeks, and while there are undoubtedly some areas to work on, they should go into Sunday’s game against the Giants with the expectation of coming away with the win before they head on the road for the next two games. If they can get a win while silencing some of the doubts that have remained after their 2-1 start, then all the better.
