Devin Funchess struggles for Panthers in rare occurrence

A bad day is not normal for the Panthers wide receiver.

Perhaps no one wants next week’s game against the Seattle Seahawks to come faster than Panthers wideout Devin Funchess. To put it simply, he did not have a good game. From dropping a couple key passes and to missing a block on a D. J. Moore catch, this was a game he would like to forget.

Per a report from Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer, Funchess dropped five passes including three of his first four targets. He knew that this was not just on him though and that it was a team effort. Although that may seem a little bit self-centered and like he is covering himself up, I honestly really liked his response.

"“It is what it is. You take my performance out of that game, we still were in it to win the game,” he said. “So it wasn’t just solely on me. I will take full responsibility of myself, most definitely. I have to do more for the team, most definitely”"

That is the response of a leader. He knows that his teammates have the capability to give the Panthers a chance to win game in and game out. That is certainly good news as he did not perform up to his usual standards. He finished the game with only two catches for 39 yards. Averaging 18.5 yards per catch, he made the most of his limited receptions. If anything, he was not the center of attention in the passing game for once. That designation belonged to D.J. Moore. It was refreshing to see someone else step up when the star receiver had an off-game. This marked the second game in a row where Funchess had under 40 yards receiving.

Nevertheless, I would have liked to see more out of him this game. Obviously, he is not going to have a 10-catch 100-yard game every single contest, but this was a situation where the team could have used him a bit more. It will be interesting to see what he can do against a Seattle Seahawks team who is on the upswing defensively. One of the things working in his favor is the fact that the Panthers are at home. That will work in the entire team’s favor. This mini two-game road trip has not treated them well and they definitely need some home cooking as they try to get back on track.

We all know what Devin Funchess can do. This was just an off-game for him as it was for many. He just needs to be able to turn the page and focus up. If he can continue to emerge as a leader for this group, that would be tremendous. Having playmakers who double as leaders can mean nothing but positive things for the team. Especially with how important some of the younger guys are to the team, having veterans that can show them the way will be important for the success of the team moving forward.