Panthers Red Zone Report: 360 Yards Meant Nothing Without Touchdowns

I like Ryan Fitzgerald. He's been really good for the Panthers, and I'm definitely not going to complain about a guy making all four of his field goals.

I just don't want to see him that much.

That's probably what bothered me most about the Cleveland game. Carolina finished with 360 yards of offense and outgained the Browns by more than 100 yards. Bryce Young threw for 291, Chuba Hubbard ran for 82, and, looking at those numbers, you'd probably think the Panthers scored more than 18 points.

They didn't. Carolina kept moving the ball, getting close enough to score and then settling for three points. Somehow, the Panthers still had a chance to win the game at the end.

Bryce Young Didn't Have Much Time to Work With

I know I've talked about the offensive line a lot this week. I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but after watching Bryce Young get pressured on 51 percent of his dropbacks in Cleveland, it's hard not to keep coming back to it.

Then there's the fact that he threw the ball 48 times. Maybe I'm making this too simple, but if your quarterback is getting pressured that much, I'm not sure asking him to throw it nearly 50 times is helping anybody.

Cleveland deserves some credit. The Browns did some things up front that Carolina didn't handle very well, and sometimes the other team just beats you. That's football.

The problem is it doesn't get any easier this week. Aidan Hutchinson is coming to Charlotte, Damien Lewis has already been ruled out, and Monroe Freeling is questionable. Freeling did practice fully Friday, so maybe he's able to go, but this isn't exactly great timing for an offensive line that's already had some problems.

I'm not expecting Carolina to keep Hutchinson away from Young all night. Just don't let him wreck the game, and please don't put Bryce in another situation where he has to throw it 48 times.

Carolina Moved the Ball, So Where Were the Touchdowns?

This is the part I don't understand.

The Panthers weren't going three-and-out all afternoon. They moved the football and got themselves into scoring range. Fitzgerald made field goals from 35, 41, 53, and 37 yards, so he did his job every time Carolina sent him out there.

That's 12 of Carolina's 18 points coming from the kicker.

The Panthers didn't finally get into the end zone until there was 4:31 left, when Bryce found John Metchie III from eight yards out. It was a good drive, and it showed Carolina could finish one. I just kept wondering where that had been the rest of the afternoon.

Maybe that's why I'm not overly impressed by the 360 yards. It's nice, but what did it really get them? Carolina lost the game.

That's what has to be different against Detroit. If the Panthers put together a couple of nice drives Sunday night and both end with Fitzgerald kicking field goals, I'm probably going to start getting a little nervous.

Detroit can score. Trading touchdowns for field goals usually doesn't end well.

So What Would I Change?

I'd start with Chuba Hubbard.

He had 19 carries for 82 yards against Cleveland, which comes out to a little over four yards per carry. Nothing spectacular, but I'll take it. If giving him a few more carries keeps Young from having to throw the ball nearly 50 times, that sounds pretty good to me.

I'd also try to make things a little easier on Young when the pressure starts coming. Get the ball out quicker. Use the tight ends. Give McMillan something underneath. It doesn't always have to be a big play.

Then, when Carolina gets close, somebody has to finish it. Maybe it's Young. Maybe it's Hubbard, maybe McMillan finally gets his first touchdown. I really don't care who does it.

Just finish the drive.

That's really where I'm at after Cleveland. I don't need 400 yards of offense Sunday night, and I don't need Bryce to throw for 300 just so we can talk about how good the numbers looked afterward.

Give me touchdowns.

Because four field goals and one touchdown almost worked against Cleveland.

I don't think it's working against Detroit.

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