Even if the Panthers were at full strength on offense, this would be one of the biggest challenges they will face all season. The Seahawks are one of the best defensive units in the NFL, and they are consistently a force to be reckoned with for any offense, especially one with as many players battling injuries as the Panthers currently have.
Captain Obvious Alert: The Panthers will have a difficult time against the Seahawks this Sunday night now that they are without their starting left tackle, starting center, backup center, and backup right tackle.
I’m not trying to bring the mood down with this column, but let’s be real: this game’s gonna be hard to watch if you’re a Panthers fan. With that being said, let’s take a closer look at how the Panthers’ offense matches up against the Seahawks’ defense.
Panthers Rush Offense vs Seahawks Rush Defense
Provided Jonathan Stewart can stay healthy, this is probably the one area where the Panthers can have positive production on Sunday night. The Seahawks are 8th in the NFC in rushing yards per game, giving up an average of 100.2 yards to opposing running backs, and the Panthers are 6th in the NFC with an average of 109.5 yards per game. The Panthers will need to focus on the run and get both Stewart and Cam Newton involved in the rushing attack early and often if they want to find success moving the football down the field.
The one problem with this strategy is the Panthers will be relying on a patchwork offensive line to open running lanes. With Michael Oher on injured reserve, Mike Remmers is forced to play left tackle. Daryl Williams was Remmers’ replacement until he went down with an injury last week against the Raiders, forcing right guard Trai Turner to slide outside to replace him. The Panthers are playing their best interior offensive lineman out of position because they don’t have anyone else available, and Turner’s absence on the inside could prevent the Panthers from being able to establish clear running lanes to work with. With Pro Bowl center Ryan Kalil on the shelf and UDFA Tyler Larsen replacing him, it’s difficult to forecast much success for the interior of the Panthers’ offensive line against a stout defensive front.
Panthers Pass Offense vs Seahawks Pass Defense
Hoo-boy. This will be fun to watch.
(By fun I mean painful.)
Long story short: The Seahawks are really good at defending the pass and rushing the quarterback. The Panthers are not very good at protecting the quarterback with a 100% healthy offensive line. The Panthers currently have a 37.5% healthy offensive line, so based on my math it looks like the Seahawks have a 141 2/3% chance of shutting down the Panthers’ passing attack.
If you’re interested in statistics, the Panthers are 12th in the NFC in passing offense, racking up 243.4 yards per game. The Seahawks are 4th in the NFC in passing defense, allowing just 235.5 yards per game and are tied with the Panthers for the NFC lead with 31 sacks on the year. Thanks to the load of injuries across the Panthers’ roster, the Seahawks have the clear advantage here, and while they’re not quite as dominant as they have been in years past I’m not sure we can trust the Panthers’ duct-taped offensive line to hold long enough for Newton to find open receivers. Honestly, the Panthers have to hope the Seahawks don’t jump out to an early lead that forces them into consistent passing situations, otherwise it’s going to be a long day for Carolina.
X-Factor: Protecting Cam Newton
It’s obvious that the Panthers’ chances of winning this game fall squarely onto the offensive line’s shoulders. If they can somehow find a way to keep Cam Newton upright, there’s a chance they can put some drives together and pull off the upset. However, this is an offensive line that’s missing it’s best player and has two people playing out of position with no options behind them who were on the team last week.
Basically, we’re up shit creek without a boat or a paddle, and I’m not sure we know how to swim.
At the very least, we’ll find out if the Panthers have any fight left in them on Sunday night. They’re probably going to lose because they’re simply out-matched, at least on paper, but there’s not much they can do when most of their offensive line is injured and/or playing out of position. Still, there is a game to be played, and if the Panthers can find a way to establish the run early and often, they might be able to pull off the upset and keep their chance of a winning season intact for one more week.
That’s all we can really hope for at this point, isn’t it?
- Statistics courtesy of NFL GSIS.