4 reasons the Panthers are clueless without Christian McCaffrey

Opposing defenses smell blood without Christian McCaffrey

Christian McCaffrey is one of those rare players that opposing teams have to game plan around specifically. His ability to completed change the complexion of any contest if provided enough space is renowned, so defensive schemes normally center on how to thwart the All-Pro’s influence on every down.

Things get a lot easier from this standpoint when McCaffrey isn’t available.

Instead of sticking eight or nine men in the box on every down, defenses can get more creative, focus on others, and generate additional pressure without McCaffrey’s supreme threat.

This had obviously made it a lot tougher for quarterback Sam Darnold. D.J. Moore is being double-teamed more in McCaffrey’s absence, Chuba Hubbard doesn’t have the same dual-threat presence, and Robby Anderson’s struggles are an ongoing concern.

The Carolina Panthers aren’t getting much production from the tight end position. Doubts about their protection also cannot be ignored.

McCaffrey masks a lot of these problems. He’s just that good.

But for things to have fallen about in this manner is just unacceptable.

Defenses smell blood when McCaffrey can’t go. They know full well the problems Darnold’s encountered throughout his career and just what the Panthers can do to rectify this despite an outstanding defense is going to define their season over the next 10 games.

Hopefully, McCaffrey will be back as soon as possible. More importantly, the Panthers need to come up with a comprehensive solution to avoid similar problems moving forward.