4 players the Carolina Panthers must lean on in Week 10 vs. Falcons

Yetur Gross-Matos – Carolina Panthers DE

This is one issue that won’t go away. Just like the Carolina Panthers’ offensive line was last season.

The Panthers let Haason Reddick walk this offseason in a move that left many scratching their heads. Apparently, the coaching staff had seen something in rotational player Yetur Gross-Matos, but that faith has been less than lived up to.

The young defensive end has consistently been run around, pushed around, and been largely ineffective in his increased role. Something that was put on full display last week against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Joe Mixon consistently found room on the right side of the line and Joe Burrow had all the time in the world if the quarterback flushed in that direction. That’s a recipe for disaster versus players of his caliber.

Carolina needs a solid running mate for Brian Burns to form a complete pass rush and run defense. The only spot that isn’t contributing is the one that Gross-Matos is occupying.

This team cannot give up another game like Week 9, the fanbase cannot handle that. Even if it is better for the Panthers to lose at this point according to many.

Something has to give and if Gross-Matos doesn’t become a contributor soon, the former second-round pick out of Penn State may have a shorter tenure as a starter than anyone anticipated.