4 New Year’s resolutions for the Carolina Panthers in 2021
By Dean Jones
What New Year’s resolutions should the Carolina Panthers have for 2021?
2020 has been quite the year for everybody associated with the Carolina Panthers. It began with the shock retirement of Luke Kuechly and the appointment of head coach Matt Rhule and ended with an impressive win over the Washington Football Team that takes them to a 5-10 record with one game of the campaign remaining.
To say it’s been an eventful 12 months for the Carolina Panthers would be something of an understatement. The roster looks unrecognizable from that which finished the 2019 campaign, and they are no longer led by 2015 NFL MVP Cam Newton following his controversial departure from the franchise late in the free agency period.
Carolina has been inconsistent from a performance perspective during the season, which is to be expected after an offseason of unprecedented change. However, the foundations have been laid with some exciting young players as they look to become a playoff contender sooner rather than later.
With the New Year fast approaching, here are some resolutions for the Panthers to make and stick to in 2021.
Resolution No. 1
Win close games
Things might look far different for the Panthers had they come through in close games this season. Rhule will look back on his first campaign at the helm with some semblance of regret given how competitive Carolina has been against some top-class opposition this season without quite getting over the line down the stretch.
It’s been a steep learning curve for a young and relatively inexperienced roster. But the knowledge they’ve accumulated in 2020 will serve them well as they look to make further strides next time around.
Teddy Bridgewater is 0-8 on game-winning or tying drives this season, which simply isn’t good enough. However, the coaching staff is not without blame and how they respond during their second season in the NFL in 2021 will tell us plenty about what we can expect from them moving forward.