4 critical observations from Panthers defeat vs. Steelers in Week 15

Carolina Panthers did not Protect the Bank

All week the message emanating from the Carolina Panthers’ social media team was “Protect the Bank”. This stemmed from Steve Wilks’ impassioned speech following their outstanding win at the Seattle Seahawks.

This led to the most excitement for a Panthers’ game easily since Cam Newton’s return in 2021 and arguably you’d have to look further back.

What we saw play out on Sunday was strangely reminiscent of what transpired against Ron Rivera and the Washington Football Team. Last season it was Taylor Heinicke who diced up the Panthers’ defense, with Mitchell Trubisky and Najee Harris doing the damage this time around.

Unfortunately for the Panthers, it seemed that Pittsburgh Steelers’ fans largely outnumbered their home counterparts which is no surprise when you have a legacy franchise come to town. The disappointment mainly came down to the team’s lackluster performance when it mattered.

The defense struggled mightily throughout, forcing zero turnovers. When C.J. Henderson left early with an injury, we saw how thin the secondary is as Diontae Johnson had himself a day matched up against Keith Taylor Jr., hauling in 10 receptions for 98 receiving yards.

George Pickens, on the other hand, had just two catches matched up against Jaycee Horn and one of those receptions came when lined up versus Taylor.

Carolina has a week to put things right before their home finale against Dan Campbell and his exciting Detroit Lions team who has played themselves back into the NFC Wildcard race. So this is a stern test of everyone’s character.