5 harsh lessons the Carolina Panthers must learn heading into Week 4 vs. Vikngs

Carolina Panthers TE Tommy Tremble should be getting more snaps

Last week in this same referendum, I outlined my desire to see more tight-end usage and deployment of 12 personnel. My cry for help fell on deaf ears, unfortunately.

While there was a slight uptick in snaps using 12 personnel - two percent in Week 2 to 5% in Week 3 - the involvement from the position still left me pining.

Tight ends were targeted five times of the gaudy 58 pass attempts against the Seattle Seahawks. That’s 11.6 percent of the passes thrown. That alone is enough for me to gripe about, considering how Carolina Panthers head coach Frank Reich swears up and down how much he loves the room.

However, I want to allocate my energy to a specific player. He was talked up by this staff in the offseason and he’s shown flashes of being capable of impacting the offense in multiple ways.

If this team is truly in the throes of a rebuild, as they’re now selling to the fans, then I’m of the mindset that it’s probably time to stop evaluating Ian Thomas and start pouring into Tommy Tremble.

I have a buddy who had the nickname “Plates” bestowed upon him for his not-so-revered hands. Thomas can sometimes remind me of my pal, Plates.

That hasn’t been the case early on. Tremble, however, has shown the ability to take the reigns as the best blocking tight end on the team and he also brings along with him more upside in the passing game.

With the struggles of the offensive line, having Tremble on the field more should be one of the remedies this coaching staff looks to for providing more protection, more tenacity, and more multiplicity. The former third-round pick is coming up on the final year of his rookie contract in 2024 and now seems like an appropriate time to figure out where he stands within Carolina's future.