Panthers Front Seven Struggles in Loss to Raiders

This group has to be better in order to win games

Prior to this week one loss against the Las Vegas Raiders, the Panthers' front seven was arguably the most secure area of the defense. However, both the defensive line and linebacker corps looked rather lackluster on the field today. Jeremy Chinn looked impressive as he helped the defense with eight tackles on the day. Shaq Thompson also produced a total of 12 tackles, which is the second-most in his career. Their performances were the highlights of this defense, but the rest of the unit underperformed.

The Panthers recorded zero sacks this week. Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was able to sit in the pocket, buy lunch, come back, and complete wide open passes on multiple occasions. The pressure seemed almost nonexistent for Carr to deal with. The interior defensive line was especially quiet out there. Derrick Brown had a total of three tackles and Kawann Short had four. The Raiders offensive line appeared to dominate them in the trenches seemingly all game long.

The linebackers didn't appear to be that exciting either. Tahir Whitehead did not exceed expectations, which is especially disappointing considering that this could have been a coming out party for him after Luke Kuechly's retirement. His big pass interference call especially hurt the team late in the game. While Thompson and Chinn had solid days, which were bright spots, it is still worth noting that Josh Jacobs rushed for 93 yards and three touchdowns and at times, made it look easy.

Josh Jacobs is one of the league's best backs who is running behind one of the most solid offensive lines in the NFL, so this may not be a warning sign. However, improvements have to be made at stopping the run and generating a legitimate pass rush if this team wants to win some ball games. Failing to do both exposed the Panthers' weakened secondary in the passing game, and we saw that today. This is just week one, so there is still plenty of time for the front seven to get back on their feet. They will be tested once again next week when they face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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