Week 1 was nothing short of embarrassing for the Carolina Panthers. It was a game that left more questions than answers and a real sense of concern over the direction of the team.
And now comes a Week 2 matchup that, before the season, looked like a winnable game. It is not necessarily in that same category anymore.
After all of the hype to end the campaign year and all of the new faces brought in to revamp the defense, none of that really came together after giving up almost 150 rushing yards to a single player last week in Travis Etienne Jr.
Carolina Panthers must have a plan to contain James Conner in Week 2
For the entire game, the Panthers felt outmatched, outcoached, and underprepared. Especially from the linebacker corps — a group that was largely responsible for giving up that yardage to Etienne. Let alone the touchdown to tight end Hunter Long.
From biting on almost every fake to losing run gap discipline and contain, and showing a distinct lack of ability or urgency to shed blocks, there was not much good to be found for the Panthers' linebackers.
There is no other player that the team should be more concerned about than Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner in Week 2. Even coming off a less-than-stellar statistical game, the perennial 1,000-yard rusher should never be counted out.
And you know the Cardinals have watched Carolina's latest defensive capitulation in depth during their preparations for the clash.
Conner is a very similar runner to Etienne, albeit a bit slower and more seasoned. But the older rusher is savvy and patient in his approach. He always tries to find the best hole to run through or the weakest player to run over.
Add that onto the struggles of the Panthers' defense, and you have a recipe for disaster. If Conner can get the inside run established, it will cause the team to overcommit there yet again. This will open up counters, sweeps, and quarterback runs from Kyler Murray, which are the plays that the Cardinals thrive on.
This problem goes deeper than any one player. But if the Panthers can contain Conner to a similar stat line as the New Orleans Saints accomplished in Week 1, there might be just a little bit of hope. After all, Carolina's hated division rivals almost beat the Cardinals even with all of their dysfunction.
Yet it remains to be seen if this defense can even be capable of that.