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Positionless Players and the Problem with Being Anti Meta.

TheMaulClaw

By TheMaulClaw,
in Carolina Panthers

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TheMaulClaw Mentor

TheMaulClaw

Posted
Posted (edited)

    Meta is a gaming term.  It means the traditional way a character is supposed to be played. The way the game developers intended. There's a somewhat derogatory term in the gaming community called being a meta slave.  That means when someone isn't willing to think outside of the normal role of a character to perhaps gain a strategic edge in a non traditional style aka asymmetrical warfare. 

    The 2021 Carolina Panthers gained an edge throughout the first three games of the season being anti meta.  They've hoped to revolutionize the defense by using positionless players.  A safety that can play LB.  A DE that can play LB.  A LB that can assume the role of a safety.  DT's that can switch to the end.  All of this in the hopes of confusing matchup equations for opposing offenses.  In the first three games of this year, it worked brilliantly.  So what's the problem?

    Being so anti meta with positionless players means that your defensive line is light.  You can scheme run blitzes, but in the end of the game you will be closed out. When offenses decide to play smash mouth football it's over.  The Panthers have rotating DT's with no true run stopping ends, because the end positions are designed to be so flexible that a traditional DE can't play it.  Same goes for the LB's.  Denzel Perryman would be nice to have when we have to stop the run to get the ball back in the 4th quarter.  

    Cam Irving had an interesting press conference interview.  He stated that he was happy to be here because he could focus on playing one position....LT.  In his previous stops he was asked to play all over the line, instead of trying to master the craft at one position.  While Cam is no brilliant LT, it does give us some insight into the problem of expecting players to master multiple positions simultaneously.  

   Now for the most part, our defense has greatly improved.  In the first 3 games it benefited from having leads and being able to rush the passer.  However, what we have seen is when the game is even or we're behind the defense breaks down late game because it lacks the META BEEF to shut down the power run game.

    Hopefully this is just a result of having a young defense and trying to cover up holes along our front seven, but there is a small part of all this that has to make you wonder if we're outsmarting ourselves here.

While it's fruitful to on occasion go outside of the meta to gain an edge, it should not be a full time philosophy

Just thoughts.

Edited by TheMaulClaw
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Harbingers Grand Master

Harbingers

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1 minute ago, Pantherxtreme said:

Any defense will get worn down meta or not if the offense is being a 3 and out machine. 

The offense puts up atleast a average performance we win this game going away. But when you have the same amount of turnovers as you have points scored for an entire half, it's not much else the defense can do. 

We dominated TOP. We gave them short fields. This defense being worn down thing is not a legit excuse. 

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TheMaulClaw Mentor

TheMaulClaw

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1 minute ago, TheBigKat said:

Meta beta

 

 we’re trotting out trash o line with an OC who thinks he’s boy genius and have a QB who’s basically Andy Dalton +

I don't disagree with your assessment, but when the brass spends an entire draft on D, and two consecutive games we get closed out on the ground there is an issue.

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lightsout Grand Master

lightsout

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6 minutes ago, Harbingers said:

We dominated TOP. We gave them short fields. This defense being worn down thing is not a legit excuse. 

TOP says nothing of morale. If your offense is milking time and not scoring, especially after generating turnovers, it hurts your morale and that can have similar effects to being on the field too much psychologically.

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Fox007 Grand Master

Fox007

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7 minutes ago, Harbingers said:

We dominated TOP. We gave them short fields. This defense being worn down thing is not a legit excuse. 

Some of these doofs really are trying for that lol. Not only that but if they just fall on a fumble we win too. Defense fuged up down the stretch...its like its hurting their pussy to admit this.

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iamhubby1 Veteran

iamhubby1

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2 minutes ago, Fox007 said:

Some of these doofs really are trying for that lol. Not only that but if they just fall on a fumble we win too. Defense fuged up down the stretch...its like its hurting their pussy to admit this.

 

OMG dude. Take a chill pill. The world is not coming to an end. You sound like a petulant child who won't eat his broccolli.

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