Coming off perhaps their most complete game of the season, the Carolina Panthers (6-8) will be settling in for their final home game of the season against perhaps their most hated rival, the Atlanta Falcons (9-5). Last week against the Washington Redskins, the Panthers offense looked like the offense of last year. QB Cam Newton has prolific through the air while RB Jonathan Stewart topped 100 yards with almost relative ease. Unfortunately, it is a case of too little, too late for a team that has been a disappointment in 2016.
While many don’t want to hear it (including me to be honest), it would be nice to end on a high note. There will be a lot of questions to answer and soul searching to be done in the offseason for this unit, from the players to the coaches to the front office. But I will be happy knowing we put the Falcons season in flux if we can put together a complete effort tomorrow.
With that, let’s take a look at the Panthers offense.
Panthers Passing Offense
I really hate to look back at the first game we had against the Falcons, because that was a total crapfest from start to finish, definitely for the defense, but also for the offense. The Falcons defense isn’t an elite unit, in fact, they rank 30th in total defense. They definitely feature some elite talent in pass rushing LB Vic Beasley, but they are a defense that can be beat if you play smart. In the first matchup, that was exactly what we didn’t do. Newton’s passing would remain ineffective for most of the game, and would eventually get replaced by Derek Anderson with the game totally out of hand in the latter portion of the second half. Anderson would actually end up passing for more yards and TDs in relief of Newton, getting the game close before a costly INT put away any outside hopes of a comeback.
I don’t believe this team will be that bad again this time around. Playing in the Georgia Dome goes one of two ways: a Panthers blowout or a Falcons blowout. There is rarely any gray area there. The Panthers offense seems to be playing with a bit more swagger, and a big win over a team looking to make the playoffs and a huge ego in former Panther Josh Norman has to be good for team morale. Their extremely micro small chances of a playoff berth give the team something to try and reach for as well. In any case, I would expect TE Greg Olsen to have a breakout game given his slow end to the season (and to definitely top 1,000 yards for the third straight year). I hope this team was forced to watch that week 4 matchup several times this week. They need to avenge that doo-doo of a game.
Panthers Rushing Offense
If the Panthers passing unit was bad in the last matchup with the Falcons, then the running game was totally non-existent. With Stewart on the shelf nursing his early season injury, the Panthers were barely able to muster an attack, with Newton being the team’s leading rusher with 30 yards on the ground. The team as a whole only had 49 total yards on the ground, in what was perhaps one of the worst rushing performances this team has had in the Cam Newton era. Suffice to say, it was bad, and the loss of Stewart really destroyed any chance this team had of making it a close game.
This time will hopefully be different. Stewart will be back, and looking to keep up the pace following his 132 yard performance against the Redskins this past week. The Falcons rank right in the middle of the pack at 15th against the run, allowing roughly 101 YPG. Again, they are not a particularly great defense, and if the Panthers can get the run blocking they had against the Redskins, Newton might find some more options in the passing game.
Player to Watch: TE Greg Olsen
If nothing else, it will be good to see the All-Pro and Pro Bowl TE eclipse 1,000 yards for the third year in a row, an NFL record for TEs. He started off the season shot out of a cannon, but he has been rather “pedestrian” compared to what we all know he can do. I just feel like he is going to have a good game tomorrow.
Last Word
With the final home game upon us, the season is rapidly coming to a close. Like I said last week, it will be good to simply watch the team for what it is, because it will be yet another near half year before we see them again. Having the chance to screw with the Falcons definitely adds to the flavor of the game as well. Last weeks offensive outburst was fun to watch, and reminded me how fun football can be. Here’s to hoping the Panthers repeat that against the Dirty Birds tomorrow.