Panthers vs. Commanders game review: Even low expectations were not met

Yet another tough outing for the Panthers signals a need to expect even less from the team going forward.

Well, that wasn’t fun.

The Carolina Panthers are once again considered the worst team in the NFL after losing by 33 points to the Washington Commanders. It is not often that a team loses by over 30 points and the score actually seems closer than it should have been, but here we are.

Honestly, I could break down any number of different elements of the contest for this week’s game review. Unfortunately, any way I can think of boils down to the same thesis: the Panthers are really, really, really bad right now. For what it is worth, there are plenty of excuses abound for the Panthers performance. Even though many, including myself, are tired of making them.

I saw this article with all the snap counts for each player come up on my social media Monday morning. While I knew the Panthers defensive line-up was rough, the amount of depth players receiving significant snaps on Defense shocked me. The sheer number of back-ups, role players and new arrivals to the team forced into consistent action took me aback.

Is it an excuse for being a really bad defense? Yes. Does it excuse getting demolished to the tune of 33 points by a back-up quarterback? No. That said, the list of Panthers who received snaps on defense is about the only thing that intrigues me as I look back on this game. So join me for this week’s game review, where we are going to take a look at just how dire the position the Panthers find themselves in is right now.

The Panthers played 69 snaps on defense. With 11 players on the field for each snap (although it may have looked like less) that means the total number of reps played on defense was 759 (69 snap multiplied by 11 players a snap).

Of those 759 reps:

• 497 (65.5%) were given to players I considered to be a back-up where the starter is injured
• 198 (26.1%) were given to players who spent no time with the Panthers in training camp
• 263 (34.7%) were given to linebackers. Of these 263 reps, 0 were given to players projected to be starters at the beginning of the season.
• 333 (43.9%) were given to defensive backs. Of these 333 reps, 219 were to players who were expected to be starters

For the Pièce de résistance...

• 426 (56.1%) were given to players considered a linebacker or defensive lineman. Of these 426 reps, only 43 were given to a player expected to be a starter

That’s right, Shy Tuttle with 43 snaps was the only player designated as a starter among the Panthers linebackers and defensive lineman to receive playing time. That means about 90% of the reps from the Panthers front seven went to back-ups, in some instances not even the primary back-up.

For those of you with an...