The Defense Must Apply More Pressure
The Panthers’ defense was terrible against Pittsburgh. In fact, it was one of the worst performances in franchise history on that side of the ball. But Carolina’s defensive struggles were apparent even before Week 10.
The Panthers were third in the NFL in sacks in 2017, second in 2016 and sixth in 2015. But after averaging 47 sacks over the past three seasons, Carolina has just 22 sacks this season, tied with the New York Jets for 22nd in the league.
Given that the Panthers have boasted one of the top front sevens in football for several years now, these numbers are quite staggering. Defensive end Mario Addison is on pace for a career high in sacks as he already has 7.5 through nine games, but defensive tackle Kawann Short has just two sacks after averaging 5.9 sacks per season over his first five years.
Not only that, but first-year Panther Dontari Poe has no sacks and the aging Julius Peppers has just three sacks as he nears the end of his Hall of Fame career. Carolina simply isn’t getting enough pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
The Panthers should be favored in each of their next four games. Thus, they may be able to get by until Week 15. But if they give the New Orleans Saints’ Drew Brees and the Atlanta Falcons’ Matt Ryan all day to throw, they will get carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey over the final three weeks of the season.
That could be enough to keep Carolina from making the playoffs, which would be a shame. The secondary is actually playing well thanks in large part to cornerbacks Donte Jackson and James Bradberry. The front seven isn’t playing up to snuff, however, and that could be a problem down the road.
The Panthers are currently two games behind the red-hot Saints, so they don’t have much room for error. They probably need to win at least six of their last seven games to even have a chance at winning the NFC South, which was one of my five bold predictions for the team back in August.
If Carolina’s defense doesn’t start playing more like it has over the previous three seasons, the Panthers won’t be playing in January. They’re tied for eighth in the NFL in takeaways (15), but their sack numbers must increase moving forward.
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