4 key observations from Christian McCaffrey’s performance vs. Cardinals
By Dean Jones
Christian McCaffrey’s touches were erratic
There is some real concern about how Christian McCaffrey is being used by offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo. The Stanford product’s touches are erratic at best and this was another notable highlight from his overall contribution against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4.
Despite the eventual result, this was a close game until the fourth quarter. However, the Carolina Panthers completely ignored McCaffrey’s running ability throughout the second half, which came back to bite them in the end.
McCaffrey was allocated just eight touches on the ground for 27 rushing yards. This is simply not sustainable if the Panthers wish to beat the odds and turn their season around.
Having McCaffrey run up the middle and during a fourth and short was ineffective, which is no surprise. Just why D’Onta Foreman isn’t deployed in these situations is anyone’s guess, but it’s another example of McAdoo’s outdated scheme failing to cut the mustard in the modern-day NFL.
It’s either one extreme or the other regarding McCaffrey at the moment. Panic is clearly setting in within a coaching staff under enormous pressure to steady Carolina’s ship this season, but one suspects that something will have to give due to the ineffectiveness on offense overall.
All McCaffrey can do is keep plugging away and helping his team when called upon. Hopefully, others around the league’s best dual-threat weapon provide more assistance moving forward.