The Panthers defensive line has been decimating the oppositions in the first two weeks of the 2017 campaign. The Buffalo Bills came into Charlotte with the best rushing attack of the past two seasons, boasting the most rushing yards in the NFL in Week 1 and a top-five running back. They limped back to Buffalo with only three points to show and a less than one yard per carry average for their running backs. The 49ers fared better in Week 1, gathering 56 yards rushing against the Panthers before tripling that number in Week 2 against the vaunted Seattle defense. The Panthers defensive line is getting pressure and infiltrating the backfield on almost every play, making it nearly impossible to get downhill and establish a running rhythm the first two weeks.

This shouldn’t change in Week 3.

While Pro Football Focus ranked the Saints’ offensive line among the best in the league in 2016 (5th in pass blocking, 1st in run blocking), that line won’t be the group that is lining up on Sunday in Charlotte. The only two pieces that will be there are center Max Unger and converted guard Andrus Peat, as Jahri Evans has gone to Green Bay and tackles Terron Armstead and Zach Strief are injured. A team that had over 1,700 yards and 4.3 yards per carry rushing in 2016 has averaged 70 yards through the first two weeks after drafting Alvin Kamara and signing Adrian Peterson to bolster their rushing game.

Peppers

The Saints have suffered borderline decimating injuries thus far on their offensive line, losing top-five left tackle Armstead to a torn labrum before the season and right side stalwart Strief to a sprained MCL in Week 1, forcing the team to shuffle their line during their Week 2 loss to the New England Patriots. Rookie tackle Ryan Ramczyk is moving to the right side, and although Ramcyzk is used to playing the left side, he is taking extra reps in practice to get used to the switch and held up well against the Patriots rush. “For the most part, it felt good,” Ramczyk told the New Orleans Advocate after the game Sunday. “Playbook-wise, it’s easy to make the switch, but as far as your body and how you feel and how you kind of balance out, that’s a little tougher. I think it went alright today.” Ramczyk will be tested by Mario Addison throughout the day, but may be the best outside lineman the Saints have on the line in it’s current state.

Regular left guard Andrus Peat played left tackle against the Patriots with Senio Kelemete taking the interior position on the left side. Peat and Kelemete played next to each other on the left side last year when Terron Armstead missed some time during the 2016 season, including the Week 11 loss to the Panthers which featured Mario Addison grabbing two sacks and a forced fumble. Last week against Peat, Patriots rookie Dietrich Wise recorded a sack and five quarterback hits; a converted guard is going to have trouble with any of edge rushers, but having to deal with the rotation of Charles Johnson, Julius Peppers, Wes Horton, and Mario Addison is a near impossible task for a converted guard and rookie tackle on the outside.

Photo: Scott Threlkeld/New Orleans Advocate

The Saints do have a Pro Bowl center in the middle of their line, and Max Unger will provide a good test for the Panthers defensive tackles, who have been consistently getting push into the backfield to disrupt both rushing and passing plays. Larry Warford, who was brought in from Detroit in the offseason to replace Jahri Evans at right guard, is another strong lineman who should be able to hold his own against Kawann Short and Star Lotulelei. While the first two weeks have found the Panthers facing offensive lines with questionable interiors, the right interior of the line is a strength for the Saints, so count on defensive coordinator Steve Wilks to send blitzers to try to get home from other angles rather than through the ‘A-gap’.

While the Saints have some issues on the offensive line, Drew Brees and Sean Payton’s collective IQ may be high enough to devise a quick-passing attack to counteract this deficiency. While the Panthers should be able to limit an anemic Saints’ rushing attack and get to Brees on a regular basis, the shifty quarterback may be able to create just enough space to hit one of his safety valves, so bringing him down as quickly as possible will be a priority on Sunday, even moreso than usual.

Josh Klein on Twitter
Josh Klein
Editor-In-Chief at The Riot Report
Josh Klein is Editor-In-Chief of The Riot Report. His favorite Panther of all time is Chad Cota and he once AIM chatted with Kevin Greene. Follow Josh on Twitter @joshkleinrules.