Analysis: The Panthers have found a blueprint to win they can repeat every week
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Panthers at Falcons
Expanded coverage of Carolina’s Week 8 game
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In their previous three games against the Eagles, Vikings and Giants, the Carolina Panthers relied too heavily on Sam Darnold to win with Christian McCaffrey out.
Despite Matt Rhule’s declaration in Week 6 that they’d run the ball more, they didn’t. They’d run the ball in the first half and then forget about it.
On Sunday against the Falcons, the Panthers stuck to the running game, even when it wasn’t working well. And it worked out in their favor.
The Panthers finally snapped their four-game losing streak with a 19-13 win over the Falcons at Mercedes Benz Stadium, and they may have finally found the blueprint to winning again.
Just run the football.
“Joe (Brady) went into this game knowing, ‘Hey, this is how we’re going to have to win this game to have a chance,’ ” Rhule said of his offensive coordinator.
Before Sunday’s win, Darnold struggled considerably in his previous four games. He turned the ball over eight times (seven interceptions and one fumble). He looked uncertain of himself. He made bad decisions. And his teammates didn’t provide much help, either, entering Sunday with a league-leading 20 dropped passes. He was benched late in the Panthers’ 25-3 loss to the Giants a week ago.
After the New York loss, the Panthers’ coaching staff had Darnold go back and watch the film of his previous games when he was successful.
They watched Week 2 against the New Orleans Saints, when Darnold played his best and looked comfortable in the pocket. And then they watched how he looked in recent games when he rushed his throws.
It worked. On Sunday, Darnold played like an improved quarterback. He was calm in the pocket. His drop-backs were more natural. His feet were finally set. And when he made his throws, they were mostly on target.
He finished 13 of 24 for only 129 yards, but the most important stat was that he didn’t turn the ball over.
“I thought it was an excellently called game,” Rhule said. “More importantly, guys made a lot of plays, and Sam, I thought was excellent today.”
This version of Darnold can win games for the Panthers.
Unfortunately for Carolina, there’s a chance he could miss next week’s game against the New England Patriots in Charlotte. Darnold was knocked out late in the fourth quarter after taking a big hit from Falcons linebacker Royesade Oluokun. Darnold was evaluated for a concussion and never returned.
But whether he does play, and whether McCaffrey returns (he is eligible to come off injured reserve next week), Sunday showed that the Panthers must rely on their running game.
It was vital in their win. Even when the Falcons were expecting the run, they couldn’t stop it.
And again, this was without the All-Pro McCaffrey.
The Panthers finished with 203 yards on 47 rushing attempts (one was a kneel-down). It was the first time the Panthers have rushed for 200 yards or more since Rhule became head coach ahead of the 2020 season.
Credit the offensive line for paving the way, and Brady for calling more runs.
“We talked a lot about it. Today we finally did it,” Rhule said. “I think it’s a step in the right direction.”
Chuba Hubbard, who the Panthers drafted in the fourth round out of Oklahoma State in April, had 82 yards on 24 carries and a touchdown.
His 6-yard rushing touchdown with 6:35 left in the fourth quarter sealed the win for the Panthers. Before that touchdown, the Panthers had gone 19 consecutive drives without reaching the end zone.
“Offensive line did a great job blocking, and I just pressed it and hit it,” Hubbard said.
That touchdown drive lasted 15 plays, traveled 65 yards and spanned 7 1/2 minutes. And of those 15 plays, the Panthers ran it 12 times — six times by Hubbard, four by Ameer Abdullah and twice by Darnold.
Abdullah finished with 31 yards on eight carries. And Darnold had 66 yards on eight carries before his exit, including on the play he was injured and had his helmet dislodged — an 8-yard scramble to the Atlanta 3.
“Whenever Christian comes back, he’s another premier talent to go with a bunch of other guys who are figuring it out,” Rhule said of the running backs.
Running the ball often meant the Falcons’ defense spent too much time on the field. The Panthers won the time-of-possession battle with 35 minutes to Atlanta’s 25.
Before left tackle Cameron Erving spoke to the media Sunday, he grabbed a copy of the game’s stat sheet and studied it. At one point, he nodded his head. Later, when asked what jumped out, he said the number of times they ran the ball.
“Being able to run the ball like that, allows us to control the game,” Erving said. “That’s one of those pieces we’ve been talking about all year as far as playing complementary football. Give our defense a break. Drive down the field.
“Get points.”
Sunday could have been a more dominant victory had the Panthers’ receivers not dropped balls and had they not committed eight penalties. Hubbard also fumbled on the first play of the game; they still have much to work on. More often than not, relying on your kicker to make four field goals like Zane Gonzalez did won’t be enough.
“Zane did a helluva job today keeping us in that game early,” Erving said.
Darnold’s injury is also a concern.
But they found the blueprint: Run, run, run.
Now stick to it.
This story was originally published October 31, 2021 at 4:54 PM with the headline "Analysis: The Panthers have found a blueprint to win they can repeat every week."
