Is it too early to talk about week one? Panthers-Jaguars Preview

Given their recent history, 9-39 the last three seasons, it is easy for Panthers fans to be confident, but the Jags are a very young team filled with inexperienced, but talented players.

They practically remade their entire passing game in just the 2014 NFL Draft, selecting quarterback Blake Bortles with the third pick overall, then drafting a pair of receivers in the second round, in Marquis Lee and Allen Robinson. Finally, they signed Allen Hurnes as an undrafted free agent, and all he did was in last year's opener was turn four catches into 110 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The three rookies combined for a whopping 146 receptions last season, and have now been joined by Florida State's Rashad Green, who led the Seminoles (yes, over Benjamin) in receiving in each of his four seasons there.

This past draft, they addressed their floundering ground game by taking Alabama's TJ Yeldon with their second-round pick, and gave Tight End Julius Thomas a five-year, 46 million dollar contract, with the hope that he will continue to be a red-zone weapon without Peyton Manning.

By running two-tight end sets with Thomas, and the aging Mercedes Lewis, Yeldon could be near the top of the early Rookie of the Year ballots.

Of course, that would mean the offensive line would need to improve. Certainly, the Jags can not be accused of ignoring the position. They spend the second overall pick in 2013 on LT Luke Joeckel, but he has yet to emerge as a dominant force. They signed (overpaid, 5yr/32 million) Jermey Parnell this past off-season to be their RT, and spent back-to-back third rounders on guards AJ Cann (2015) and Brandon Linder (2014).  Reports are Linder had an outstanding rookie year, to the point that he might already be considered their top offensive lineman. While they overpaid for Parnell, they struck a great deal with Stefen Wisniewski, signing him to only a one-year, 2.5 million dollar deal to be their starting center.

My thoughts:

1. Jacksonville's offensive line still appears too young to stand up to the Panthers' front four, but if Star Lotulelei's right foot keeps him from playing, the equation changes.

2. Wide receivers Robinson and Hurnes each stand around 6'3 and over 200 pounds, but Panther corners Josh Norman and Charles Tillman have the size and tenacity to limit the second year receivers.

3. While Yeldon was a powerful running back, able to break tackles in college, he did not have to face Luke Kuechly. The rook is in for a "teaching moment".

4. Julius Thomas is going to be a difficult match-up.  He is the type is mismatch that caused the Panthers to spend a first round pick on a hybrid LB/S like Shaq Thompson, but we are far better off with Thomas Davis on him at this point. He is the player that most scares me.  In last season's opener, Orange Julius (I guess we can't call him that anymore) went off for three touchdowns, but that was with Peyton Manning throwing him the ball.

5. Bortles has only started 14 games in the NFL, and while he appears to be an ascending talent, his inexperience should make it difficult for the Jaguars to score more than 20 points against a defense like the Panthers.

Head coach Gus Bradley was hired to bring a Seattle-style defense to Jacksonville, but entering year three, the belief is that he has failed miserably. That belief may not be entirely true.

When doing research on the Jags, I was surprised to learn that last season, the Jaguars ranked sixth in the NFL in sacks, which could prove troublesome for the Panthers, whose offensive line again appears to be the teams' greatest weakness. Chris Clemons, Sen'Derrick Marks, Tyson Aluala, Jared Odrick, Ziggy Hood, Roy Miller, and Allen Branch form a veteran defensive line that lacks star-power, but collectively may be better than the some of their parts. Of coarse, they made edge-rusher Dante Fowler the third pick overall attempting to add that one dominant front-seven player, only to see him go down in mini-camp with a torn ACL that will cause him to miss his entire rookie season.

Outside linebacker Telvin Smith, was just a fifth-round pick, but has been both a draft steal, and one one of the Jaguars' best young defenders. He is an undersized LB with a game similar to Shaq Thompson. Paul Posluszny is the MLB, and sort of a poor-man's Kuechly.

Davon House, a free agent from the Packers, and Aaron Colvin appear to be the starting corners. FYI, Colvin is a big corner who suffered a torn ACL preparing for the 2014 draft. Apparently, he has recovered nicely (played in the teams final six games last season). Add in Demetrius McCray, and the Jags have three corners listed at six-foot or taller.

Finally, safety Johnathan Cyprien led the 2014 Jags in both total tackles (111) and solo stops (77) in just his second season.

My thoughts:

1. While I am not optimistic that the Panthers' offensive line keeps the Jaguars' defense out of the back-field, I feel good about the early season health of Cam and Jonathan Stewart. I believe the Panthers will be able to run effectively, even if they are not blowing people off the ball.

2. I expect Cam to have a good passing day as well.  Despite fielding a pretty big set of defensive backs, they should have great difficulty with the size of Benjamin, Funchess, and Olsen.

3. Given the choice, I would rather face Jacksonville in 2015 than 2016, and would prefer earlier in the season to late, as their young individual talent starts to play as a team. I predict a 26-16 road victory.