4 critical observations from Carolina Panthers' loss vs. the Saints in Week 2

Frank Reich should hand over Carolina Panthers play-calling duties

Since the Carolina Panthers' first preseason loss to the New York Jets, head coach Frank Reich has referred to the offensive game plan as vanilla. They have been cautious not to reveal too much before the real action arrived.

However, the offense has had no significant changes since then. This can be frustrating as we were promised more but have not seen any results.

In the inaugural week of the season, the team's offense accumulated a total of 281 yards. However, despite their efforts, they could only successfully score 10 points.

Additionally, they struggled on third-down opportunities, only managing to convert five out of 14 attempts. Furthermore, the Panthers could not convert on both of their fourth down attempts, resulting in missed opportunities for additional points.

In the second week, Reich's strategy avoided the running game, which was puzzling since it was very effective in Week 1. This could have helped the Panthers, who faced a lot of man-to-man defense, especially since the wide receivers lacked separation.

Unfortunately, Carolina's yardage decreased, gaining only 231 yards and converting only four out of 14 third-down attempts. The game remained tied at 6-6 for almost the entire duration, and it was disappointing that Carolina couldn't take advantage of their defensive stops and good field position.

Reich mentioned feeling comfortable with his playcalling after the game. But one must wonder how different the offense would look under newly hired offensive coordinator Thomas Brown.