Loser No. 4
Monroe Freeling - Carolina Panthers OT
The Carolina Panthers clearly wanted rookie first-round pick Monroe Freeling to learn behind some established veteran offensive tackles in Year 1 of his professional career. Unfortunately, injuries forced him into the fire sooner than expected, and his growing pains have been evident.
Freeling once again started at right tackle after Taylor Moton sustained a fractured fibula against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That's where the Georgia product has transitioned this season after spending his brief college career on the blindside, but it wasn't his best day at the office.
The No. 19 overall selection in the 2026 NFL Draft looked hesitant. Freeling got beaten inside way too often, and although he looked like prime Jordan Gross compared to Rasheed Walker, his performance was nowhere near the required standard.
Carolina has no choice but to keep Freeling involved and hope he can improve wth more experience. And hopefully, these reps will serve him well down the road.
Winner No. 3
Chuba Hubbard - Carolina Panthers RB
The Panthers set the tone early through running back Chuba Hubbard. They leaned heavily on him, and his physical presence caused the Packers problems. Carolina inexplicably went away from this in the second quarter, which prompted the Oklahoma State product to become more involved after halftime.
It wasn't perfect, but nobody expected it to be behind this offensive line. But in terms of overall production, Hubbard was Carolina's best offensive player in prime time.
At least Hubbard was playing with urgency and aggression. If the protection had shown even half that attitude, the Panthers might not be in this mess. Sadly, it wasn't, and Carolina is now sitting with a losing record after seven contests.
Hubbard finished the game with 81 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. He gained another 38 receiving yards on seven receptions from eight targets. He was among the few who actually looked like they wanted to win.
Loser No. 5
Brad Idzik - Carolina Panthers OC
There was so much optimism around offensive coordinator Brad Idzik earlier in the campaign. Carolina's offense was humming, quarterback Bryce Young was the toast of the town, and the new play-caller was being tabbed as a future head-coaching candidate.
Things have not gone according to plan after the bye week. Idzik has been outcoached for two straight games by Todd Bowles and Jonathan Gannon, two experienced defensive minds who have had the young coordinator's number.
Why Idzik moved away from the rushing attack in the second quarter, when it was working so well in the first, is anyone's guess. That's when everything started to unravel, and it placed too much pressure on an offensive line that simply couldn't cope.
Idzik made no adjustments to Green Bay's pressure packages. Rasheed Walker should have gotten more help, and even a late rally couldn't hide the cracks.
This is becoming a problem. And it must be fixed quickly.
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