The Panthers Edged Out the Eagles, But These 6 Things Matter

The Carolina Panthers should've blown out the Philadelphia Eagles. With how the two teams are currently constructed, it should have never been close, even if the final score suggests there was some space between these two teams.

So, the Panthers got a much-needed win after the bye week. But what really matters?

Taylor Moton makes everything better

Pass protection on Sunday was significantly better than it has been. The biggest change? Monroe Freeling for Taylor Moton. Freeling hurt his knee, and Moton was finally ready to return, and he immediately made the entire line's performance a little bit better.

Penalties are going to cost this team

The Panthers have struggled with penalties this year. It wasn't a big issue last year, but this year, it seems every single week there's a discussion to be had about the penalties. Today, they made so many brutal mistakes, and it nearly cost them. One day, it actually will cost them a win. They literally set a franchise record for penalty yards.

Dave Canales still doesn't know how to use a bye week

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales looks on after the game against the Atlanta Falcons | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dave Canales has had two major bugaboos in his tenure. Coming out of the gate ready to play in Week 1 and bye week preparation. He got the offense rolling early this season, so that wasn't an issue. But once again, the bye week wasn't as fruitful as it's supposed to be.

Special teams matter

Two bad mistakes by the Eagles on punts helped the Panthers out a ton. But on the other side, Carolina's inability to field a punt without committing a penalty hurt the Panthers a lot. It ruined several big returns. Special teams matter a whole lot.

The Panthers can win ugly

When the offense isn't clicking, and the defense isn't generating turnovers, or when penalties come up at the worst possible times, can the Panthers do enough to get an ugly win? Being able to do so is the mark of a good team, and the Panthers proved today that they can do it.

Ejiro Evero still needs to clean things up

Overall, it was a good day for the Panthers' defense, but that was partly because the Eagles are in utter shambles. Evero was aggressive early on, and he had the Eagles on their back foot. Then, he inexplicable let off the gas, and it allowed the Eagles to crawl back into the game. That never should've happened.

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