Which Panthers player is poised for a breakout game at the Texans?
By Noah Bryce
How will the Carolina Panthers deploy A.J. Bouye?
Do I expect some sort of revelation like that of Chandler Jones in Week 1? Not at all.
What I do expect is a big game from a player that wants to prove they’ve still got it and make a mark on one of the most dominant defenses in the league. In fact, the best through two weeks.
Before the season there were some who expected A.J. Bouye to replace Donte Jackson as the starting corner alongside rookie Jaycee Horn. That is now a thing of the past due to just how well that tandem has performed, even if stats don’t necessarily reflect that and the slot was always the better fit anyway.
The days may be gone from that Pro Bowl production on the Jacksonville Jaguars, but at his best Bouye was a ball hawk with great anticipation and he will also provide some depth at a relatively thin position should either Horn or Jackson go down for any period of time.
This is something that will be very welcome against third-round rookie Davis Mills on Thursday.
With any first-year quarterback there will be growing pains, just ask Zach Wilson about Week 2, and a top defense needs to capitalize on those mistakes. So having a slot corner like Bouye, who could even be used in a spy-like role to watch Mills’ eyes, will be a huge boost.
Mills loves to throw the deep ball, the only problem is the accuracy isn’t there to support that. So having someone just sit back and anticipate throws is a great commodity to have where the Carolina Panthers are concerned.