Panthers mailbag: Is this team for real, can WR Robby Anderson keep success going

The Panthers are 3-2 after five games, and tied for first place in the NFC South after their latest win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Before the season began, the Panthers being tied for first in the NFC South after five games seemed far from realistic.

But here we are, and you have Panthers questions.

Let’s get started:

Do you think Robby Anderson is going to keep producing with Teddy or is he going to have a regression? What do you think his stats are going to be at the end of the season? Where will he finish in the ranking for fantasy WR? - @scubaasteve3

I think he will. Anderson is averaging 97.8 yards per game and is on pace to finish with 115 receptions and 1,564 yards receiving. It’s natural for his pace to slow down. Teams will look at film on Anderson, notice his tendencies and try to focus on him.

But I think Anderson’s success will continue, and he’ll continue to be Teddy Bridgewater’s No. 1 option. If teams put too much focus on Anderson, that will open up opportunities for DJ Moore. And as you saw Sunday with his 57-yard touchdown catch, Moore can gash a defense, too.

I can see Anderson finishing with somewhere between 90-98 catches and around 1,300-1,400 yards receiving. Teams haven’t figured him out yet. I had a friend ask me two weeks ago, whether he should pick up Anderson on his fantasy team, because somehow he was still a free agent. I told him ‘heck yeah.’

That might be the best advice I’ve ever given. -JMA

How does the outlook for the o-line look the rest of the season, considering they’ve gotten better almost every week? - Owen Watterson

That’s a great point. This offensive line has only gotten better with each game and that’s partly because the unit has continued to get healthier as the season has gone on.

Left tackle Russell Okung, also a team captain, is back healthy after missing two starts against the Chargers and Cardinals with a groin injury. Backup Dennis Daley (ankle) is available once again, although the Panthers chose to make him and guard Michael Schofield inactive for Sunday’s game in Atlanta due to the latest injuries at tackle and Trent Scott’s ability to play both guard and tackle.

The offensive line has been clicking as of late and hasn’t allowed a sack in each of the last two games, something the Panthers haven’t done in consecutive games since 2011.

“We’re all just communicating well. Honestly, there were some things we didn’t do so well yesterday,” quarterback Teddy Bridgewater said Monday about the offense’s success against the Falcons. “But I think what’s happening is man, we’re getting the ball out fast enough sometimes to beat pressures, or guys are squeezing and bumping back in protections and different things, allow me to just operate and get the ball to our playmakers.”

The Panthers get the ball out quickly as part of offensive coordinator Joe Brady’s scheme. Per NFL NextGen stats, Bridgewater averages 2.55 seconds in terms of his time to throw, which measures the average amount of time elapsed from the time of snap to throw on every pass attempt excluding sacks. That’s sixth-lowest time in the league.

Part of the offensive line’s success has come from the receivers getting open or the quick passes the Panthers are using as Bridgewater said. This past game against Atlanta was actually the starting offensive line’s first game together after left guard Chris Reed’s three weeks on the COVID-19 list and Okung’s injury. As they continue to get in a rhythm together, they will only improve, but staying healthy has to be one of the unit’s biggest concerns. The tackles — Okung and Taylor Moton — are definitely a strength and the line can be an asset for the offense going forward. - A.G.

Teddy a MVP? Chinn a DROY? - Jarrett McCain

I wouldn’t go that far. Teddy has been good for the Panthers and was impressive Sunday. He’s second in the league with a 73% completion percentage and fifth in passing yards.

But for the MVP, what tends to matter most is touchdowns, and wins.

Bridgewater has only six touchdowns passing, which is ranked 25th in the league. And the Panthers are a respectable 3-2, but they aren’t among the contenders for a Super Bowl yet.

It appears Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson is on a direct path to the MVP trophy. He leads the league with 19 touchdowns passing, he has the highest passer rating among eligible quarterbacks at 129.8, is second in the league with 1,502 yards passing, and his team is 4-0. Bridgewater isn’t being asked to produce those type of numbers.

Let’s address Jeremy Chinn’s defensive rookie of the year chances, because that’s an interesting one. Chinn leads all rookies with 44 tackles. He also has a pass deflection, and I’d say he has been among the more impressive rookies through five games.

But he’s not a big name nationally, which definitely affects who gets the award. While he leads rookies in tackles, he hasn’t forced any turnovers.

I think players like Washington defensive end Chase Young, or Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen are more likely to win it, than Chinn.

Queen has two forced fumbles, two sacks and 41 tackles. Young has 2.5 sacks, one forced fumble and is a high-profiled name. Chinn certainly has a chance, but I think he has to do a little more. -JMA

At what point do we start seriously considering this team may be for real? - Russell Varner

I guess it depends on what your definition of “for real” is. For me, that designates a potential playoff team. I don’t think we’re there yet, but the Panthers will have an opportunity to reach that point over the next couple weeks.

Next up is a matchup with the 4-1 Bears. I don’t think a win over Chicago is enough, largely because the Bears’ record does not reflect how this team has actually looked on the field (you’ll know what I mean if you watched the Buccaneers-Bears game last Thursday night).

But after that, the Panthers have a big NFC South meeting with the Saints in New Orleans. Even though Drew Brees and the rest of the team haven’t gotten off to a stellar start, I still think that’s the benchmark for the Panthers. To beat a top division opponent on the road, — the Saints will also be coming off a bye week —and in Bridgewater and Joe Brady’s return to New Orleans, would be a huge statement.

The toughest stretch of the Panthers’ schedule is still to come and the next five games will be crucial. A Thursday night home game against the Falcons follows the trip to play the Saints and a game in Kansas City against the defending Super Bowl champs will follow that. But the first step would be a win in New Orleans in two weeks.

This team already surpassing expectations though. I had them finishing 4-12. So they are “for real” in terms of surpassing expectations and being in every game they have played. - A.G.

What do they plan to do with the run defense? - Jeff Lewis

The run defense is a problem and has been the entire season. The Panthers allow 133.4 yards rushing per game, which is eighth worst in the league. They’ve also allowed eight rushing touchdowns, which is tied for third-worst in the league. I was surprised the Falcons didn’t take more advantage of the Panthers’ weakness in the first half.

Toddy Gurley was running through huge holes the entire game. And players also had trouble bringing him down. Gurley finished with 121 yards on 14 carries and a 35-yard touchdown run.

“I thought the biggest issue was in our movements, our defensive line not getting in the gap, and making it an unclear picture for our linebackers,” Panthers coach Matt Rhule said. “We have to negate the long touchdown run, and to me, you just have to keep fighting to make five-yard runs, three-yard runs. I think it really starts up front with us being more disciplined about being in our gap.” - JMA

With how well the Panthers have been playing, it is getting the fan base excited. How likely is it that they would start selling single upper level tickets in time for the Falcons game? And also reach out to Roy Cooper to allow more then 7% fans in attendance? - Shaked Bar-Tal

Well, it all depends on how many people the state allows to be in attendance. The Panthers won’t open up the upper level of Bank of America Stadium until the attendance number is higher. Currently with the state’s 7% limit, 5,240 fans are allowed in. That number isn’t expected to change for the Bears game as the Phase 3 order is in place until Oct. 23, but Cooper will have to address the percentage of attendance allowed at outdoor venues in the near future.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see that number go up even slightly for the Thursday night game against the Falcons scheduled for Oct. 29, however COVID-19 numbers recently in the state have not been encouraging.

For now, I would say hang tight. The number in attendance would have to increase a bit to get into those upper level seats, but there are single-game tickets available for all of the remaining home games. - A.G.

This story was originally published October 13, 2020 at 4:01 PM.