4 big disappointments in Panthers’ loss at the Saints in Week 7
By Dean Jones
Interior protection
It was a solid performance overall from an offensive perspective, but there were some problems with their interior protection that forced Teddy Bridgewater to move off the spot frequently. This is something he did extremely well for the most part, but the Carolina Panthers need to buck a concerning trend that has evolved over the last few weeks in this particular area of the field.
The Panthers were without the services of John Miller, who was ruled out through injury. This formidable pressure at the guard spot was sorely missed and Matt Rhule will be hoping the free-agent signing is able to take his place in the lineup against a Falcons front that boasts one of the best defensive tackles in the business, Grady Jarrett.
Dennis Daley came in for his first start of the season and did well considering this was his first meaningful action of the campaign. But the performance of Chris Reed left a lot to be desired.
The veteran made a promising start to life in a starting role after coming off the reserve/COVID-19 list. However, it is hard to deny things have regressed considerably over the last fortnight.
This caused problems not only for Bridgewater, but it also restricted Mike Davis’ influence considerably. The running back has filled in superbly in the absence of Christian McCaffery over the last few weeks and was limited to just 12 yards on seven carries with a lack of space to work in.