6 opinions about the Panthers: On grass vs. turf, the coaching search and Josh Norman
A half-dozen opinions about the Carolina Panthers on everything from Josh Norman and Steve Wilks to the controversial artificial turf at Bank of America Stadium and the 2023 NFL draft:
Josh Norman should have played more
The Panthers signed 35-year-old veteran Josh Norman to help their depleted cornerback position a week ago and then only played him for 10 of 78 defensive snaps against Tampa Bay.
Should it have been more? Absolutely.
Carolina’s defensive backs were getting torched in the 30-24 loss by Tom Brady (432 passing yards) and wide receiver Mike Evans (207 receiving yards and three TDs of at least 30 yards).
Yet Norman barely played. Interim head coach Steve Wilks said Monday he just didn’t think Norman was ready for more than the number of snaps he got.
“That was my opinion,” Wilks said. “When you get a guy that’s been sitting on a couch, he’s been running his coffee shop, doing the things that he’s been doing, I’ve felt very pleased with him being in the building coming back trying to contribute and help — but not to the extent to where he was going to play a lot yesterday. So I didn’t want to put him in that situation.”
However, the Panthers couldn’t have been any worse.
Norman took the high road when asked about his playing time Monday, saying he was brought in to do whatever the coaches asked.
Said Norman: “I wasn’t disappointed. It is what it is. ... I’m here for whatever they need me to do.” Still, the Panthers should have trusted Norman to do more.
Grass vs. turf: Grass must win
The debate over natural grass vs. artificial turf fields is never-ending in the NFL, with players always preferring grass.
But Bank of America Stadium switched to a turf field in mid-2021, with Tepper Sports & Entertainment officials citing the stadium’s increased use as a soccer and concert venue.
That saved money, but it was a mistake. The field should be returned to grass.
Now you have Panthers players openly criticizing that move in the locker room, and I can’t tell you how rare it is for players to do that when they are basically biting the hand that feeds them, given that owner Dave Tepper signs the checks and it was under his umbrella that the field got switched to turf.
But linebacker Shaq Thompson and offensive lineman Austin Corbett both sounded off on the artificial turf field Monday in the wake of the grievance that is in the midst of being filed by the NFL players’ union regarding the field’s condition in 20-degree temperatures Dec. 24 against Detroit.
“It was like concrete,” Thompson said of the field against Detroit. And, the veteran linebacker added of anyone who doesn’t think switching back to grass is a good idea: “They don’t understand how our bodies feel on that (expletive) turf.”
Corbett said that the Dec. 24 game in Charlotte was “definitely the hardest field I’ve played on. A lot of guys were saying the same thing.”
Both Thompson and Corbett pointed out that the stadium installed a temporary grass field for a single game so that English Premier League soccer team Chelsea FC would play an exhibition against Charlotte FC in July. Most EPL teams play almost all or all of their games on grass, and it was Chelsea that made that natural-grass request.
“If they’re doing it for a safety thing, our sport is significantly more violent,” Corbett said. “Seems pretty straightforward.”
Thompson said he hoped that Tepper would “listen to his players” about the grass/turf debate. Same here: It’s going to cost more, but the Panthers should find a way to switch the field back to grass and then cover it up for concerts.
Should Panthers win Sunday? No
Carolina’s loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday knocked the Panthers (6-10) out of the race for the NFC South. There was a lot to unpack from that loss, but one thing is now certain: the desire of the team vs. its fans should be different for the season finale at New Orleans.
For players and coaches, obviously they want to win and will try their best to do so. Why do they care about draft picks? They may not even be here, and 7-10 sounds better than 6-11. For Wilks, going 6-6 in his temporary stint will sound better than 5-7 as he tries to get the permanent job here.
But for fans, honestly, you should want the Panthers to lose.
The Panthers could draft as high as No. 6 if they lose Sunday, depending on results. They might fall all the way down to the 12 or 13 spot if they win.
That could mean the difference between the quarterback they want being available or not — and they should definitely take a quarterback at No. 1. My favorite is Alabama’s Bryce Young, but with several months left before the draft, I might be swayed. Still, a loss is the better long-term play.
Three more quick hits
▪ There are rumors out there that Wilks won’t get the job and that Tepper will turn instead to a proven offensive mind to try to lift the Panthers out of a five-year-no-playoffs funk. I still think Wilks should get it, and that he should turn the offense over to a blue-chip offensive coordinator.
▪ I didn’t attend the Tampa Bay game in person in Florida, but it was a pleasure to listen to former Panthers tight end Greg Olsen on the Fox Sports TV analysis. Olsen has really grown into his role as a top-notch analyst, and one of his rewards as Fox’s lead analyst will be calling his first Super Bowl in February.
▪ The Panthers have to throw the ball better in 2023 to win more. As Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles said after Sunday’s game: “We wanted to make them beat us through the air. We didn’t think they could beat us through the air, so we tried to take those two guys away [running backs D’Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard] on the ground.”
Tampa Bay allowed Sam Darnold to throw for 341 yards by selling out to stop the run, but Bowles was right, because the Panthers also committed three turnovers on would-be pass plays. Carolina isn’t set up to win a game when it has to throw that much. And that has to change.
This story was originally published January 2, 2023 at 5:52 PM.
