Panthers DC Phil Snow on his 2020 disappointments, draft expectations and finding a CB
The Carolina Panthers 2020 defense could be described in a few ways.
Young. Developing. Inconsistent. A work in progress.
That could all be condensed to say it was a first step in what was expected to be a years-long project, and that was the mindset going into the season. Creating a new dominant defense was going to take time, or as Panthers team owner David Tepper has said, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
Over the course of the season, the group improved, often aided by smart adjustments by defensive coordinator Phil Snow, while rookies like Derrick Brown and Jeremy Chinn flashed their potential.
Carolina finished the season allowing the second-highest third-down conversion percentage (49.2%), ranked 18th in net yards (360.1) and points per game allowed (25.1) and 22nd in first downs given up. The Panthers had 29 sacks, tied with the Atlanta Falcons for the ninth-fewest in the NFL.
For a defense that was just beginning the rebuilding process, finishing in the middle of the pack in some of the biggest defensive statistics is nothing to laugh at.
But Snow doesn’t view it that way. In a wide-ranging conversation with The Observer recently, the defensive coordinator spoke on why he is not happy with how the unit played in 2020, what he’s looking for in some of the key positions and more.
This interview has been edited for clarity.
Alaina Getzenberg: After getting some time to step back from the season, how do you view 2020 for your defense?
Phil Snow: “I’m not happy with anything really. Winning five games is not what we came here to do. Being between 18th and 22nd in a lot of defensive categories is not the goal that I have for this defense. I think we have a long ways to go.”
AG: Are you happy with at least some of the improvement made? Things seemed to be moving in the right direction.
PS: “Well, I mean, we did get better, but until we get to the level that we’re going to be at, I’m not happy about anything.”
AG: During the Senior Bowl, a lot of younger assistant coaches got opportunities to coach positions. Why is that important?
PS: “My job, and I learned this from the guys when I was young, as an older coach, it’s our job to develop the people that we work with and to see them go on and do great things. And so, like Cedric Whitaker coached the corners. And Cedric, he does a great job, he does a great job in meetings and now he has a chance to be “the” guy on the field, coaching the corners. That’s invaluable. It’s good for us to watch him. Other people will watch how he does and it’s good for him. I was excited for those guys that had the opportunity to do that.”
AG: Did you keep an extra eye on those coaches?
PS: “Oh yeah, I go over and watch them. And then we talk about stuff before we get on the field, but they’re doing a good job.”
AG: What specifically are you watching for when you get to spend a week with NFL draft prospects? What’s important to you?
PS: “The basic thing we tell them is that we’re trying to figure out if you can learn. We’re limited in what we can play in (the Senior Bowl) game, they tell us what defenses we can play. We only had three defenses, but the details of them and those type of things, we tell them, ‘Hey there’s multiple other things that you’re going to learn when you get to our level.’ But what we’re looking for is: Can you do all the little things that it takes to do these three coverages and these two fronts? Can you learn? How do you learn on the field and in the classroom? Do you take good notes?
“Those are the things we’re trying to teach them, is how to be a pro. You come to work every day and you take good notes, and you’re present at every meeting, and your mind not wandering and doing all that, you’ll have a chance to learn what you’re supposed to learn.”
AG: Cornerback is one of the positions of need on the defensive side. What are you looking for in a corner?
PS: “The first thing is they’ve got to be able to run. If they can’t, then it limits what you can and can’t do. So that’s a priority. They have to have quickness. You have to be sudden, somebody moves really quick you say, ‘oh wow,’ you can recognize it. Those are things that good corners have.
“And then, along with those two, you’d like a real competitive guy. Because if you’re not competitive at corner, you just get eaten alive, because it’s a hard position. You’re not going to win all the time. So, if you can get a guy that has the speed, the movement skills, which is the quickness, the change in direction and then they’re competitive, then you have a chance to have pretty good football player. Now, along with that, you’d also like good ball skills.”
AG: That sounds pretty hard to find, someone with all of those skills.
PS: “Well they’re hard to find. You know where they’re playing? They’re playing on offense at wide receiver.
“ ... When I was in college coaching, I also tried to convince the tailback to play safety and the receiver to play corner, because of the skills they have. If you look at all the great DBs, and you go back in their history, a lot of them were really good offensive skill guys in football, played basketball, all the movement stuff they’re really good at and good hand-eye coordination. That’s what we’re looking for.
“Now, as you get longer people, if a guy is bigger, then he’s probably not at times, maybe not as quick, but he gets away with it because of arm length and size. You have to be smart, based on size and speed, and then you try to put it together and hopefully you picked the right one and he becomes a hell of a corner.”
AG: There seems to be a lot of attention on finding the “next” Jeremy Chinn, someone who can do it all. Can you have too many hybrid players on your defense?
PS: “Well, really, when you look at the league, most people are specific to their position and they’re really dominant at their position. That’s really most of the league. Now, do you have a linebacker that can cover tight ends and backs? There are exceptions and you have safeties that can do that, but for the most part, it is a position-oriented league.”
AG: Would you take another Chinn if he came along?
PS: “Yeah. Jeremy at 220 pounds can play three different positions, based on a skill set. Those type of guys, they also are great special teams players. We’ll take a bunch of guys like Jeremy.”
AG: Do you have a vision right now for where you want Chinn to play in year two?
PS: “I think that’ll have a lot to do with, after three months (of the offseason) this team will be put together, who we have, and the roles of each player and I think that will dictate how Jeremy is used.”
AG: Defensive line coach Mike Phair was let go after the season. What are you looking for in a coach and from your line?
PS: “There are three levels of a defense. The front dictates the tempo of how you play. They just do. If you look at the two fronts in the Super Bowl, they dictate the tempo. They recreate the line of scrimmage. They play with passion and energy. They’re able to stop the run, and also rush the passer so that’s what we’re looking for. Is this group, we add a few pieces to it, we’ll end up hopefully looking like that.”
AG: What are you hoping that your coaching staff takes away from this season?
PS: “We all know what we have to do and what we have to get better at and the types of players that we need. We know that. It’s just a process, right? Anytime that you play, we ended up playing nine rookies on defense, right? So, it’s just a process, and we’re not happy with anything until the process gets right. We’re trying to formulate a really good roster this year that helps us win more football games.”
