What Has Happened To The Carolina Panthers?
Oh how the mighty have fallen. After an unbelievable season in which the Panthers went 15-1, lost in the Super Bowl, and had the MVP at quarterback they’re now sitting at 4-7 a year later with their playoff hopes on life support.
On Sunday the Panthers suffered a gut wrenching 35-32 loss to the Raiders which saw them overcome a 24-7 deficit after halftime on the road to eventually fall. Moving forward they face a difficult schedule with games against Seattle, Washington, and Atlanta still to play.
After last year, and their poor start this year you have to wonder what went wrong? Is it a Super Bowl hangover? There are a couple of factors that have been hindering their success.
Their offensive line play has been suspect to say the least. Cam Newton has been running for his life all season long now, and taking vicious hits. They’re struggling to open holes for Jonathan Stewart and company, and failing to protect their franchise quarterback. It’s a position that needs to be addressed moving forward.
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Their defense has also taken a notable step backwards. They were sixth last year in total defense, and now they rank 14th in the league. They’re giving up 24.6 points per game now as opposed to 19.3 last season.
Their secondary has also taken a monumental step back, ranking 21st this year in passing defense. Last year they finished 11th, and only gave up 21 touchdowns while taking the ball away 24 times. This year they’ve already given up 19 scores, and only converted 10 interceptions.
The losses of Josh Norman and Roman Harper have had bigger impacts on their secondary than expected. With the majority of their starters still the same, the retooled back-end has been a liability all year-long.
Carolina has a very talented team, but poor play at the wrong positions has doomed them. They need to invest some capital, and maybe some draft picks, in both their offensive line and secondary if they want to keep their Super Bowl window open.