Panthers’ Bozeman after loss to Bears: ‘We just weren’t executing all across the board’

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young took nine hits and was sacked three times during Thursday night’s 16-13 loss to the Chicago Bears.

“Obviously the protection has to be better,” head coach Frank Reich said after the game. “I think there are multiple things that go into that. We’re always evaluating all those.”

Young was sacked twice on third-down plays, of which the Panthers converted only 3 of 15 on the night. A third of Carolina’s drives ended in negative yardage, and potential offensive sparks stalled behind a stagnant running game.

“When you’ve got a rookie quarterback, defenses are going to throw something at you that you haven’t seen and they’re gonna try to pressure and create movements,” guard Austin Corbett said. “We gotta take ownership of that up front.”

The Panthers accumulated only 43 rushing yards, with few holes showing enough green for any Panthers backs to break through.

“We just weren’t executing all across the board,” center Bradley Bozeman said. “The entire offense, we’ve got to do better, we’ve got to play better.”

Bright spots on offense were few and far between, with all of Carolina’s 13 points arriving off special teams efforts thanks to returner Ihmir Smith-Marsette’s touchdown and kicker Eddie Piñeiro’s two field goals.

As for the offensive line, it’s about continuing to execute in practice and finding ways to make sure that execution ends up on the playing field.

“You’ve got to be able to look yourself in the mirror, translate it, take those practice reps and visualize them more than just in practice. Take them to meetings, take them home with you, dream about them, and make them come to life on (game days),” Corbett said.

“Whoever’s in there, we truly believe in our offensive line room and that’s what we need. We’re the five to get the job done.”

This story was originally published November 10, 2023 at 12:00 AM.