Monday Morning Thoughts: Now What?

Recapping the Panthers' loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Sunday's 24-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers rounded out the AFC North's sweep of the Carolina Panthers. Three of the four losses (Cincinnati, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh) could be considered some of the worst games the Panthers have played this season. Why the Panthers, a team that prides itself on physicality and winning in the trenches, had such a hard time fitting in/competing with the physicality of the AFC North is mindboggling. 

Entering the day, the Panthers controlled their own destiny as far as the playoffs were concerned. Win the last four and you're in. Easier said than done, obviously. With the loss, Carolina needed some assistance from Cincinnati and Joe Burrow and the Bengals came through, defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 34-23. 

Thanks to the Bucs losing, the Panthers are right back in the same situation they entered the day in - win out and you're in. Again, easier said than done. Interim head coach Steve Wilks and players had to answer questions all week leading up to the Steelers game about winning out. In his postgame press conference, Wilks made it clear to the media that he doesn't want to hear the 'P' word anymore. It's one day, one game at a time.

"I thought the focus was fine. The execution did not prevail. Still not worrying about it last week, not worrying about it now. We’ve got to worry about trying to get ourselves right to win a football game. I don’t want anybody in this building talking playoffs."

Getting back on track will be no easy task as Carolina is set to welcome in a red-hot Detroit Lions team, who has won three straight and six of its last seven games. Not to mention, they're an offensive unit that ranks 10th in converting third downs, something Carolina had fits with on Sunday against Pittsburgh who converted 12/16 third down opportunities. 

So, now what?

Well, the Panthers must do something they've had to do all season long - overcome adversity. Wilks has mentioned numerous times to his team and to the media that they can't allow it to get in the way, whatever it may be. Be it a coaching change, a player being traded, an injury, a different starting quarterback, an embarrassing loss, etc. It's on to the next. 

Right now, it is figuring out how to find and sustain success offensively when the run game is shut down. Teams know what the Panthers want to do, it's no secret. They want to run the ball 35-40 times a game, control the clock and take three or four shots downfield off play-action. The problem is, that same game plan is only going to work so many times before opposing teams have an answer for it. Now, it's up to offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo to figure out how to counter it.

Does this mean McAdoo should start dropping Darnold back more often? Not necessarily. Maybe getting Sam on the move is something they need to do more often. Get him rolling out of the pocket via play-action, throw in some read options, and RPOs that have just one or two reads that allow for quick decisions to be made. 

As a play-caller, you have to change the picture for the defense. Even if you run different actions out of three or four formations, teams are going to catch on to what you're trying to do. Detroit, Tampa Bay, and New Orleans all struggle to defend the run but that doesn't necessarily mean Carolina is going to be able to run the ball at will over the course of the next three weeks. Just like Pittsburgh did, those teams are going to load the box and dare Carolina to win with Darnold's arm. If he can make a few intermediate/downfield throws, it'll lighten the box and allow D'Onta Foreman to do his thing in between the tackles.

The fact of the matter is, the Panthers can still achieve everything they have set out for. Can they overcome it and not allow it to get in their way of making the playoffs?

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