Four Quarters, a look at the 2008 schedule in May (games 5-8)
May 28, 2008
Last week we reviewed the first four games of the 2008 season. There’s no reason to think that the Panthers will end up 4-0 or 0-4, but while we dream happily of a 3-1 start, 2-2 is a pretty distinct possibility and 1-3 isn’t outside the realm of possibility. That’s not great, but fortunately for them the second quarter gets a little easier.
In October teams start to forge their identities. Rookies begin to gain confidence, offensive lines start to gel, and teams discover who their new playmakers are. For the Panthers, that group should include Steve Smith, Jake Delhomme, and Julius Peppers. Adding Stewart or Godfrey to that list would be a nice surprise. At any rate, at this point Panther fans will know what the team that’s going to show up on Sundays will look like. Jake’s elbow will be strong or it won’t. The Offensive Line will have an identity (let’s hope it includes protection!). The effectiveness of the defensive line will not be a question mark. Stewart’s running, Godfrey in coverage, and our Wide Receivers as a unit will all be answers instead of questions.
After four games another thing happens. Teams begin to get enough film on rookies to start exploiting their tendencies. An offensive tackle that relies on the same sort of blocking technique for every speed rusher will find himself looking silly a couple of times in a game when someone realizes the tendency and exploits it. A cornerback that can’t defend a crossing route will get picked on until he’s pulled. Rookie Quarterbacks who eyeball their receivers will start getting picked off. This is when good study habits start to show themselves. That’s going to come up big in our fifth game of the season.
Week Five, home versus the Kansas City Chiefs
2007 record: 4-12, third in the AFC West
2007 offensive rank: 31 (32th in rushing, 20th in passing, and 31st in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 13 (28th against the run, 5th against the pass, and 14th in points allowed)
The Chiefs struggled to win four games in 2007, but that’s not a reason to count them out in 2008. Kansas City still has plenty of talent on the roster, maybe enough to make a playoff run. Brodie Croyle and Kolby Smith got some good experience at the end of 2007, Larry Johnson will return from his injury, and Dwayne Bowe will be back. In short, it’s not all bleak, particularly when you consider their stellar draft. Granted, they’ll need to get really lucky with their play in the trenches, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility.
The biggest need for the Chiefs in the off season was along the offensive line. That unit begged for a severe overhaul and it doesn’t look like they got enough. They needed at least two new players here, a left tackle and a right guard, and it could be argued that they needed a right tackle as well. Every interior offensive lineman they have is over 30, and they really showed their age in 2007. Brandon Albert is expected to take over at Left Tackle, but there’s no guarantee he works out there as his college position was Guard. They did get a couple of journeymen and a late round pick here, but all in all there’s not a lot to get excited. Unless Johnson makes a strong return and creates his own holes, the offense doesn’t look like it’s going to be much improved in 2007.
On the other side of the ball the Chiefs will depend on their first pick to improve their rushing defense. Glenn Dorsey is a rare talent who should be able to create significant pressure from the Defensive Tackle position. Granted, he’s still a rookie. In college his physical burst was enough to create havoc and demand regular double teams from opponents, but with a months worth of film he won’t be catching any of the Panthers by surprise. He also won’t have the benefit of Jared Allen occupying the other team’s attention, as the rest of the Kansas City line provides a pass rush that’s questionable at best.
At linebacker, they return a unit that redefined the concept of bad against the run in 2007. Derrick Johnson is good, but he needs a lot of help. Napoleon Harris is a journeyman who couldn’t stick in Oakland or Minnesota, and Donnie Edwards is 35 in April. For some reason, the Chiefs looked at the term “team run defense” and saw Atlanta Falcons so they signed away Demorrio Williams. Who knows, maybe he’ll do for them what he did for Atlanta. In the secondary the Chiefs have few holes but questionable depth. At the safety position they have two young starters and a probable rookie backing them up. The Cornerbacks are both in their 30s, and as with the Safety they’re likely to have a rookie at backup and playing nickel.
So on paper, this looks like a pretty good game to warm up with for the real conference play. On offense the Panthers should have plenty of time to throw, and the running game ought to shine against the Chiefs. On defense the Panthers will once again pit their strength against the opponents’, and it looks like the Carolina pass defense will be more than a match for the Chief’s offense. This looks like a probable win.
- Kansas City leads series 2-1.
Week Six, at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2007 record: 9-7, first in the NFC South
2007 offensive rank: 18 (11th in rushing, 16th in passing, and 18th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 2 (17th against the run, 1st against the pass, and 3rd in points allowed)
Although the Panthers will have already played Atlanta, this is the game where conference play really begins. The Bucs, Saints and the Panthers all have designs on the division title, and none of them likes the others very much. The Panthers and Bucs almost look like mirror images where the question marks are concerned. Both teams have a lot more questions on offense than defense, and both organizations feel like they’ve done a good job in the off season addressing weaknesses and building depth.
Tampa Bay has a young and aggressive defense that’s traditionally among the tops in the league. This year should be no different, the Bucs are poised for yet another top five finish. There are only a few areas of potential weakness. At cornerback, they lost starter Brian Kelly and Ronde Barber is 33. To address that they drafted Aqib Talib and signed Eugene Wilson from the Patriots, presumably to play the nickel. The other positions that may be exploited on the Bucs Defense are both on the line, at Left Defensive End and at Defensive Tackle. Gaines Adams is a solid player at the right DE position, but on the left side Kevin Carter is 34 and Jimmy Wilkerson isn’t going to scare anyone. At Defensive Tackle, the Bucs are solid if a bit thin.
Offensive questions are another story. To start with, Tampa plans on going with Jeff Garcia, who will be 38 when the season starts. Joey Galloway will be 37 in November. Michael Clayton is Tampa’s own version of Keary Colbert, with 87 catches in the three seasons since his 80-catch rookie year. They added Dexter Jackson here from Appalachian State, but he’ll still be adjusting to the speed difference between cornerbacks in Division II and cornerbacks in the NFL. On the line Luke Petitgout will probably be injured by now, and they need someone better than Donald Penn if they want to improve on last years 36 sacks allowed. At running back Carnell Williams has been demoted to a Yugo, while Warrick Dunn is at the end of his career. Earnest Graham is about their only reliable option here. They drafted Corey Boyd as well, but aside from a solid performance at the Shrine game there’s nothing to suggest he’ll be anything special at this level. On paper the offense looks fragile. If they can avoid injuries like last year, then they’ll be able to make things happen. If the wrong player goes down, then their season will look less like 2007 and more like 2006.
In sum Tampa Bay looks to follow last year’s formula. Depend on the defense to keep you in games, run the ball as best you can, and let Garcia’s veteran leadership find ways to win. It was good enough to win the South in a down year, but they went nowhere in the playoffs and they can’t depend on bad luck in both Carolina and New Orleans for two years running. Tampa Bay will be coming off of two games against opponents that like to run in Green Bay and Denver, so they may be banged up a little on their interior line. If Carolina’s plans for the season hold up, they should be able move the ball on the ground. Jake Delhomme also has an absurdly good 7-1 record against the Bucs and is undefeated at Raymond James Stadium. This may not seem like a probable win at first glance, but if tradition holds and the Panthers are healthy, it should be.
- Carolina leads series 9-6.
Week Seven, home versus the New Orleans Saints
2007 record: 7-9, third in the NFC South
2007 offensive rank: 4 (28th in rushing, 3rd in passing, and 12th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 26 (13th against the run, 30th against the pass, and 25th in points allowed)
The 2008 Saints are in many ways like the 2007 Panthers. The organization suffered through many injuries in 2007 but feel like they have the core group they need to get back to the top quickly. There’s a lot of talent on their roster, but a lack of balance that could make them vulnerable to injuries if things break the wrong way. At this point in the season the Saints will have played four of their games at home, including the two opponents that are most likely to be difficult–Minnesota and Tampa Bay. If things have broken the right way, this will probably be a battle for the division lead.
In 2007 the Saints had some pretty obvious problems. They gave up 245.3 passing yards a game and no team allowed more passing touchdowns. Opposing quarterbacks looked great against them, with an NFL worst 96.9 passer rating allowed and an NFL worst 7.9 yards per attempt given up. Their run defense wasn’t that bad, but that could be a lot like the Vikings situation–if it’s so easy to throw why bother running the ball? They had no real pass rush and their secondary was so bad that they were starting a free safety at cornerback. They needed pressure and presence in the middle, and the good news for Saints fans is that they got both in the off season.
After Glen Dorsey, Sedrick Ellis was the most dominant defensive tackle in college football last year. By this point in the season, the Panthers will know just how much game planning will have to be done to account for him; it’s all but certain that he will give the Saints more pressure than they had last year. Behind him they signed Jonathan Vilma to play middle linebacker. If he avoids the injury bug they’ll be much better against the pass, but it remains to be seen how well he can play the run in a 4-3 defense. At cornerback they drafted and signed several players in an effort to find someone who can be reliable opposite Mike McKenzie, assuming he is able to come back from injury. Even if he does, he’s 32 years old and can have trouble keeping up with faster receivers. There is a huge hole at Free Safety named Josh Bullocks, and the Saints didn’t choose to upgrade there.
The bottom line on defense is simple. The Saints are banking heavily on Vilma’s presence in the middle and Ellis’ pressure to reduce the effectiveness of their opponents’ passing games. Given where they finished in 2007, they’re very likely to improve on paper. However, entering 2007 they were considered as a very vulnerable team against the run (consider that DTs Brian Young and Hollis Thomas are both in their 30s). By this point in the season, that will be exposed given the teams they will be playing. If the Saints can’t stop the run then all the high-jumping fast-bursting rookie defensive tackles in the world won’t help them. Expect a lot of shoot-outs where the Saints are involved.
Which is fine to a lot of Saints fans, given how good their offense is. There is no more explosive unit in the NFC South, and possibly in the NFC as a whole. The only question marks are at center (which should be stable and fine at this point), running back (Bush isn’t an every down kind of guy, Aaron Stecker is a slow-and-steady guy who gets the yards he needs but isn’t a break-away threat, and McAllister is aging), and Tight End. By and large, there aren’t a lot of weaknesses in this unit.
So basically, this should be high scoring affair. The Saints’ strength on offense is obviously passing. The strength of the Carolina Defense will be in coverage. The Panthers look to run the ball, and the Saints played well against the run in 2007. If Duece McAllister makes a strong return the Saints’ offense will be difficult at best to stop, and the defense will benefit from the increased rest. If the Panthers get the strong running game they seek, then they’ll be in more or less the same shape. This game will likely be decided earlier in the year as the first injuries begin to mount. Given that the Saints off season is already a little rocky, what with the retirement of Dan Morgan and Charles Grant’s legal troubles, we’ll go out on a limb here and suggest that they’re going to have a difficult time in 2008 where this sort of thing is concerned. Given that, mark up a probable win for the home team. Or you can go the other way and look at the Panthers’ home record over the past few years and the fact that the road team has won eight of the previous nine matchups between these two teams, and figure it as a probably not. We’ll call it a firm maybe here.
- Carolina leads series 14-12.
Week Eight, home versus the Arizona Cardinals
2007 record: 8-8, second in the NFC West
2007 offensive rank: 12 (29th in rushing, 5th in passing, and 7th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 17 (9th against the run, 28th against the pass, and 27th in points allowed)
After two tough weeks of division play, the Panthers get a good breather against a good team. That is, they’ll get a chance to play a game against a talented opponent without the added pressure of division standings on the line. The Cardinals have a lot of talent, but they can be beaten and often are when they face the Panthers.
Last year the Cardinals had an injury report that read like the Panthers’. After starting the season with playoff hopes, they ended up playing for pride as their quarterback, defensive end, tight end, safety, and cornerback all had starters that finished on the IR list. This year they have a difficult early schedule, but will be coming into Bank of America stadium off a bye week, presumably rested and well prepared to gain revenge for last year’s loss.
The 2007 Cardinals had problems on defense both against the run and against the pass. Given that most of their major injuries were on the defensive side of the ball, that may be no surprise. Still, the lack of depth that was exposed killed their playoff hopes. To address that they drafted defense early, going with CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and DE Calais Campbell. With Rodgers-Cromartie the Cardinals hope to find a strong working combination for their secondary. They need to replace last year’s free safety, Terrence Holt, because he’s now a Panther. They’ll probably move a cornerback over and let a starter emerge from last year’s committee at the other side. At Linebacker they need to replace the strong side, as they lost both their starter and backup at that position to free agency. They’ll depend on a rookie, an undrafted free agent, or a 31 year old journeyman from the Steelers to man this position, which isn’t going to build confidence in their run defense. Still, just getting back the players on the 2007 IR list will give the defense a big boost.
On offense the Cards are largely set. They needed a little depth on the offensive line, and help at running back just because of Edgerrin James’ age. At tight end, neither Leonard Pope nor Ben Patrick have really shown anything special, although Pope spent most of last year on IR. With Leinart back though, and considering the skill of their two top receivers, the Cardinals should be able to move the ball well again.
This is a good game for Carolina to have after meeting the Saints. The Cardinals are yet another team that’s better in the air than on the ground, and by now the Panthers’ secondary should be playing in rhythm. Stopping the run shouldn’t be too much of a challenge, given the lack of improvements made in this area, and a one-dimensional Cardinals offense ought to be easy to shut down. If their receivers are healthy the Panthers should be able to move the ball against the Cardinals defense, at least enough to outscore them. The most damning Cardinal statistic is this though–over the last five seasons, the Cardinals are 7-33 on the road. Five of those wins have come against division opponents and the other two were against cellar-dwelling opponents that were having terrible seasons. The Cardinals may be talented this year, but this should be a win for the Panthers.
- Carolina leads series 5-2.
That concludes the second quarter of a John Fox season. Two games that the Panthers should win, and two where they have a pretty good shot. If things break the Panthers way then look for a nice winning streak entering the bye. If they don’t, the Panthers should still be in the thick of the playoff hunt and in the division race. Call it a 3-1 record, and if they can exit the first quarter at 2-2 then they’ll get to the halfway point at 5-3. Not great, but not too shabby and given Fox’s historical performance in November, enough to get the fans really excited.
See you next week with part three! :)
Four Quarters, a look at the 2008 schedule in May (games 1-4)
May 21, 2008
We all know that the offseason sucks. Aside from third-tier free agent news, not a lot happens in May (unless you’re in New Orleans I guess). The draft is a month old, training camp isn’t until July, and aside from the occasional interview not a lot is going on that’s worth discussing. That means it’s a great time to talk up stuff that will get us excited about next year. Everyone’s a homer in May, right? It’s easy to dream about going 16-0, no matter who your team is (except the Falcons of course).
If it’s so easy for us to do, how about our opponents? What do we know about them, and what they’ve done to improve? I’m not going to go into great depth here, but this article will take a quick look at who we’re facing in 2008. It does so from a May perspective, meaning that what you get probably won’t be close to what we see now. Still, it may be worthwhile to some to see how the teams will change.
So here’s my analysis, John Fox style. By that I mean looking at the season as four quarters, with a goal of going 3-1 or 4-0 in each one. This week’s installment will begin with quarter one.
Week One, at the San Diego Chargers
2007 record: 11-5, first in the AFC West
2007 offensive rank: 20 (7th in rushing, 26th in passing, and 5th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 14 (16th against the run, 14th against the pass, and 5th in points allowed)
The Chargers open 2008 thinking about a deep playoff run, and their team and fans will be disappointed with anything less. Simply put, the Chargers have no holes in their starting lineup. Their starting 22 is arguably the best in football, any problems they have are with age and depth. Since we’re talking about their season opener, neither should be an issue for them in this game.
On offense Philip Rivers and Ladanian Tomlinson will be healthy and ready to break down defenses either in the air or on the ground. There isn’t any proven depth behind Tomlinson, but at this time of year who cares? The big question marks for them on offense will come on the offensive line. Specifically, will the right side be able to open good holes for the running game, and how well will their left tackle fare in protection against quicker defensive ends?
On defense, Jamal Williams returns to plug up the middle and Shawn Merriman will be there to provide plenty of pressure. Although they lack depth, their ends are solid and so are their cornerbacks and linebackers. That said, the Chargers have a soft spot in the middle that may be exploited if Jake gets enough time. All in all though, they’re a pretty solid if not spectacular unit that doesn’t dominate against passing or rushing, but still keeps the scoring to a minimum.
So this looks like a pretty tough season opener. A bright spot here is that over the past four years the Chargers are 3-3 at home in September, and we’re getting them early. In the last four years the Panthers are 4-2 on the road in September. Under Norv Turner the only team that’s ever started fast was the 1996 Redskins. Ladanian Tomlinson is a notoriously slow starter. So there’s an argument that this Chargers team is likely to be like the ones in the past in that you can expect them to start slow but finish strong. If that trend holds true, there’s some hope here for an opening day Panthers win. Still, maybe it’s best to save your gambling dollars for a different game…
- Carolina leads the all-time series with the Chargers at 2-1.
Week Two, home versus the Chicago Bears
2007 record: 7-9, fourth in the NFC North
2007 offensive rank: 27 (30th in rushing, 15th in passing, and 18th scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 28 (24th against the run, 27th against the pass, and 16th in points allowed)
Most Carolina fans have learned to approach home openers with a cautious optimism. The Panthers are not known for success in those games; they’ve compiled a historical 4-9 record in home openers, including a 1-4 mark over the past five years. Chicago will be a good opportunity for win number five though, especially early in the season.
The Bears had a lot of problems in 2007. Their offensive line struggled to open holes in the running game (3.1 yards per carry), and at the same time gave up 43 sacks. They weren’t terrible on offense – certainly they were better than the Panthers – but they didn’t do a lot to address their biggest problems until the draft. They drafted Chris Williams presumably to anchor one side of the offensive line (2007 starter Fred Miller was cut), but they didn’t grab any of the better guards in Free Agency. Depending on rookies and aging veterans who didn’t do that great a job to begin with is not the way to regain any sort of form in the running game. They also didn’t try to improve at the QB position, which was a big surprise in many circles. At Wide Receiver they drafted a couple of decent prospects and signed a couple of journeymen, but this was after letting both 2007 starters go. It’s almost as if they think they don’t need a good offense to win.
The good news for Bears fans is that they’ve done a decent job of reloading on defense. Urlacher returns, of course, and Lance Briggs was brought back in a move that means the Bears still lay claim to the best Linebacking corps in the NFL. Their line is still a little thin across the middle, and they could use more depth at Safety. Still, all the pieces are still there for a dominant defensive unit. All save one–Ron Rivera. When Rivera was there, the Bears defense adjusted more to their opponents and masked injuries a lot better. The great defense of 2006 got new position coaches everywhere and a new coordinator for 2007, and responded by going from fifth overall to 28th. Theres a big question concerning which unit shows up in 2008.
This could be a win, and most teams would mark it down as a should. The Panthers will be healthy and the Bears defense still doesn’t have an answer to Steve Smith. The matchups favor the Panthers in a lot of places–the Panthers will want to run and they have a playmaker at the receiver position. They can completely smother the Bears receivers and turn them one-dimensional on offense. They’re at home. That says it all though, given their history they would be more likely to win this one if it was a road game.
- The all-time series record with Chicago is tied at 2-2.
Week Three, at the Minnesota Vikings
2007 record: 8-8, second in the NFC North
2007 offensive rank: 13 (1st in rushing, 28th in passing, and 15th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 20 (1st against the run, 32nd against the pass, and 12th in points allowed)
The 2007 Vikings would have dominated in the early days of football, back before you could throw the ball. They had the best rushing attack in football and were also the best at keeping the opponents from running. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t throw the ball and they couldn’t keep teams from throwing all over them. Until Adrian Peterson came on, they looked bound for the division cellar. Even with his strong running, they still couldn’t keep other teams out of the end zone enough to compile a winning record.
On offense the problems start with the Quarterback. Tarvaris Jackson looked brutal at times last year, and they sorely need a little more accuracy than he can provide. They drafted John David Booty because he has a neat name, and they also signed Gus Frerotte, but this position will probably still be pretty uncertain this early in the season. Of course, the running of Adrian Petersen makes a lot of that uncertainty irrelevant. If the Panthers can contain him, then they’ll look dominant on defense. If they can’t, they’ll look like the dominated. The Viking’s left tackle has problems with speed rushers, so that’s a point in the Panther’s favor assuming Peppers is having a good year.
The 2007 Viking defense was powerful against the run, or maybe it was just so easy to pass against them that teams figured out that they didn’t need to run to be successful. Stats can be funny things that way. If Pat Williams has another good year left in him (he’s 35), the Vikes defense should once more be stout against the run. They sorely needed a pass rush, so they traded for a one man gang there in Jared Allen. Between Allen and Ray Edwards’ return (he was suspended late in the 2007 season for steroids), they should be able to apply significantly more pressure to opposing quarterbacks in 2008. In the secondary, the cornerbacks and free safety were all awful in 2007, but that could be a result of no pass rush. Give an opposing quarterback enough time and any defensive back can be made to look foolish.
In ways, this looks like the anti-Bears team. Where the Panthers match up well against the Bears on paper, against the Vikings it looks like their areas of strength are the Panthers question marks. On defense, if the Panthers can keep Peterson from running wild against them then they should be able to keep the game within reach. The question mark on offense will be if the offensive line can give Delhomme enough time to pick apart the Viking secondary. This could be a close game, as long as the Panthers contain the pass rush. Call it a toss-up if you’re a homer.
- Minnesota leads the all-time series against the Panthers 4-3.
Week Four, home versus the Atlanta Falcons
2007 record: 4-12, last in the NFC South
2007 offensive rank: 23 (26th in rushing, 18th in passing, and 29th in scoring)
2007 defensive rank: 29 (26th against the run, 23rd against the pass, and 29th in points allowed)
The Falcons ended the 2007 season in exactly the shape fans wanted them; Panther fans that is. They took a team in disarray with locker room problems and huge holes on both lines and lowered the talent level by releasing some of their best players on both sides of the ball. Just listing their needs would make you wonder if they had a team at all: Quarterback, two tackes on each line, running back, center, guard, tight end, wide receiver, middle linebacker, cornerback, and safety. All that before you even address depth in general. Fortunately for them they went into the draft with a pile of picks. Rookies won’t do it alone though, and that suggests an interesting 2008 campaign.
At quarterback they have last years committee plus the new golden boy in Matt Ryan. If they don’t ruin him by throwing him to the wolves right away, he could develop into a great QB, a la Peyton Manning, to whom a lot of comparisons are already made. Too bad that in Manning’s first year he posted a whopping 71.2 rating on 26 TDs, 28 INTs, and 22 sacks for 109 lost yards. That was after a significantly better college career too… This early in the season they’ll probably still be starting Redmon, who doesn’t suck too bad although he still kind of sucks.
Their re-tooled offensive line will feature rookie Sam Baker and returning tackle Tyson Clabo in an engaging contest to see who’s more suited for the right side. The line surrendered 47 sacks, and the hope is that Baker will team with free agent Alex Stepanovich to upgrade the overall talent level and maybe get that number down to a more respectable 42. At Tight End, it’s doubtful that the committee of Ben Hartsock, Martrez Milner, and Keith Zinger will strike the same fear into opposing defenses as Alge Crumpler did.
At running back the Falcons do have something to look forward to. They signed Michael Turner from the Chargers in the offseason, but it remains to be seen how much of his 5.0 yards per carry average was due to Tomlinson fatigue and a strong offensive line. Being the feature back and running behind the likes of Kynan Forney may not give the same results, and by week three that should be plenty apparent.
On defense their problems start up front. They have a good pass rush in John Abraham and Jamaal Anderson, but they have no run stuffers on the defensive line. Ex-Panther Kindal Moorehead is slated to start next to Jonathan Babineaux, giving the Falcons two undersized defensive tackles on their front. Their linebackers are still the same group that they had last year, and one year older. That’s pertinent because Keith Brooking is 32 this year, and his replacement is a rookie who may be good, but who doesn’t look like the next John Beason.
Their secondary is just sad. Of their four starters, only Lawyer Malloy jumps out at the average NFL fan as someone to watch, and he’s 34. When half of your secondary is made up of castoffs from the Jets and Texans, you may need to worry about the passing game. There are several rookies here that might make an impact, but this is easily the weakest part of the defense.
So in summary, the Falcons are not likely to be very good this year. On offense they’ll try and run the ball, but it remains to be seen if last year’s 26th ranked attack was a one-time aberration or a sign that it’s time to rebuild. Their passing attack leaves a little to be desired, particularly since they lost more than they gained in Alge Crumpler’s departure.
So in this, the last game of the first quarter, the Panthers should get a good win against a struggling Falcons team. The Falcons defensive interior will wear down from the constant push of our large offensive line and the running style of Jonathan Stewart. Jake will have more targets in the passing game than the Falcons can cover. The Panthers should be able to shut down Atlanta’s passing game with minimal pressure, and if they can keep the Falcons from grinding it out on the ground then it’s no stretch to pencil this game in as a likely win. Coming at home versus a team we all love to hate will give a lot of cause for optimism, even if we’re just 2-2 at that point.
- Atlanta leads the all-time series against the Panthers 16-10.
So there you have it, the first quarter in a John Fox season. Call it two probables, a maybe, and a probably not. If the Panthers come out of here 2-2 I think a lot of fans will be happy, given the nature of the schedule. 1-3 is a possibility, and if the offense catches fire 3-1 isn’t out of the question. Of course, it’s all speculation at this point, but what else can you do in May?
Fox High on Connor
May 20, 2008
According a Nittany Lion Blog, Coach John Fox is pretty high on third round draft pick Dan Connor, penciling him in as high as #2 on the depth chart at linebacker. What is not clear is which linebacker position Connor is slated for. Speculation seems to point to the middle linebacker position behind DROY candidate Jon Beason.
http://blogs.mcall.com/nittany_lines/2008/05/carolina-high-o.html
