Fans Vote: Panthers Defensive stats tell a story (or don't)

by Rick Bates on Jul 3, 2010 12:27 PM EDT

ESPN's 2009 stats for Panther defensive players below the jump. Stats can be misleading, I know. For instance, a DB making lots of tackles could mean his man is catching a lot of passes. In terms of tackles, what is obvious from these numbers is that we didn't or couldn't rely on the DL even last year, other than to occupy blockers and let the LBs operate. Our defense was led by the LBs and DBs, along with Peppers. His stat line isn't big on tackles, but his playmaking shows up in the numbers. I got no love for the guy, but he played to get paid. Losing Davis hurt, but check out Anderson's line.

See poll below the table.

I guess I like numbers. What I see here is that Beason was and is the heart of the defense (no surprise there). I am surprised and encouraged by the tackles for loss, forced fumbles, and interceptions produced by the guys we still have.

	Defensive Statistics	Tackles					Miscellaneous			Interceptions
Plays	NAME	TOT	SOLO	AST	SACK	TLOSS	FF	BK	PD	INT	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
1046	Jon Beason	142	112	30	3	10	1	0	7	3	46	15.3	18	0
1029	Richard Marshall	88	75	13	0	0	0	0	9	4	47	11.8	28	0
531	James Anderson	65	47	18	1	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
417	Thomas Davis	61	48	13	1.5	3	0	0	5	2	24	12	24	0
827	Chris Harris	60	48	12	0	1	2	0	6	3	3	1	3	0
1016	Chris Gamble	58	50	8	0	2	0	0	12	4	55	13.8	41	0
718	Tyler Brayton	45	36	9	5	3	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
716	Charles Godfrey	45	35	10	0	1	4	0	5	1	12	12	12	0
438	Captain Munnerlyn	44	39	5	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
806	Julius Peppers	42	36	6	10.5	3	5	1	5	2	13	6.5	13	1
777	Damione Lewis	41	29	12	0.5	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
411	Na'il Diggs	38	32	6	0	3	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
411	Hollis Thomas	33	24	9	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
78	Dan Connor	30	22	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
450	Charles Johnson	25	17	8	4	0	2	0	3	0	0	0	0	0
300	Sherrod Martin	23	18	5	0	0	2	0	4	3	35	11.7	23	0
401	Everette Brown	22	15	7	2.5	3	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0
174	Landon Johnson	20	16	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Poll

What do the numbers below tell you:

Surprised. Looks like we'll be better than I thought

99 votes

We lost more than we can expect to replace = Bad year for D

35 votes

Not a darn thing. I wish you'd quit posting this crap

63 votes

197 votes | Poll has closed

The content of these posts are those of the user/fan making the post only

Tweet Comment 34 comments | 3 recs |

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Comments

What if Dan Connor comes in this year and puts up the same kind of numbers as Beason? I wonder what they’ll do then. They could trade him for a high draft pick. I don’t think they will though ‘cause of the uncertainty of Davis’ situation.

stuff 'bout stuff.

by silver82blade on Jul 3, 2010 1:27 PM EDT reply actions

Then Davis will be out of Carolina

We already made this mistake with Dan Morgan. If Connor is able to put up Beason-esk (highly unlikely) like numbers then no way you let him go in favor of a guy with serious health uncertainty. But really Connor = Beason is a fantasy at this point.

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 3, 2010 1:50 PM EDT up reply actions

The Panthers are all about value.

They wouldn’t trade away Connor because of his relatively cheap contract.

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by bmoyer on Jul 3, 2010 4:12 PM EDT up reply actions

Well, they would have to trade him some time before his contract expired. Plus, every year he sits on the bench, his value goes down. I assume Beason will go back to MLB in 2011, and someone like Eric Norwood will take the other OLB spot.

stuff 'bout stuff.

by silver82blade on Jul 3, 2010 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions

Of course numbers tell a story

Just not the entire story. I agree that our D-Line has seriously been under-performing. And this makes me a little more confident in replacing them. I’m just still very concerned about their replacements though, and also depth. Especially with LBs getting thin, the D-Line need to over-perform last years line by leaps and bounds to make our defense better.

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 3, 2010 1:50 PM EDT reply actions

Would like to have seen Snaps Played to evaluate on a relative basis

The stats that jump out at me from your list are:

1) In addition to 0 TD’s on punt and KO returns, there were NONE by DB’s or LB’s, on INT’s, either!

2) Godfrey led the team (after Peppers) in FF’s.

3) 10 tackles for a loss is a pretty good figure, by Beason.

by bigdavis on Jul 3, 2010 2:17 PM EDT reply actions

Nice, BD. I think there should be an emphasis in Training Camp...

on getting to the house with turnovers; quick switch from defense to offense/return team. Getting points directly off of turnovers is demoralizing, as we know too damn well.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 3, 2010 2:25 PM EDT up reply actions

And laying out the opposing QB

as soon as they switch to “offense.”

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by bmoyer on Jul 3, 2010 4:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Number of plays has been added...

Makes Dan Conner look incredible, but you have to factor in that 14 of his tackles were on Special Teams. Still good numbers for the limited plays, though, and by far the best special teams tackler.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 4, 2010 6:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Makes Martin's #s look pretty good in ratio to Harris's

by bigdavis on Jul 4, 2010 6:12 PM EDT up reply actions

+1

Would like to have seen Snaps Played to evaluate on a relative basis

Everette Brown’s 2 FFs, which are as good as any other 3 players on the roster, would probably look at lot more encouraging, if not impressive. Ditto for Sherrod.

Other silver linings:

For some of the slack I’ve read regarding Brayton’s abilities, 5 sacks is nothing to sneeze at.
There are two very active cornerbacks on this team.
None of the DTs’ numbers jump off the page. We have nowhere to go but up!

by Newsinz on Jul 4, 2010 12:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Snaps played have been added to the table...

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 4, 2010 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Perfect!

Now worth a Rec

by bigdavis on Jul 4, 2010 6:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Why thank you, sir. You're a gentleman and a scholar.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 4, 2010 6:08 PM EDT up reply actions

BTW... thanks for putting me on the front page. Another first.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 3, 2010 2:34 PM EDT reply actions

No problem....

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by Jaxon on Jul 3, 2010 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions

I know his total tackles are low, but

I really like Charles Johnson’s stat line. I hope he does really well this year.

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by bmoyer on Jul 3, 2010 4:14 PM EDT reply actions

James Anderson

really should start. After seeing what he did near the end of last year and having the stats to back it up, I can say that he can be one of the better OLB in the league. He definitely has more talent then Diggs. He isnt as athletic as Davis or Beason but he can still make plays and hes always near the ball. I hope he can get a starting position by the start of the season.

"All generalizations are false, including this one." - Mark Twain

by ThePanthers! on Jul 3, 2010 4:24 PM EDT reply actions

He's actually very athletic.

His 40-time is within a hair of Davis’.

stuff 'bout stuff.

by silver82blade on Jul 3, 2010 5:08 PM EDT up reply actions

Oh

alright, thats great. but speed isnt the only thing that makes up athletic ability, Davis used to play safety and that guy could jump. Im glad that I underrated Anderson’s speed but I doubt he is as good in coverage as Davis was, but in time he will get better so that isnt really a concern for me.

"All generalizations are false, including this one." - Mark Twain

by ThePanthers! on Jul 3, 2010 10:01 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree he should start

And that he should be an upgrade over Diggs. But being “one of the better OLB in the league” seems like a bit of a stretch at this point. What would that have to be? Top 5? Top 10?

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 3, 2010 6:43 PM EDT up reply actions

in my opinion

one of the better OLB is top 10, but I think 4-3 OLB and 3-4 OLB would have to be separated since they have different responsibilities and skill sets. And I hope it didnt seem like an expectation, for him to be one of the better ones, just my optimistic belief. I’d be happy if hes a solid starter.

"All generalizations are false, including this one." - Mark Twain

by ThePanthers! on Jul 3, 2010 9:52 PM EDT up reply actions

One thing to remember is that he racked those up on the weakside.

Our scheme is designed to make the WLB look good, and in Davis’s case, great. Anderson will likely be competing for the SLB job, and I personally would be happy with a decent season from him.

Good bye #43. Good luck in Chicago.

by Flowing Willow on Jul 3, 2010 11:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Well, in that case

Hes going to be replacing Diggs, who was a solid LB for years but nothing extraordinary. So I feel he can be an upgrade over him because he provides more speed and potential. But I also think Connor can be an upgrade if he were chosen to start instead, it should be an interesting position battle. Either way I’ll be pretty happy with our LB corp next year even without Davis.

"All generalizations are false, including this one." - Mark Twain

by ThePanthers! on Jul 4, 2010 12:22 AM EDT up reply actions

Last I heard Connor was in the middle

Did that change at all? I still think it’s going to wind up being Anderson-Beason-Williams.

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 4, 2010 12:49 AM EDT up reply actions

That's how I see it, too, ST.

Beason’s just too valuable in the middle. Williams got TD’s endorsement, and played great at the Will when he got to play for Chicago. And Anderson’s just reaching his potential. Here are his pre-draft (2006) skills test results:

Campus: 4.47 in the 40-yard dash … 385-pound bench press … 540-pound squat … 326-pound power clean … 41.5-inch vertical jump … 32 -inch arm length … 9 -inch hands … Right-handed … 21/41 Wonderlic score.

Combine: 4.50 seconds in the 40-yard dash. … 40-inch vertical jump. … 10’04" broad jump. … did not participate in the 225-pound bench press.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 4, 2010 9:20 AM EDT up reply actions

Right-handed???

Aww fudge, we’re screwed.

stuff 'bout stuff.

by silver82blade on Jul 4, 2010 10:04 AM EDT up reply actions

Yea he was practicing in the middle

but I dont think that he will actually play there. Like Rick said, Beason is a beast in the middle why change that? I still haven’t seen Williams play so thats why I don’t favor him as much as the guys who have been here for a while. Not saying hes not talented just that I cant really criticize or praise him just yet…maybe I should go look up some highlights or something.

"All generalizations are false, including this one." - Mark Twain

by ThePanthers! on Jul 4, 2010 10:24 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah, I think not having Beason in the middle would be too much of a liability

Some here thought we should move him to the weak side because that is the play-maker LB position in Meeks’ cover 2, and Beason is definitely our top “play-maker” LB. But I’m with you, because MLB is the most vulnerable LB position in the Cover 2.

The thing with Williams is that he is getting more praise out of Chicago then I think we would give any of our LBs other than Beason. We’ll get to see him pretty soon in TC and pre-season. If all the hype is warranted then I think it will be obvious.

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 5, 2010 10:09 AM EDT up reply actions

Having Conners on special teams is a big plus..

and you don’t want your starting Mike playing special teams. I’m sure he would rather be starting on the defense, and he probably could somewhere else. We need to make our special teams among the league’s best, and Conners can help do that. He’s also great to have as depth for the Mike and Sam.
Williams isn’t as fast as TD, but he has the instincts and ball-hawking skills to excel as the Will in this system. I hope he gets that chance, and proves me right.

I can resist everything except temptation. - Oscar Wilde

by Rick Bates on Jul 5, 2010 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions

Great points

on behalf of tha dirty south: soul food, carolina blue, southern hospitality, and tha queen city

by southtunnel on Jul 5, 2010 3:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Norwood, Williams and Connor all sound like good options.

I think wherever they all line up we will be fine.

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by bmoyer on Jul 6, 2010 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Hey Rick!

Great post I rec’d it! I feel good about our defense as a whole even with the losses. Last night I began to put stats up that compared some of our new aquisitions college stats to Julius peppers college career and found some uplifting numbers…I gave up because I did’nt have a lot of time but I think it would make for a great post and if alot of CP fans saw these stats they would feel even more reassured, Again great post Rick thanks!!!

When I die, I want to go peacefully Like my Grandfather did, in his sleep--not screaming like the passenger in his car

by Catzkan79 on Jul 4, 2010 10:08 AM EDT reply actions

Nice post Rick

Been gone for awhile, just now seeing this. Good to see it all on one page.

Knee jerk reaction - adj. 1. an immediate unthinking emotional reaction produced by an event or statement to which the reacting person is highly sensitive. 2. a facilitator of long threads on Cat Scratch Reader and similar blogs.

by Sniff on Jul 7, 2010 12:12 AM EDT reply actions