If Matt Rhule wants to prove himself early in his Carolina Panthers head coaching tenure, he needs to pull out a victory in these five games.
Is there anybody holding out any meaningful expectations for the Carolina Panthers this year? If they’re not picking somewhere between No. 1 to No. 3 overall in next year’s draft, quarterback Teddy Bridgewater will deserve a darkhorse run at the league’s MVP award and Matt Rhule will need some Coach of the Year votes.
At this point, the Panthers have very little in the way of building blocks. In fact, anything that remotely resembled one has been shipped out this offseason. Vernon Butler started to show promise, but the former first round defensive lineman is now with the Buffalo Bills. Trai Turner was an All-Pro in his mid-twenties at guard, so it made plenty of sense to trade him for an aging Russell Okung at tackle. James Bradberry was one of the NFL’s best corners last year, but instead of a tag-and-trade for something, he was just allowed to leave outright for Washington.
Yes, you can point to Bridgewater’s record as a starting quarterback (22-12) and put much more weight into quarterback wins than anyone should. Otherwise, you’re looking at a miserable year in Carolina. Five must-win games? Let’s switch that to “five games in which they might stand something of a chance.”
Home: Atlanta Falcons
Despite the major issues along both lines, the secondary, etc., let’s not forget that the Carolina Panthers have a very, very nice trio of offensive weapons with Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, and Curtis Samuel. In that way, they’re not completely unlike the Atlanta Falcons who have the players to move the chains and a quarterback who can sling it.
Yes, the Falcons are mistake-prone and poorly coached and can’t seem to solve woes of their own in the trenches. The Falcons also just beat the Panthers a year ago by an embarrassing final of 29-3. Still it’s a new year with a new coach and new personnel so anything is possible.
Given Atlanta’s need for help at every single level of the defense, it’s possible the Panthers could ring up enough points to put away a team like the Falcons and heat up the seat under Dan Quinn (even more than it already is). Then again that’s going to be Quinn’s goal this year unless the team can strike gold in the draft at pass rusher. It will also be a bit harder if Alex Mack slides at age 35 and the team can’t make up for the loss of Austin Hooper.