The Panthers defensive tackle group was expected to get better in 2019 after replacing Star Lotulelei with Dontari Poe and maintaining the trio of Vernon Butler, Kyle Love and Kawann Short that had held down the middle of the line since the start of the 2016 season – but instead of advancing, they took a step back.
The Panthers allowed 112.8 yards on the ground per game, good enough for 12th in the NFL but still their worst average since 2011 and the first time it’s been over 100 yards per game since 2014 – in fact, 100-yard rushers by the Atlanta Falcons (Tevin Coleman in Week 2 and Brian Hill in Week 16) were the first players to break the century mark since December of 2016, with Coleman’s total breaking a streak of 21 games.
According to Football Outsiders, the Panthers allowed a 78% conversion rate on runs on third or fourth down with two yards or less to go – that was the second-worst mark in the league, ahead of only the Arizona Cardinals.
The Money
Defensive Tackle Spending Table Via Spotrac.
The Panthers top two tackles are costing them a lot of money, with Kawann Short’s $17m cap hit in the third year of his five-year monster extension almost doubling the league average that teams spend on their tackles total – not to mention Dontari Poe’s hit being over $9m itself. Should the Panthers decide to move on from Poe only one year into his three-year deal, his release would grant the team $6m in cap space, albeit space they would not see until June 1st if he’s designated that way – that move would also cause $3.3m in dead cap space. If he were released outright before June 1st, the team would have $2.6m in cap relief with $6.6m in dead cap hit.
With Butler on the fourth and final year of his rookie deal, he counts from $2.6m against the cap – a release would grant the Panthers $0 in cap savings.
The Big Two
While coaches insisted that both Dontari Poe and Kawann Short were continuing to uphold their responsibilities along the defensive front, the lack of statistical domination – particularly when it comes to pressuring the quarterback – had to have been a disappointment after Poe was widely regarded as an upgrade in that area over Star Lotulelei while Short was expected to continue his dominance over offensive lines around the league. The Panthers defensive tackles accounted for 18 hits on the quarterback in 2018 – Short had 17 by himself the season prior; Short has had the third-most sacks among defensive tackles over the past four seasons behind only Aaron Donald and Geno Atkins.
He had only three in 2018, his lowest output since his rookie season.
Poe, who started all 16 games, had the lowest outputs of his career in terms of tackles and quarterback hits, but it should be noted that a player like Poe’s – and Short’s, for that matter – value doesn’t show up on the stat sheet every week. In a gap-based system like the Panthers run, the role of the defensive tackles, specifically Poe who plays the role of a nose tackle at times, is not necessarily to tackle the ball-carrier or sack the quarterback, but to occupy blockers and eat up space in the middle of the field. The Panthers can be successful without Poe or Short piling up the numbers, but in order to be a dominant defensive front like they were in the past, they’ll need both to be in the backfield more often.
The return of Eric Washington to overseeing the front seven and the promotion of Sam Mills III should help with that after Brady Hoke’s firing with four weeks left in the season.
Up Next: Even More Questions
