Teddy Bridgewater’s accuracy and defense have defined the Panthers’ 2020 season so far
The first quarter of the Panthers’ season is complete. With no OTAs, no preseason games and limited training camp practices, going 2-2 was better than many predicted the season would start out.
This group is still developing, but there have been signs to be encouraged by in Matt Rhule’s first year as an NFL head coach.
As the Panthers prepare to face another NFC South foe and try to get above .500 for the first time this season, let’s take a look at some of the numbers that defined the first quarter of the Panthers’ season.
73: Teddy Bridgewater’s accuracy
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s accuracy has been a key component in the offense’s early success. While his two interceptions against the Buccaneers halted opportunities to stay in the game, he has been accurate overall and made good decisions.
His 73% completion percentage is third-best in the league and is the highest of any Panthers quarterback through the first four games of a season in Panthers history. The next closest was Cam Newton in 2018 (65.4%). The second highest completion percentage in the first four games of a season overall came in 2014 (66.4%) when Newton and Derek Anderson both contributed.
Bridgewater has found success with his receivers early, especially Robby Anderson, who has the sixth-most receiving yards in the NFL. Anderson has already put together three 99-plus yard games, tying the most he ever had in a single year with the Jets (he spent four years in New York).
The offense has looked fine and had success without the team’s best player in running back Christian McCaffrey for the last two weeks. That comes from Bridgewater’s ability to get the ball to his receivers all over the field — from Anderson to running back Mike Davis. The Panthers lead the league in third-and-long conversions, converting 45.8%.
The play of the offensive line has helped in that area as well. Bridgewater has had time to throw (outside of the five sacks in Tampa).
3: Sacks by the Panthers
The Panthers’ defense is last in the league with just three sacks. Has the pressure improved throughout the last two games? Yes. But the team still trails the league in sacks this season, and three through four games is not something that will work long-term.
Defensive end Brian Burns has looked impressive, especially in the last 2 1/2 games, and he has one strip-sack this season.
Statistics don’t tell the whole story, but the Panthers’ lack of ability to get sacks consistently needs to change. Only once in the Panthers’ history has a team had three sacks or less through the first four games of a season (2 in 2007). That 2007 team finished with 23 sacks, an average of 1.4 per game.
Ron Rivera’s defenses consistently produced high sack numbers. This is a different defense with new players and they don’t need to match those numbers, but a priority should be sustaining pressure and getting sacks, especially when going up against quarterbacks such as the Falcon’s Matt Ryan.
“(Ryan) knows exactly what’s going on out there,” defensive coordinator Phil Snow said Thursday. “If you don’t pressure him, you’re not gonna have much success against him.”
22: Christian McCaffrey
The Panthers lost their best player and now the face of the franchise for at least three games. It has been one of the team’s biggest story lines and about the only thing that has consistently attracted national attention. It will be interesting to see how this offense looks when he returns and the role backup Mike Davis will play going forward.
227: Pass defense
Ranked seventh in the league, the Panthers have given up an average of 227 net passing yards per game. It’s too early in the season to make sweeping proclamations, but the pass defense has started much better than expected. The team was actively looking for defensive back help prior to the season, but claiming former Eagles cornerback Rasul Douglas turned out to be a smart move. Douglas has played well, as has third-year corner Donte Jackson, who has been dealing with a toe injury.
Success against the pass starts up front, but the Panthers have now faced a variety of types of quarterbacks and a defense filled with young players and new leaders has been more successful than expected. The play of the cornerbacks, and safeties Juston Burris Tre Boston and rookie Jeremy Chinn, who leads the team in tackles, has illustrated that.
50
The Panthers have a 50% red zone touchdown efficiency this season, tied for 25th in the NFL. Carolina scores in the red zone 94.4% of the time, but has only come away with nine touchdowns. There was significant improvement in the red zone against the Cardinals, but that will be a key to the team’s success against the Falcons, who have put up 25-plus points in three of four games.
Fifty describes the Panthers team in more ways than one — they’ve also won 50% of their games. The next quarter of the season will be more revealing of what this season will look like as a whole.
Required reading
+ What’s inside “The Rock” — the Panthers’ new $1 billion training facility in Rock Hill
+ Fowler: For 25 years, from Kerry to Cam, the ‘Atlanta Curse’ has haunted the Panthers
+ Phil Snow is a ‘brutally honest’ Yoda who’s fixing the Panthers’ defense with rookies (available at 8 a.m.)
+ A rivalry? Not quite, but Panthers have a chance to end streak against Falcons
+ Panthers have 2 running backs on injured reserve. Who’s left behind Mike Davis?
This story was originally published October 8, 2020 at 3:07 PM.
