Panthers vs Cowboys: Offensive preview

The Carolina Panthers found lightning in a bottle this past weekend against the Miami Dolphins. With Chuba Hubbard out, they had to lean on Rico Dowdle on the ground, and he delivered. He ran for over 200 yards and a touchdown, good enough to earn NFC Offensive Player of the Week.

Hubbard didn’t practice on Wednesday, so his status for Sunday is very much up in the air. That means Dowdle could be in line for a revenge game against his old team, and it’s a matchup that should favor him. The Cowboys have given up more total yards than every other team in the NFL.

Jerry Jones made the questionable and egotistical decision to trade away All World edge rusher Micah Parsons because of a contract dispute. He claimed that the defense would be fine without its best player, and to the surprise of no one else on the planet, that hasn’t held up. The Cowboys defense has been the worst in the NFL in terms of yards per game and hasn’t been good in any statistical area. They’ve been an anchor that’s holding back what’s been one of the best offenses in the NFL.

The Panthers get another game against a beatable opponent at home, and they’re 2-0 in those situations. This is probably the toughest test so far, so there are a few things they need to do to retain their perfect record at home.

• Chase points and yards whenever you can. Dave Canales has typically been pretty good at this, but it’s paramount in a showdown with an explosive offense like the Cowboys. Field goals aren’t going to win this game, so any 4th and manageables need to be attempts at touchdowns. That also means Bryce Young might need to push the ball down the field a little bit to keep drive alive. He hasn’t been very good in that respect this season, so it’s probably hard for the offensive staff to trust him, but they might have to on Sunday. If it’s any consolation, the Cowboys are the worst pass defense in the NFL according to DVOA, so it’s an exploitable secondary, to say the least.
• On that note, attack the Cowboys vertically. Again, Bryce hasn’t been good at this during his NFL career, but the Panthers should look to sprinkle in some deep shots on Sunday. We saw it have success last year with Jalen Coker, who may be making his return this week. Cowboys opponents have found that same kind of success this season. Jalen Hurts, Caleb Williams, and Russell Wilson were all able to hit deep bombs against this secondary, so there’s going to be an opening there. I’d love to see Tetairoa McMillan get a couple of go balls thrown his way to see if he can go and make a play. He’s been a much needed big play threat in the passing game, and this is a perfect spot for him to have a breakout performance.
• **Let...