Cat Scratch Reader
Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! After a rough outing against the Bills, things have not been so fun in Panthers-land. But you all still came out with all your questions, let’s dive right into some answers!!
JakeNCVA: Is the Panthers’ success rate on plays from an empty set terrible or does it just seem that way?
I do think from the eye test standpoint, those plays tend to work out a lot less than they end up as negatives. I understand the idea of spreading the defense out and exploiting matchups that way, but I do find it frustrating that they do this so often on 3rd/4th and short downs. So I’m with you there.
KeepPounding88: How would you rank our biggest positions of need? It feels like we have some solid talent, but then when things go wrong, everyone sucks and it’s hard to pinpoint the actual problem.
I think the biggest positions of need at the moment are inside linebacker, EDGE, OL (if they didn’t continue to get massacred by injuries I’d feel differently), and possibly QB depending on your mileage with Bryce Young. That was in no particular order for quarterback as I think that all depends on the observer. I think this team needs one more draft of just adding solid talent across the board for things to look a bit more cohesive consistently regardless of the plan at quarterback.
Bruce Guild: It was clear that Andy is not what he once was and struggling would not describe what he was experiencing. It was easy to see he just is not cabable to play at this level.
My question to you is why wasn’t he pulled for his sake and the teams sake? Is HH this woefully unprepared that he wouldn’t be capable of running the offense or unable to perform at a level expected of a NFL backup quaterback which clearly Andy was not doing?
I don’t think Hendon Hooker was ever brought in as more than a speculative add that would only play if Bryce Young and Andy Dalton are both injured, which at that point the season’s likely lost anyway. I do think the fact that they stuck with Dalton and didn’t bring in any meaningful competition for at least the QB2 spot is something you can definitely blame the coaching staff for. Dalton was already showing decline last season after an extended stretch of starts. With Andy Dalton apparently having suffered a broken thumb, its possible we’ll see Hooker or Mike White out there should Bryce Young get injured again or see his ankle go in a negative direction, so maybe you’ll get to see what Hooker looks like as a starter at some point after all.
**Chef: Is it really fair to complain about DC concerning Chuba/Rico? I, for one, want a leader that’s willing to back his guys. Coaches ask so much from team leaders so I like the...
