3 big disappointments from Panthers’ defeat vs. the Browns in Week 1
By Preston Seyl
What were the big disappointments from an opening day defeat for the Carolina Panthers against the Cleveland Browns at Bank of America Stadium?
A last-second field goal by Cade York put the Carolina Panthers at 0-1 to start the season. This was a tough pill to swallow for a very talented roster that couldn’t get anything going on both sides of the ball early on and left themselves too much to do later in the contest.
The offense was very dull in the first half. Christian McCaffrey’s lack of involvement in the run game is a cause of concern as he is the Panthers’ best player and is very dynamic with the ball in his hands – something that was evident as the game went on.
Ben McAdoo struggled to get in a rhythm over the opening exchanges. Carolina found life difficult neutralizing the pass rush, with Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney constantly in Baker Mayfield’s lap, denying the quarterback adequate time to get the ball out efficiently.
The lack of touches for McCaffrey is up for question as they should be the focal point. But there is also the need to keep him healthy if the Panthers want to stand any chance of progressing in 2022.
The Panthers have a lot of things to work on if they want to snap the five-win season streak under head coach Matt Rhule, With that being said here are three disappointments from Week 1 against the Cleveland Browns.