The Panthers open the regular season in a tough environment against a tough defense.
The Carolina Panthers offense was not good last season. This space was a plea to look borderline semi-competent on a week to week basis, and the Panthers were rarely able to reach that benchmark. But it’s a new season, and with it comes a renewed since of optimism and hope (for some). Virtually the entire coaching staff on the offensive side of the ball has been overhauled since this time last year with head coach Dave Canales leading the charge. Sunday’s game against the Saints will be his first opportunity to show who he is as a head coach.
That opportunity is against a formidable opponent. The Saints have been one of the better defenses in the league over the last several years. It’s a veteran laden group that completely stonewalled the Panthers last season. The Panthers scored a total of one touchdown across the two meetings, and that came with the team down 11 and only about a minute left in the game.
Hopefully this Sunday goes a little better than that. Here are the keys to making that happen.
- Get Bryce Young in a rhythm. There was rarely a Panthers passing play in 2023 that didn’t feature a catastrophic failure somewhere within it. Someone on the offensive line was blowing an assignment, receivers weren’t getting open, and/or Young wasn’t able to deliver the football accurately. The offense could never stack successful plays or find any rhythm. Canales and offensive coordinator Brad Idzik have been tasked with changing that. Preseason broadcasts talked about how the duo have emphasized to Young that he needs to get the ball out to the first open receivers he sees. The team needs that message to resonate and needs the scheming to give him open receivers to throw to. That gives him a chance to get some small victories that could stack into a solid performance.
- Attack the middle of the Saints defense on the ground. If the Saints have a weakness in their front seven, it’s their interior line. The listed starters are Nathan Shepherd and Khalen Saunders, neither of whom are particularly good. The Panthers made it a priority to upgrade the interior of their offensive line in the offseason, so they have a very clear on-paper advantage here. They need to utilize that. The only potential wrench in the plan is linebacker Demario Davis, but if the Panthers can neutralize him, they should find room to work the Saints up the middle.
- Keep the crowd out of the game. This goes hand in hand with the first bullet point. While the dome isn’t the black hole that it used to be in the Drew Brees days, it’s still a tough place to play. That’ll especially be true in Week 1 when fans haven’t quite had enough time to hate their favorite team yet. The Panthers need to move the ball, stay ahead of the chains, and string together first downs to keep the crowd calmed down. If they start going three-and-out over and over again, the crowd is going to get hyped up and really have an impact on the game.
It’s hard to know how the first game of the season will go. There are always surprises, and we don’t really know who everyone is yet. The Saints have historically been a tough test for the Panthers offense. Let’s see if Dave Canales has the answers the previous coaching staff didn’t.