Growing Pains: Review from Panthers vs Eagles Week 5
After starting out the season a promising 3-0, the Carolina Panthers have fallen short the last two weeks straight; both times against teams from the NFC East. Quarterback Sam Darnold has seemingly come back to Earth from his incendiary offensive production early on. While the defense which was in the conversation for best in the league has been wavering up and down. Although Carolina came into this game with injuries at key spots on both sides of the ball, there are still a few areas that the Eagles highlighted will need to be improved as the season progresses.
Offensive Recap
Darnold was unable to much of anything going in Week 5, despite Carolina’s defense showing up big throughout the game. Carolina’s offensive line was average against a talented defensive front that kept a tight pocket to keep Darnold from consistently leaking out. While his rushing yardage hasn’t been anything noteworthy this season, this was the first game since Week 2 Darnold was kept out of the endzone on the ground. It was even more surprising considering the Eagle’s rushing defense was ranked 31st of 32 coming into the game.
The good news is, head coach Matt Rhule has hinted at a slightly hopeful return for Christian McCaffrey in Week 7. It isn’t certain, but he can hopefully serve as a spark plug for this stagnant offense and give Darnold an opportunity to make more of an impact throwing down the field. Rookie Chuba Hubbard, who replaced McCaffrey on Sunday and had a solid showing with 24 rushes for 101 yards, and 33 yards through the air. Still, McCaffrey’s absence could be a reason why Sam Darnold only hit 177 yards passing on 37 attempts and adding three interceptions, as Philadelphia continuously took away mid-yardage throws, and Darnold was left without his usual safety valve.
Defensive Recap
Defensively, the Panthers played well until the very last play, getting baited on a draw play by quarterback Jalen Hurts to score a touchdown and win. Carolina’s secondary looked much better than last week against Dallas, and the combination of Donte Jackson and Jeremy Chinn has filled the void left by the injury to Jaycee Horn earlier this year. Even with Shaq Thompson out, the defense stepped up against the rushing game allowing under 95 rushing yards and, under 200 passing yards against Jalen Hurts. Yet for some reason, Carolina has been brutal coming out from halftime and poor at establishing good momentum throughout the second half. This is especially true in the third quarter where they’re averaging a -21-point differential.
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Luckily, Haason Reddick and Brian Burns continue to prove an effective duo on the line, with Reddick leading the team in 8 tackles and 2 sacks. Reddick has been phenomenal this season in both his numbers, and the balance his overall defensive skill has given Carolina’s defense by having two complimentary stars lined up outside when Reddick is on the edge.
Going Forward
Going into Week 6, the Panthers will have to continue rolling out a stingy defense against a currently underplaying Minnesota Vikings team with weapons. One extra piece Carolina might be able to use in the secondary is Stephon Gilmore, who was acquired recently from the Patriots and is scheduled to come off the PUP list in Week 6 or 7 of this season. While his availability is still somewhat cloudy at this point in time, another addition to a defense that needs a little bit of a boost right now could make a huge impact for Carolina down the road.