Takeaways from the Panthers' Week 15 Loss to Green Bay

Panthers lose third straight game. Fall to 4-10 on the season.

Author:
Josh Altorfer
Dec 22, 2020 9:09 AM EST

The Carolina Panthers (4-10) traveled to Green Bay to take on the Packers (11-3) in what was supposed to be a lopsided victory for the home team. It certainly started out that way as the Packers got off to a 21-3 first-half lead. The Panthers played tough in the second half but it wasn't enough to cover up the mistakes they made to start the game. The final score ended up 24-16 in favor of Green Bay, solidifying them as the top seed in the NFC. It was encouraging to see Carolina fight back and make this a game against one of the best teams in the NFL. They could have certainly packed it in early and gotten blown out. Still, the team can not feel too good about the way things have gone this season after receiving their tenth loss.

Here are our initial reactions following the Panthers' Week 15 loss:

The defense is the strength of the team

Entering the 2020 season most analysts thought the Panthers' offense had the pieces in place to succeed but that the defense had a lot of uncertainty. Through 14 games it has become clear that the defense is actually the strength of this team. Brian Burns and Derrick Brown turned it on in the second half combining for four sacks on Aaron Rodgers, a man who is not easy to bring down. They also did an excellent job defending Davante Adams by limiting him to just 42 receiving yards. Head coach Matt Rhule had this to say after the defense tightened up in the second half:

"I think the biggest thing we said to our guys is we weren't playing football at first. Like they were throwing the ball out on the perimeter and catching screens. They were running the ball through us and we were not tackling. I think our pride kind of kicked in and we played better after that."

Robby Anderson and DJ Moore are a dynamic duo

Both Robby Anderson and DJ Moore eclipsed the illustrious 1,000-yard receiving mark in this game. This is often the standard that we measure to signify if a wide receiver had a great season or not. This is the first time that the Panthers have had two different receivers account for 1,000 yards or more in the same season in over 20 years. Carolina is in an obvious rebuild so it is nice to know that there is at least one position that the Panthers do not have to address this offseason.

"It's always great to reach a milestone. A win would have been better but the loss is something that we learn from. We are just going to go back to the drawing boards for next week." - DJ Moore

Brian Burns is an elite pass-rusher

Brian Burns proved on a national stage that he is a rare talent. He brought his sack total to eight on the season which moves him into the top ten in the entire league. The 22-year-old has solidified himself as the best pass-rusher on the defense and certainly a Pro Bowl level player. He had an incredible play at the end of the game where he chased down Aaron Rodgers to give his team one last chance to tie the game. The offense was unable to capitalize but Burns' effort and ability did not go unnoticed. He has the talent to one day lead the league in sacks and that day could come sooner than many might have expected. Burns had this to say when asked about the promising future of the defense: