The battles in the trenches will be of utmost importance throughout the season, but perhaps will have extra consequences early in the season. The Panthers ability to keep Cam Newton upright for as long as possible will make an offense with two new pieces and a quarterback who played in exactly ten plays this preseason feel more comfortable; the addition of a competent run game to that protection would make Newton’s pocket feel downright cozy. The Panthers offensive line performed extremely well in the preseason, not only opening running lanes and seams for Christian McCaffrey and Jonathan Stewart, but keeping Derek Anderson upright and completely clean for both games; the backup said it was the first time he hadn’t been touched in two consecutive games in his entire life.
The 49ers new defensive coordinator Robert Saleh hopes to improve a unit that finished last in rushing yards , total yards, and points allowed in 2016 by transitioning the team from a 3-4 to a 4-3; while there are certainly still holes to fill, by far the most talented position group is on the defensive line. Shepherding that group is first year position coach Jeff Zgonina, who anchored defensive lines across the NFL for 17 seasons before coaching the position with both the Texans and the Giants. Zgonina believes in a lot of rotation on the defensive line, and the Panthers will be seeing packages that feature as many as seven different 49ers on Sunday.
“I’m a rotation guy, I’m allowed to rotate guys as much as I want, and I will do that. I told those guys, ‘You give me four-to-five plays full-tilt, I’m going to rotate you.’ I believe in fresh bodies all the time. I don’t like to see guys play more than 1,000 snaps in a season.”
-49ers Defensive Line Coach Jeff Zgonina
The defensive line will be anchored by two young defensive ends Solomon Thomas and Arik Armstead. Both play with extreme speed and tremendous power, so tackles Matt Kalil and Daryl Williams will have their hands full. If Thomas and Armstead speed rush to the outside and the tackles are one-on-one on an island, Cam Newton will need to step up into a pocket or make some quick passes to alleviate the pressure. Unlike the Panthers, the 49ers move their players around the line; the rookie Thomas played both defensive tackle and end during the preseason, so expect to see him in multiple positions throughout the game.
Photo: 49ers.com
Because of the new 4-3 scheme and Zgonina’s insistence on multi-dimensional players, look for players such as Elvis Dumervil and Eli Harold to line up with their hands in the dirt at certain times throughout the game, especially on passing downs. The expected lineup on “rushing” downs will be Armstead and Thomas on the outside with second-year player DeForest Buckner and Earl Mitchell holding down the interior. In the 4-3 scheme, each player is responsible for the gap in front of them, and a breakdown in discipline can make for home run plays. Luckily for the Panthers, that gap discipline broke down a lot last year for the 49ers, and Earl Mitchell and Tank Carradine had issues with discipline in the preseason.
For all the talk of the offensive evolution in Carolina, the success of the offense will rise, once again, from the success of the interior running game. If Ryan Kalil, Andrew Norwell, and Trai Turner can get the expected push up front on run plays, it will allow for seams on a defense that allowed the most rushing yards in the NFL last season, including 67 plays of 10 yards or more. The main tests for the Panthers will come on the outside with #3 pick Thomas and third-year player Armstead, and if Daryl Williams and Matt Kalil can be successful against these two on the outside, the Panthers offense will be successful.
