Hello CSR! I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving week! As we all know, we can’t dwell on last week and we’re on to the Rams, who travel to Charlotte in an attempt to try and stay atop the NFC. Meanwhile, despite a horrific showing on Monday Night Football as a whole, the defense for the Panthers stepped up and desperately tried to keep this team in the game, with 3 first half interceptions. In the end, the Panthers didn’t win, but still very much control their own destiny approaching the back end of their schedule. This game looks like a slaughter on paper, especially with some of the injuries this defense is dealing with, but the story of the 2025 Panthers has always been you can’t predict what they’ll do. Let’s break down how this defense matches up with the Rams offense.
- Next man up. The Panthers will be without star defensive players CB Jaycee Horn (concussion) and S Tre’Von Moehrig (suspension), while also missing ILB Christian Rozeboom and his key backup Claudin Cherelus. In the secondary, it appears Lathan Ransom and Demani Richardson will take the missed snaps at safety, though the Panthers could certainly deploy newly acquired Isaiah Simmons in some of those pseudo-linebacker looks Moehrig usually gets. At corner, Chau Smith-Wade and Akayleb Evans will account for Horn and Corey Thornton both being hurt. At linebacker, Trevin Wallace is back, at the 2nd spot we’ll likely see a mix of guys like Simmons and Bam Martin-Scott. The defense did a decent job last week, but missing Horn and Moehrig is very significant. Especially against one of the better offenses in the NFL, as they’ll have to deal with WRs Puke Nacua and Davante Adams while shorthanded.
- Bend but don’t break zone. I know many fans don’t enjoy it, but the bread and butter of what the Panthers seem to do on defense is play zone, forcing the other team to take underneath stuff and pressure them into making mistakes. It worked out quite well for them last week, as they managed to get Brock Purdy to throw some bad balls they were able to turn into interceptions. I’m not sure if they’ll get those same opportunities against Matthew Stafford, who has played at a high level for over a decade. Mike Jackson will have to step up as the number one corner, but this game is certainly a mismatch for this beat up secondary, so unfortunately the conservative zone concepts will likely be necessary, but scheming up pressure and looks around that should matter a lot.
- Create pressure. Matthew Stafford is one of the least sacked quarterbacks in the NFL, and much of that has to do with Stafford’s mastery of his craft. Their offensive line is also solid, though not world beaters by any means. Still, they’ll be equipped with a plan to deal with Derrick Brown, so this is going to be a week where the rest of the front seven...
Cat Scratch Reader
