Between a muffed punt, a blocked extra point returned for two points, and another costly penalty in Sunday's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Carolina Panthers special teams unit has been anything but special.
While special teams certainly weren't the only reason the Panthers lost by 30 points, the repeated mistakes are becoming hard to excuse.
Head coach Dave Canales has plenty to address following the loss, but special teams coordinator Tracy Smith deserves some serious scrutiny of his own.
Carolina Panthers' special-teams unit keeps coming up short
Sunday's performance was particularly frustrating because Carolina made several mistakes in an area of the game where the margin for error should be small.
David Moore muffed a punt that Tampa Bay recovered. Ryan Fitzgerald's extra point attempt was blocked, and Buccaneers cornerback Zyon McCollum returned it for two points.
The Panthers also received a sideline interference penalty during a special teams play, adding another unnecessary mistake to an already ugly afternoon.
These are the types of mistakes that can completely change a game's momentum. Carolina was already struggling against Tampa Bay, but giving away possessions and points certainly didn't make mounting a comeback any easier.
Even more concerning is that this special-teams performance wasn't an isolated incident.
The Panthers have dealt with special teams issues for several weeks now, and the mistakes are starting to pile up.
Against the Detroit Lions in Week 4, Fitzgerald missed two extra points, though Carolina eventually pulled off a win.
Carolina Panthers are making too many special-teams mistakes, and everyone is at fault
Then, in the Panthers' Week 6 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, penalties wiped away three successful returns, including a 50-yard kickoff return by Moore.
Now, just one week later, Carolina has added a muffed punt and a blocked extra point to the list.
At some point, the coaching staff has to figure out why these mistakes keep happening.
Smith deserves credit for the areas where Carolina's special teams have performed well. The Panthers entered the season with a strong track record in kickoff coverage, and that part of the operation has continued to show promise.
But that only makes the ongoing mistakes more frustrating.
Carolina has shown it can execute at a high level on special teams. The problem is that the unit hasn't been nearly consistent enough across the board.
The Panthers were probably going to lose to Tampa Bay regardless of what happened on special teams. The Buccaneers were simply the better team. But Carolina won't always have the luxury of surviving these mistakes, either.
With a short turnaround before a prime-time matchup against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday Night Football, Canales and Smith have limited time to make adjustments.
Whether that means changing personnel, addressing technique, or simply holding players more accountable, something needs to change.
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