The Carolina Panthers' 31-18 loss to the New York Giants Sunday wasn't surprising -- the Giants were favored to win -- but the way that they lost the game was. From my viewpoint -- which for Week 1 was in front of a TV, just like most Panther fans -- here are the 5 things I liked the least:
1) Matt Moore's performance. Three end-zone interceptions?! That's really bad, and exactly the sorts of mistakes that Moore avoided in his great December (when there was far less pressure on him) in the preseason. Moore also fumbled, held the ball too long on several occasions and (to be fair) threw some arrows, including for Carolina's lone TD to Steve Smith. He also got very little help from his offensive line -- Jordan Gross got beaten badly on the fourth-quarter sack that likely led to a Moore concussion and puts into serious question his availability for next Sunday.
2) 17-2. That was the margin the Panthers were outscored by the Giants in the second half. The two points came on a punt block once the game was decided. Carolina led 16-14 at halftime, then disintegrated. Lay the blame for that one largely on Coach John Fox and his staff, who were definitely "out-adjusted" during the break.
3) The running game. Where was it in the second half? Jonathan Stewart ran for a franchise-record 206 yards against the Giants only nine months ago. He looked like a different back -- and the offensive line was certainly no great shakes -- in this one.
4) The defensive secondary. I'm not listing these in order of importance, or else this might be No.1. Charlotte's Hakeem Nicks looked like he was running through high school secondaries in our area like he used to -- he kept getting waaaaay open. Richard Marshall in particular had a tough day, but everyone got blow-torched a few times.
5) Pass rush. This goes hand-in-hand with No.4. Where was the fantastic rush that led to so many preseason sacks? I hardly heard any defensive lineman's name called all afternoon.
Honorable mention: J.J. Jansen's horrid snap that got halfway to Jason Baker; the three Panther passes (rather than a single run) on first-and-goal from the Giants 4; Daryl Johnston's strange sportcoat (what color was that thing -- salmon?)
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9 years ago
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Jets?
Number 6...the play calls. Good grief, Davidson. Where did the running game go, you ask? Hard to tell when no runs are called when you need them, and vice versa.
Why didn't they run once on 4 yd line?! We played the GIANTS! At least get the name of the team we got spanked by correct! Or you can ride on the same bus as Fox/Moore out of the Queen City! Everything sports related in Charlotte right now is not up to par...
Wait, we're so bad we lost to the Jets today too? NOOO.
Quality writing. Again
Hey Scott I know you had more interests than the panther game..
At least give the correct team the panthers are playing while writing your post.. The JETS? Naaa they are playing tomorrow night, try the Giants instead.. I understand you probably got confused because their uniforms look so similar,lol..You are a pretty piss-poor beat writer Scott.. Almost as piss-poor as the panthers team actually played!!
Our poor offensive line play shares the blame for Moore's performance and the lack of a running game.
The not quite ready for prime time Panthers led by the soon non time coach and lastly, and I do mean lastly, led by the never ready for any offense coordinator.
What else is there to say???
Honestly, you guys should be less worried about Scott's mental lapse on the NY team we played and more worried about the performance of the Panthers today. First game did NOT turn out well...and that Moore that was out there today didn't look much like the guy we watched at the end of last season. We as Panther fans know all to well what happens when a QB gets a bad game stuck in the brain...
Jeff D is a horrible offensive coordinator. 3 straight pass plays in the red zone?
7 trips in the red zone, only to score 16 points. Especially the special teams got us great field position most of the day.
Why didn't they fired this guy after last season? Was Stweart/Williams hurt in why they didn't run more?
The look on Matt Moore's face at the end of the game said it all.They took the heart right out of him.Too bad.
LOL @ at all of you sensitive fans that get mad when someone calls it like they see it. Scott is right on the money! The panthers embarrassed totally themselves. Not a whole lot of ways to spin it. If you want a journalist that will sugar coat things then go read Darin Gannt. He will have no problem sugar coating things for you since Marty Hurney pays him to do so.
! gamer closer to Fox being fired. Thank goodness, this team is boring to watch.
Guys: Thanks for the "Jets/Giants" catch. That's been fixed -- yes, the Panthers played the Giants. I was typing too fast. I've also added some honorable mentions to my "top 5" since there were so many things to choose from today. Thanks for reading! Scott
Curtis,
Im referring to those who are bad mouthing Scott Fowlers article. He was right on the money so how can you complain?
Well, 'Darin', you can ignore those guys...they aren't really "sensitive fans" that are here to discuss the game upset that Scott called the game the way he did. They are just some dudes that show up, post anonymously, but don't really offer any real value to the discussion. Pretty useless really.
Scott must've starting drinking the hard stuff in the 3rd qtr, as did I. But I still knew the Giants were the bad guys. (YOu can tell because they have the lamest uniforms in the NFL.)
I have tried to be a M.Moore supporter, but dawg...
Right now -- and I know this is premature and I'm just hurting from a bad loss -- BUT: I can't wait until Foxy and Jeff Davidson are Gone; that #2 is ready to take the reigns, and that Richard FREAKIN Marshall is gone! That guy is completely reckless and incompetent!!!!!!!
Why in the world did Goodson play the majority of the second half!!!!! We have the best running duo and the league. D-LO lead the league in TDs two years ago. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. Give the ball to our RBs
Fox, Davidson, and Moore should all get on the bus heading out of Charlotte. Very painful to watch. Comments that were previously made pretty much sum it up. What ever happen to player/coaches? John Kasay knows the team better than anyone, put him in charge. At least he can make better play calls than Davidson.
Passing game was horrified. More often than not, intended receivers usually surrounded by at least 3 or 4 defenders. Obviously passing game was too predictable.
It is what it is...
Nah Curtis! I think Ill keep making fun of these losers. Its actually kind of fun!
I was asking myself the same question Nathan...I mean, Goodson is a great talent and has a place on this team (kick returns, screens/3rd down)...but to seriosly have him competing for starting time against Williams and Stewart? Bad call (amongst many).
If Moore has a concussion, the start Clausen era will come. Big question is, will he be ready? He didn't show much this pre-season.
They should have played Clausen in one game during the pre-season. To see how much he progress. He has shown a tendency to stare down receivers, throw passes up for grabs.
But he does have a feel in the pocket though.
JEFF DAVIDSON SUCKS!!!
should've BEEN fired..
even before Jake Delhomme!
JEFF DAVIDSON SUCKS!!!
should've BEEN fired..
even before Jake Delhomme!
Claussen is not the answer, you guys will see that next week even though our defense will probably beat the Bucs.
5 things I didn't like...
1 - Left Tackle
2 - Left Guard
3 - Center
4 - Right Guard
5 - Right Tackle
And they let Jake go because of his interceptions!
Nice going fellas! What do you guys practice on during the week because you guys look like you don't practice at all. The NFL is so over rated. The NFL has to be the biggest PONZI scheme ever created! Let the Owners lock the Players out next season. I'm tired of paying for their stadiums and salaries. They should be paying us, the fans, to watch these games.
That sportcoat was horrid.
#7 Carolina Panthers
The only thing Uglier than the Panthers Loss was the new Gian Stadium. The outside design has to be one of the ugliest stadiums I've ever seen.
Matt M had suffer a concussion. Clausen will likely play next week, best of luck to Moore. For a healthy recovery.
hahahahaahhaha we played like the youngest team in the league and davidson kept his job last year cause our running backs are good. i personally wanna know why the hell we would hire the CLEVELAND BROWNS ex coordinator THEY FIRED HIM FOR A REASON. fox= gone i hate to say it, davidson= gone meeks needs to be promoted
Why does everyone have to be so freakin' rude on this blog. If you don't like Scott's writing, fine, but you don't have to be a jack**s. Do you all really feel soooooo offended by his mistakenly calling the opponent the Jets when you know they are the Giants. Scott was probably writing this from a laptop in the bowels of the stadium and wanted to get something online before heading home. Remember, this is a blog report, which means he doesn't have a staff of editors and proof-readers. I don't always agree with or even like some of Scott's writings. In fact sometimes he is downright ridiculous like when a few years ago he wanted to have a "steel-curtain" style nickname for the Panthers defense after just one game. However this rudeness from the readers is just idiocy that takes away from the real point of today and that was the horrific play of the Panthers.
Let's give Matt Moore a little more time before we run him out of town. Heck we gave Jake 4 or 5 years.
Also we know that Stewart isn't quite 100% yet but does anyone know if maybe Deangelo is a little banged up? Maybe that's why Goodson got so much time in the backfield.
@ Kenneth
I agree about giving Moore more time to prove himself. I don't know why people expects him to become great overnight.
Hes basically a rookie, having to adjust being the main guys.
But do you really think the whiny/fair wheater have the patience to wait? They are calling for Clausen now, then when he has ups and downs game.
They will throw him under the bus. But hes unlikely to play next week, wish him the best of luck/a healthy recovery.
With RIP SCHERER's arival as QB coach from the browns came Jake Delhommes decline. Why pick him up when he helped ruin Quinn and Anderson. Soon as he got here ALL Jakes passes were high, now many of Moores passes are high. FIRE HIM now, and Davidson if he can't get this offense in gear! Fox signed his own pink slip when he brought in Browns offensive coach flunkies
Its pretty much to late to fire both Davidson/Rip S now. Ever since they showed up, they want to become a passing team.
Stick to your strengths, run the ball/play action pass. Spread the receivers out, instead of bunching them together.
During Fox tenure, they always had a predictable offense. QB/WR coach seems to can't develop a Qb/Wr.
It doesn't matter if Carolina played the Jets or the Giants today...The Jets would have taken the Panthers out behind the woodshed, too.
My boy Dan COnnor looked good out there though, and the run defense that was supposed to be our weakest area, is BEAST!
I have been a Panther fan since day one, and was heart broken when we let Jake go. Last year's season was not completely his doing, and Jake has always represented the heart of the Panthers!
Watching Matt More was sickening to say the least! I at least had hoped he would play as if his job was on the line, but instead it was less than a half hearted attempt! He has been here long enough to know what is a smart play and what isn't. Yes he was not alone today in his poor decision making and mediocre performance, but if Delhommme had the burden to shoulder, so does Moore.
Panther fans deserve better!!!!
Sandy A.
dont giveup on Mooore just yet,,,,,,,,,,,,no matter who quartbacks were going with a rookie so give him a chance . kinda concerned about our offensive line though. those guys just were,nt firing off the ball the way they usually do. defense played well except for our secondary andpass rush wstellar but overall the effort was good.
Davidson has his hands tied behind his back like every other Coordinator that has worked for Fox. Same goes for the defense.
If you want to see a change in play calling you will have to wait for the next head coach to come thru the door.
The offense looked entirely shiftless yesterday (and by that I don't mean they were still before the snap). It reminds me of the offense under Jeff Lewis, or Chris Weinke, or the first half of the Jacksonville game before Delhomme's first entry. Receivers were quitting on routes, the O-line looked like they didn't care, and downfield blocking was lacking any punch.
I felt like if the Jake Delhomme of 8 years ago had run into the huddle and said, "get your f*ing heads up, we're going to win this thing!" we would have rolled up 24 points in the second half. As it is, this looked like a team that was playing out the string from day 1.
I agree about Johnston's attire. As a viewer, I was not only distracted, but even after the camera returned to the field, I sat there trying to come to grips with what I had just seen. Please, please tell me that there was not a paid consultant involved in that outfit. What I wouldn't give to see former local radio guy Gary Williams' preseason camel plaid blazer one more time.
As for the colors, I call it as such: pastel rust jacket with dark slacks, a beyond pale yellow tie with a striped off-white shirt. I kept thinking, please, make it stop, make...it...stop.
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