Third-down defense stands out for the Panthers.
CHARLOTTE — The Panthers’ secondary has been ravaged by injuries, and they are coming off a game in which the opponent was desperate to run.
So, if there’s one surprise from their first four games, it could be that they’re among the best in the league at getting off the field.
At 27.7 percent, the Panthers are third in the NFL in third-down conversion % allowed.
The Vikings only converted 1-of-8, while the Saints converted 7-of-16 in the Panthers’ worst game in that category. They’ve allowed 13-of-47 conversions this season.
In that statistic, the Panthers were 23rd in the league last year, averaging 41.1 percent.
Defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero noted on Thursday that it started with the Panthers’ front seven talent, which includes Derrick Brown, Brian Burns, Justin Houston, and Frankie Luvu, among others.
“I think when you look at it, the first thing is that we have a lot of really good rushers when you can put Derrick on the field on the field, Brian, obviously, Justin, Frankie being activated in some of these deals,” Evero said in an interview. “So we have the ability to put people under a lot of pressure when we put them in those situations.”
“If you can rush the quarterback, you’re going to have success on third down.”
Of course, regardless of the rush, the Panthers’ secondary has been a mixed bag all season, with Jaycee Horn going on IR after Week 2, Donte Jackson missing much of last week’s game, and safety Xavier Woods losing time with a hamstring issue.
Evero complimented cornerbacks coach Jonathan Cooley and safety coach Bert Watts with preparing new players to play in numerous coverages. For example, injuries forced them to play a lot of one-linebacker looks with Luvu in the middle, while Jackson’s injury forced them to scramble a bit.
“It is, it’s a challenge,” Evero admitted. “But, you know, when you’re in this position, and really when you’re coaching in the NFL, you just know that’s part of the deal.”
“You’ve got to coach your twos and threes just as much as you coach your ones because, at any moment, they could be up.”
With so many issues surrounding the Panthers’ offensive woes during an 0-4 start, it’s legitimate to wonder what their offensive identity is.
According to offensive coordinator Thomas Brown, the question was justified based on the Panthers’ lack of a consistent strategy or clean tape through four games.
“That’s a great question,” Brown said. “And that’s also my entire point to us in terms of who we say we want to be and what we put on tape.” Every single position, I believe, still comes back to being physical. I believe we have been that way at times, but not always consistently. It’s still about identifying, generating, and winning matchups.
“We’ve won some games.” We’ve got a few explosive plays here and there, but it hasn’t been constant, and it also comes down to stuff that doesn’t require any talent. There are far too many mental errors and far too many penalties. So that’s who we claim to aspire to be. We must demonstrate this.”
Burns is frequently looked to as a team captain for answers, and after last week’s loss to the Vikings, he said he was challenging to come up with a solid one. However, he stated on Thursday that when they look at tape, they see both wonderful aspects and specific mistakes that have left them at 0-4.
They can glance across the field this week at the Lions, who started 1-6 and finished 9-8 last season, becoming one of the league’s hottest teams (except when they came here and froze). But he also understands that the first victory is frequently the most difficult.
“I think that’s one of the main things, because we approach every day pretty much the same way.” “Once you get that first win, we can start stacking them.”
Special teams coach Chris Tabor was thrilled with Eddy Pieiro’s career-best 56-yard field goal last week because the conditions were different than they will be this week in Detroit.
“I was really proud of that kick because he was a little bit into the breeze there,” remarked Tabor. “Obviously, we’ll play here in the dome (this week) and see how it feels in there.” I don’t think the wind will be too strong on Sunday.
He makes a lot of kicks in practice, and I believe people sometimes overreact when there’s a miss. What is the body of work, I often wonder? And I see the body of work over the course of the week. So I’m happy with where he’s at.”
Pieiro has made 27 of 28 field goals since the game in Atlanta last year, with the only miss coming on a 55-yarder at Seattle.
Brown stated that he expected Jonathan Mingo to return to the lineup this week.
The rookie wideout missed last week’s game against the Seahawks due to a concussion. He passed the concussion protocol prior to last week’s game, but he was held back because he didn’t practice full-time all week.
Last week, in Mingo’s absence, Terrace Marshall Jr. had nine catches for 56 yards. In three games this season, Mingo has eight catches for 64 yards.
Brown also stated that he planned to use the same five starting offensive lineman this week for the third time in a row. The Panthers are waiting for right guard Austin Corbett to return, which is not expected this week.
