This has to change if the team want to contend in 2018.
If the Carolina Panthers want to hang with the elite of the NFL they’re going to need to fix their horrific late-game playcalling, and fast.
For the second straight week the Panthers hurt themselves in the dying moments with clock mismanagement and poor playcalling, which manifested on Sunday as a loss to Washington when Carolina was in a clear position to win. It wasn’t dissimilar to what happened in Week 5, except there was no 63-yard field goal by Graham Gano to bail the team out.
Against Washington the offense was in control at the end. The Panthers had two timeouts in hand, and despite being down at the 16-yard line with 5 yards to gain for a fresh set of downs, they elected to take back-to-back shots to the end zone for no reason, which ultimately set up Washington’s 23-17 win.
In his postgame press conference head coach Ron Rivera blamed the Panthers poor start for the loss.
“I thought our guys played well down the stretch, but it’s a four-quarter game, and when you don’t play well in the first quarter and a half you make it hard on yourselves.”
When Rivera was asked to clarify the decision-making during the game’s final plays, he chose not to discuss the issue.
“You make your breaks. We didn’t get any breaks on those.”
Similarly, quarterback Cam Newton blamed the start of the game for its conclusion, saying the team needed to “start faster” if they hoped to win.
While the pair’s evaluation is correct, the core reason for the game loss came during the final drive — and there was no explanation why that happened. Instead Rivera kept vacillating between praising rookie D.J. Moore for bouncing back following two early turnovers — calling it a chance to develop the young player — while also pinning the loss on those turnovers. It’s not really an accurate representation of why the Panthers lost on Sunday.
How the game played out.
It wasn’t until the second half that the Panthers looked alive after early turnovers put them behind. The defense was unable to stop Adrian Peterson, but managed to get their short passing game working in the second half and pulled within six points late in the game.
This Panthers somehow found themselves in control with just over a minute left in the game. A successful drive took the offense all the way down to the Washington 16-yard line in a handful of seconds, and sitting on two timeouts at second-and-5 is seemed almost assured Newton would lead the comeback, based on how the offense was moving the ball.
However, after burning a timeout (their first of three the team saved) it was as if Carolina completely forgot what took them down the field. Short crossing routes had moved the chains as Newton found his receivers with relative ease — but then the game plan drastically changed as Newton took back-to-back shots into the end zone, first targeting Christian McCaffrey, then Devin Funchess. Neither pass was close, neither needed to be attempted, and it left the Panthers on fourth-and-5. A pressure incompletion then sealed the win for Washington.
We’ve seen it before.
In Week 5 the Panthers botched their final minute against the Giants in astonishingly similar fashion. Mismanaging their playcalling and clock, the Panthers had to rely on Gano kicking a 63-yard field goal as time expired in a moment that made headlines for much of the week.
However, against Washington the Panthers managed their timeouts and clock, but made similarly horrific decisions for no reason. Washington’s defense was stuck in a no-man’s land, clearly struggling to handle the speed mismatch with McCaffrey on their linebackers, and Greg Olsen’s size advantages over the secondary. Instead of milking that advantage the Panthers played to their opponent’s strengths by leaning on longer-developing routes in a game where Carolina had already showed an inability to complete.
Whose fault is it?
It’s unclear whether the end zone shots were a product of Norv Turner’s play calling, or Newton making decisions at the line of scrimmage. Replay doesn’t indicate that Newton audibled into the plays, and traditionally when put in these situations the Panthers QB has a tendency to keep the ball in his own hands, rather than put the game on his arm.
Fans are rightfully upset right now, as they watched their team give away a game for no discernible reason. Some are pointing back to the opening drive of the game, when head coach Ron Rivera elected to punt on fourth-and-1 instead of having Newton attempt to extend the drive — but really that is moot. What defined this game was two calls in the red zone that made no sense, and it remains to be seen if the team will have an answer.
The Panthers are trying to cement themselves as a legitimate contender in the NFC, but the last two weeks have proven this team both deserve that reputation, while simultaneously seeming a million miles away.
Geoff Schwartz agrees, calling the Panthers a good enough team to make the playoffs, but not contend for a Super Bowl.