Archives for September 2020

A Look Ahead: Buccaneers

Game Breakdowns, Prime Cuts with Norris

Panthers 
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Buccaneers 
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Well, that’s not the way fans wanted to start the Matt Rhule Era. There were some things to like about the team (mainly on offense), but there were also some things to work on. The Carolina defense looked lost at times, but you’ll have that when there is so much inexperience. Tampa, who also went through some changes in the offseason, started off with a loss too. It was an odd week one to say the least, as most stadiums didn’t have fans in the stands to help swing momentum. Here’s a look ahead to the Bucs:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

Head Coach

Bruce Arians

Offensive Coordinator

Byron Leftwich

Defensive Coordinator

Todd Bowles

Key Acquisitions

QB Tom Brady

RB Leonard Fournette

TE Rob Gronkowski

Key Losses

QB Jameis Winston

RB Peyton Barber

WR Breshad Perriman

Key Draft Picks

OT Tristan Wirf

S Antoine Winfield Jr. 

The Bucs’ offense looks a little different this year. They signed Tom Brady and Leonard Fournette and traded for Rob Gronkowski. Tampa didn’t get off to the best start, but neither did Carolina. The Bucs drafted one of the best offensive tackles in the 2020 draft, and one of the best safeties as well. 

Carolina Panthers

Head Coach

Matt Rhule 

Offensive Coordinator

Joe Brady

Defensive Coordinator

Phil Snow

Key Acquisitions

QB Teddy Bridgewater

WR Robby Anderson

LT Russell Okung

G John Miller

G Michael Schofield

LB Tahir Whitehead

CB Rasul Douglas

S Juston Burris

CB Eli Apple

KR Pharaoh Cooper

Key Losses

QB Cam Newton

DT/NT Dontari Poe 

LG Greg Van Roten 

K Graham Gano 

TE Greg Olsen

LB Luke Kuechly

DT Gerald McCoy

CB James Bradberry 

S Eric Reid

G Trai Turner

Key Draft Picks

DT Derrick Brown

DE Yatur Gross-Matos 

S/LB/N Jeremy Chinn

CB Troy Pride Jr. 

There has been more turnover on this team than any other team in the league. From coaches, to scouts, to players….This is an entirely different team. Carolina used all of their 2020 draft picks on defensive players, which is where most of their issues lied. 

Things to Watch

Carolina Panthers

Teddy Bridgewater played well for the Panthers, as he amassed 270 yards and a touchdown, with a quarterback rating of 98.9. Bridgewater will have his hands full on Sunday against the Tampa front seven, who was able to rush Drew Brees some on Sunday. Teddy does a good job of eluding pressure and stepping into the pocket. If he continues that, he should be able to take advantage of the Bucs and their lackluster secondary. Let’s hope the offensive line can hold off the Tampa pass rush. 

Christian McCaffrey started the game off slow on Sunday, but managed to get 134 total yards and 2 touchdowns against the Raiders. There’s no doubt that McCaffrey is still the best running back in the league. Last year, Tampa’s defense held McCaffrey to 110 total yards and 2 touchdowns in two games. That’s amazing when you consider he had a record breaking season. With Tampa’s front seven in-tact, the Bucs could give CMC some fits. Look for Joe Brady to get McCaffrey involved heavily in the passing game. McCaffrey should see some screens, intermediate sideline routes and possibly a deep throw or two so that he can take advantage of Tampa’s secondary. 

The Panthers have one of the fastest wide receiver trios in the league and that was put on display Sunday. Robby Anderson has a 75 yard touchdown from Bridgewater in the fourth quarter to take the lead and then capped it off with a successful two-point conversion. Fans shouldn’t worry about the offense, as they will likely get even better as the season progresses. People don’t realize how much the preseason reps are needed for an offense to sync. Especially in a year where a team has a new coaching staff, new quarterback and three new offensive linemen. Moore, Samuel and Anderson should get ample opportunities to gain separation and get a lot of yards. They must capitalize on a weak Tampa Secondary. Also, look for Carolina to get Ian Thomas involved more, as Tampa had issues shutting down Jared Cook last Sunday. 

Looks like the Carolina defense picked up where they left off from last year…..and that’s not a good thing. Josh Jacobs ran for 93 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Panthers, while Derek Carr added 239 yards and a touchdown through the air. Carolina also had no sacks or hurries on Carr, which is unheard of for a Panthers’ defense. To be fair, this is basically a new defense with a few rookies. Even though the stats aren’t there, Derrick Brown had a good game. Jeremy Chinn flew around the field and had 7 solo tackles in his NFL debut. Troy Pride Jr. played pretty well Sunday, too. He had good coverage skills but he needs to turn his head and look for the ball better. He was in perfect position to intercept that touchdown pass had he just turned his head. Pride definitely outplayed his draft position. 

Not all is bad about the defense, though. Jacobs didn’t break off any big runs and he only averaged 3.7 yards per carry. Teams last year averaged 5.7 yards per carry against Carolina. There was a lot to like about this young defense, but also a lot to work on. Kawann Short struggled against times, but he’s coming off a two game season and shoulder surgery with no preseason to get conditioned. He will get back to his form. Look for Phil Snow to incorporate a few defensive wrinkles to create pressure on Brady. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

Tom Brady struggled throughout the first half against the Saints, but started to get into a rhythm as the game wore on. Brady has some weapons to work with, but his offensive line looks a little shaky. 

Tampa has two very good running backs in Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones. Jones will get the start, but Fournette will likely get a few carries this week now that he’s getting acclimated to the offense. They should have some success against the Panthers’ defense. 

The Bucs have a really good receiving group in Godwin, Evans and Scotty Miller. They also have 3 solid tight ends in Gronkowski, Howard and Brate. Look for Brady to try and expose rookie Troy Pride Jr. and also veteran Tahir Whitehead, who struggled in coverage. 

The Tampa defense has a strong and fast front seven who can stop the run and rush the passer. Their secondary struggled last week at times and will need to get to Bridgewater if they want to have a chance. 

Keys to a Carolina Victory

• Get McCaffrey involved heavily in the pass game. Try and establish the run game with CMC and Mike Davis. Tampa only allowed 82 yards rushing last week, but Carolina still needs to let McCaffrey run. He’s a volume runner. Eventually he will break one or two runs off. 

• Protect Teddy. Bridgewater does well under pressure and steps into the pocket, but the offensive line needs to do their best to keep Teddy clean so he can expose the Tampa secondary. 

• Protect the ball. No turnovers!

• Contain Scotty Miller. Brady loves the small slot receivers and will likely feed the ball to Miller. 

• Maintain gap discipline on defense. Also, set the edge. Can’t let Tampa break off runs on the outside or through holes. 

• Utilize the receivers’ speed. Carolina has three wide outs that can take the top off the defense and gain separation. Go after the Tampa secondary. 

• Win the time of possession battle. The offense needs to sustain long scoring drives to keep the defense fresh and take the pressure off of them. 

• Get pressure and hurry Brady. It should be easier this week against the Tampa offensive line. 

Key Matchups

• McCaffrey VS Buccaneers defensive line

• Bridgewater VS Buccaneers defensive line

• Pride Jr. and Douglas VS Evans and Godwin

• Carolina’s pass rush VS Brady

• Carolina offensive line VS Tampa’s defensive line

Injury Report

Carolina

DT Kawann Short OUT

DE Yetur Gross-Matos OUT

G Dennis Daley OUT

Tampa Bay

WR Chris Godwin DOUBTFUL

TE Anthony Auclair OUT

Prediction

You can never discount Tom Brady, even at 43 years old. Once he gets into rhythm, he’s hard to beat. However, there’s a possibility he may be without his top receiver, as Chris Godwin is in concussion protocol and will need to clear it if he wants to play. Carolina will come out with a solid game plan and pull out a 35-29 victory in Tampa. McCaffrey will get 160 total yards and 2 touchdowns. DJ Moore will have 110 yards and a touchdown. Robby Anderson will also have a touchdown. Carolina’s defense will get their first sack of the year and end the game with 4 sacks. Troy Pride Jr. will get his first career interception. 

Hot Takes w/ Monty: Week 1 Rush Review vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Hot Takes with Monty

The 2020 NFL Season is finally here! Beyond all of the trying times of COVID-19 and the never ending battle against Social Injustice in America, the Carolina Panthers return to football has come back with perfect timing. We have a lot of different things to break down and cover so let’s jump right into it.

Week 1 Hot Takes w/ Monty
• Solid Performance by Teddy “2 Gloves”
It’s been a very long journey for Teddy Bridgewater with him battling back from a near career ending knee injury, back to a starting QB role in the NFL. So after showing flashes from last season in New Orleans, Teddy B has started off the 2020 season in good shape. Today we saw a very efficient, very composed, very poised and very confident QB. Teddy completed nearly 65% of his passes (64.7%), threw for 270 yards with a TD pass. And when needed, he escaped pressure by extending plays with his legs to pick up key first downs throughout the game. Now, by no means was his performance in Week 1 without mistakes. He actually struggled for most of the 3rd quarter with hitting WRs in stride down field, along with looking a little stagnant at times. However, it was also good to see him rebound late in the 2nd half with a 75 Yard TD pass to Robby Anderson to close a double digit defect. Moving forward I believe Teddy is in a perfect situation to thrive and be successful in Joe Brady’s system. I’d like to see a more aggressive QB at times, with him taking a more shots down field, but I also recognize that this all will be work in progress. So Panthers fans…”Buckle up and enjoy the ride!”
• Attack of the C-Mac / WRs struggle
Very simply put, Christian McCaffery is THE best RB in football. Also in other news, water is wet. We may not have turned out a W in today’s contest, but it definitely wasn’t because of “Run CMC” not showing up and showing out. On a Sunday where WRs not named Robby Anderson, were less than spectacular. In classic Carolina Panthers fashion McCaffrey carried this team offensively. On 23 carries, our guy rushed for 96 yards on the ground matched with 2 TD runs. He also tacked on 36 yards receiving on three catches, which ultimately put him over 100 total scrimmage yards for the day. As great as C-Mac was in Week 1, it was disappointing to watch DJ Moore and Curtis Samuel struggle throughout today’s competition. Both had costly 3rd down drops that would have extended drives in key moments of today’s game. To add insult to injury, DJ Moore got hit with a bonehead penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct for taunting, which killed our momentum in the middle of the 3rd Quarter. We absolutely HAVE to see more from guys like DJ and Curtis moving forward.
• Defensive Woes from a Young Core
Coming into the 2020 season most Panthers fans knew that our defense would likely be the “Achilles heel” of our team. We are simply too young, and too inexperienced in way too many different areas. Match that with a first year NFL Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator, we are bound to make plenty of mistakes in 2020. We are still incapable of stopping the run, our LBs look to be a liability in coverage, and our secondary desperately missed Donte Jackson today, who was injured early in the 1st QTR. It seemed like after the very first drive of the game, the Panthers defense had absolutely no answer for the Raiders offense and it’s quick passing game. QB Derek Carr had his way with our defense all game, and RB Josh Jacobs ran the ball down our throats. Rookie CB Troy Pride Jr was baptized by fire today with multiple blown coverage assignments down field which resulted in chunk plays from the Raiders. That being said, Rookie SS Jeremy Chinn was all over the field today and looked very comfortable in Snow’s system. Chinn finished 2nd in tackles for our defense today with 8. Rookie DT Derrick Brown looks like he’s going to be a monster on the interior once his fellow defenders learns to mesh with one another as the season continues. We didn’t see much from 2nd year DE/OLB Brian Burns today, which is a little disappointing and something to keep our eyes on. All an all, we have A LOT of growing to do Defensively but the talent is there to be molded correctly.
– Week 1 Offensive Player of the Game: Christian McCaffery
– Week 1 Defensive Player of the Game: Jeremy Chinn

4 Man Rush Game Predictions: Week 1 – The Rhule Era

Vince's Vindications

A new era begins Sunday afternoon in Charlotte NC and there will be new faces all over Bank of America Stadium. With all the uncertainty and unfamiliarity surrounding the 2020 season, predicting the outcome seems almost impossible. However, I believe not having a preseason works in the Panthers favor on Sunday. The unorthodox off-season offers them an advantage over the visiting Las Vegas Raiders.

NO PRESEASON
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has been around the NFL for decades now and he’s more than likely seen everything the league has to offer. However, COVID-19 leaves Gruden and his staff in a bind with little to no film of the Panthers and their new look schemes. Gruden has mentioned he’s opted to watch college film of both Matt Rhule and new offensive coordinator Joe Brady in order to be ready for this Sunday’s game. I don’t think it will be enough though due to Carolina jumping out to an early lead and able to hold off a late rally by Las Vegas.

Panthers 23  Raiders 20.

KEY MATCH-UPS
The Raiders boast a very good interior line of center Rodney Hudson, and guards Gabe Jackson and Richie Incognito. A newly revamped defensive front 7 for the Panthers will have their hands full getting to Derrick Carr and stopping running back Josh Jacobs. This is the biggest key to victory, limiting big plays in the pass game and stopping the running game in Week 1.

PLAYERS TO WATCH 
Rookie first round pick Derrick Brown will be key in trying to stop the Raiders run game. Carolina invested the 7th overall pick on Brown hoping he would put an end to the run game woes that plagued the Panthers in 2019. He will have veteran Pro Bowl DT Kawann Short returning from a Week 2 season ending shoulder injury from last season to help shore up the interior of the defense.

Raiders Tight End Darren Waller isn’t a house hold name. However, he’s one of the best players at his position in the league. Waller can line up all over the field causing match up problems for opposing defenses. The Panthers LB corps will look a little different without former All Pro Luke Kuechly in the middle, so limiting the effectiveness of Waller will be paramount in slowing down an explosive offense.

Tepper’s Training Camp Takeaways

Knowledge with Kevin

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper held a virtual press conference today with the local Charlotte sports media. He spoke on a variety of different topics and answered several questions. Here is a recap of what he said:

  • There has been significant improvement with diversity throughout the franchise on both the management level and the work force.
  • Construction has begun at the site of the new team headquarters in Rock Hill SC which will be ready in the next three years.
  • Has not ruled out returning back to Wofford College in Spartanburg SC as an interim training camp but did not commit either.
  • Having a new open-air stadium has more appeal now than it did a year ago.
  • There has not been any recent conversation with the owners of Charlotte Pipe and Foundry who are relocating which could be the new stadium site.
  • Hopes that fans will be allowed at Bank of America Stadium later on during the season because he loves to interact with the crowds before each game.
  • Is still bothered by the hard decision to furlough/layoff several stadium employees due to changes in the organization and the pandemic effects on the economy.
  • Richardson statue was taken down for safety reasons and will not return to Bank of America Stadium.
  • The decision to release QB Cam Newton was very difficult for him. His wife Nicole was crying alot about it as well.
  • Has not had time to think about GM Marty Hurney contract expiring in June 2021 but will look into it later on. 

Post-Training Camp Thoughts: Preaching Patience

Vince's Vindications

A new era is among us with uncertainty, confusion and even anger from some fans not happy with the perceived direction of the franchise. It’s important to remember the Panthers haven’t won a playoff game since that glorious night of the NFC championship game of the 2015 season. A breathe of fresh air was needed for a franchise stuck in neutral. I must admit I was skeptical and pessimistic about some of the decisions my favorite franchise made over the past 8 months.

Allow me to explain my new found optimism and why reports and news out of training camp has me on board with direction of the 2020 Carolina Panthers and beyond…….

Golf-keeeper Image

  1. Offensive Weapons
    An explosive group of young weapons and arguably the best collection of skill players ever assembled here in Charlotte has me optimistic that the offense will be able to score with anyone in the league. Joe Brady has the best running back in football, an emerging star at receiver and one of the best deep threats in all of the league. I expect Brady’s influence and genius to pay dividends on all the talent at his disposal.
  2. Youth
    Studying Phil Snow’s defense in preparation to his arrival in Charlotte, I wrote down the two words to explain his defenses which is “Fast and Violent”. After going all defense in the 2020 draft, along with the departure of beloved veterans the Panthers have one of the youngest defenses in all of football. While that youth may show early on, I except steady improvement from a unit that won’t have much experience, but they will fly around and hit you in the mouth.
  3. New Four Man Rush
    Young talent along the defensive line was much needed on this team. Long gone are the days of Charles Johnson, Greg Hardy, Mario Addison, Jared Allen etc. A youth movement among the defense is here. Most importantly, along the defensive line, Panthers were able to grab my #2 overall edge defender from this years’ class in the 2nd round. Pairing Yetur Gross-Matos with first round pick Derrick Brown, the Panthers have a good young core to surround around 2019 1st round pick Brian Burns and seven year veteran Pro Bowler Kawann Short. Assuming this group continues to get better on a weekly basis, I fully expect this defensive front to be among the league’s best for years to come.Golf Bg Image