4 burning questions Carolina Panthers fans are asking ahead of Week 1 at Falcons

Carolina Panthers run defense vs. Bijan Robinson

How well will Carolina's defense hold against the Falcons run game and rookie RB Bijan Robinson? - Tommy S.

I'm going to be very honest with you, Tommy, I have some concerns pertaining to the Carolina Panthers run defense being able to stop Bijan Robinson, Cordarrelle Patterson, and Tyler Allgeier.

Carolina isn't beefy up front. Sure, Derrick Brown looks like the Hulk in the trenches at 6-foot-5, 320 pounds, and could easily work from the one-technique or zero-technique. However, it looks like their starting interior defensive line will be Shy Tuttle at nose tackle and DeShawn Williams at the five-technique.

Outside of Brown, is it a strong group? We'll have to wait and see. However, after some of their showings in the preseason, the run defense could be an underwhelming area if they continue to underperform when maintaining two-gap integrity or setting the edge.

Robinson, Patterson, and Allgeier are not easy to bring down. Carolina struggled against Atlanta during their last meeting when they allowed 167 yards on 4.5 yards per attempt. I was there to witness it.

All hope is not lost, though. This time around, Jeremy Chinn will be available now he is in the big nickel role, working in the box as part of Ejiro Evero's defense. The Panthers also added Vonn Bell to the secondary, which should help on the backend.

I expect somewhat of a better performance from the Panthers' run defense this go-round. However, the Falcons adding a gifted runner in Robinson could prove to be the difference maker in this matchup.