At halftime I walked outside to stretch my back. My mind wandered as I filled my lungs with the night air. I thought about this precise moment; writing my lede about how the Panthers had struggled in the first half then fought back in the second, pre-conceiving an outcome of contrivance. The Ron Rivera-led team fighting back from adversity once again. I was going to use the phrase "I was wrong, I was foolish for doubting them," then the second half happened.
The once-proud stadium was now an undulating crater. Fans leaving in waves with tears drenching the stands, and blood coating the field. At least there would be plenty of Terrible Towels to clean up the mess.
For one hour the Carolina Panthers justified the doubt so many members of the media harbored. This team proved it never belonged in the Top 5 of any power rankings this early in the season, not really. They showed that all the "I told you so" and "gotcha" bullshittery of pretending this offensive line is NFL caliber was for naught. The answer is no more on the roster now than it was six months ago, the difference is that the Panthers ran into a meat grinder; a halfway competent defense with edge rushing that could show just how bad their tackles were.
The Panthers were exposed.
This isn't about the sky falling or the season being over, far from it. Last season taught us that predicting an early exit for this football team is an effort in futility. This team wont go away. They know what it takes to bounce back from adversity and compete in the NFL, Ron Rivera has them believing as much -- but that doesn't change the fact this is a flawed team that looked flawless in its first two games, and made us all believe a little too much.
When it comes to Cam Newton, I don't even know where to begin. Some people can still say that he's the problem, or advocate for starting Derek Anderson, with a straight face no less. If you think that then I can't help you. I don't pretend to understand what goes through someone's mind when they see 69 percent completion, a 7.1 YPA and a 98.5 passer rating and say "He's the problem," but it sure as hell isn't something I've ever thought while watching this game.
The worst part: Newton is buying it too, maybe. Perhaps he's just being the stoic leader when he starts every presser with "I have to be better," but I sure as hell hope he's not thinking that deep down. Is he the perfect quarterback? No, he's absolutely not. There are reasons why the quarterback rating system goes to 139.6 and is almost never hit. That said, please look at his two games in totality and say if you think there's a problem here.
46/69 (67 percent), 531 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 interceptions
Know what happens when you extrapolate that out to a full season? This: 4,248 passing yards.
But yeah, HE'S the problem here... right?
The issue is on a micro and macro level. Narrowing down to this season it's simply a case of being weak in the wrong areas to matchup against a team like Pittsburgh. They have a strong pass rush presence, paired with one elite receiver, a strong-armed quarterback and a good running game. This might not seem like a lot, but in reality it's all the areas the Panthers lack -- meet the buzzsaw.
Strong edge rushing collapses the pocket, pushing Cam towards the like of scrimmage like he's being shot out of a funnel. Pair this with his still-shaky running ability and it forces the worst passes he makes: Off his back foot, or hurried with a hand in his face.
On defense Carolina is equipped to handle a few good receivers, perhaps one excellent one -- but they can't handle an elite receiver paired with a solid one. That's what happened with Antonio Brown, and the Panthers had no answer. Leaving him 1-on-1 with Melvin White or Bene Benewikere is just unfair, and we saw this matchup get exploited ad naseum.
Zoom out to the macro and things get more abstract, blurrier and perhaps need a touch more imagination. It's not that the Panthers are allergic to success, or something weird like that, but rather an understanding that this team is far better with their backs to the wall than standing on a pedestal.
I can't explain why this is, but it's been Panther football for over a decade. When nobody expects them to be good, they surprise. The second they get national attention this team smacks down the idea with a mallet of ineptitude as if to say "How dare you believe in the Panthers."
Before kickoff Al Michaels called Carolina "silent assassins." Well, you can't be silent when everyone is staring at you and watching for the slightest shuffle they can interpret as noise. There was no "silent" anything. The Panthers beat Tampa Bay, then Detroit. The noise was deafening. Maybe the genie can be put back in the bottle, perhaps it can't -- but Carolina needs to spotlight off, now.
Things I liked...
Kelvin Benjamin - Extremely Optimistic
I think complaints about his drops are becoming far overblown and forging a bad narrative. Currently his dropped pass rate is roughly 10 percent, this puts him in the middle of the pack in terms of NFL receivers and far behind the likes of Victor Cruz and Demaryius Thomas.
This is still a work in progress and you'd like to see him hold onto everything, but damn. We're talking about an eight reception, 115 yard game with a touchdown. That's nothing to sneeze at.
Cam Newton - Extremely Optimistic
Yes, he was good. No, the Panthers didn't lose because of him.
Stop saying the team would be better with Derek Anderson at QB, it's dumb.
Graham Gano - Extremely Optimistic
Oh god we're already needing to list the kicker here. Yes, it was one of those games.
Things I didn't like...
The offensive line, all of it - Extremely Pessimistic
Good God that was ugly. We have no room to complain about the referees this morning because the Panthers got away with so many holds it's not even funny.
The OL play fell into two categories: Either pass rushers were running around them, or the linemen were holding. Even Ryan Kalil was swallowed by the pit of ineptitude, swiveling his head around trying to help the mediocre guards next to him while being eaten alive in the process.
Both offensive tackles are very nice people, neither of whom we hate -- but they're the worst starting tandem in the NFL, bar none.
Meandering, pointless coaching - Extremely Pessimistic
What's up with this pattern of "Look good in the first, garbage in the second, slightly better in the third, okay in the fourth?"
It's happening every single game without fail. It looks like the team writes up a good game plan, then has no way to adjust. They yell at halftime, things get a little better and by then they can either hold on or it's too late. On Sunday the hole was too big to dig out of and some critical problems were magnified as a result.
Philly Brown - Somewhat Pessimistic
It was nice to see him get a good run at wide receiver, but that muffed punt helped seal the loss. Hard to knock an undrafted rookie too much -- because it's not his fault the Panthers don't have another good option.