Carolina / Atlanta , What Is Said & What Is Done

Created by OnePlusYou

This week the Panthers go to Atlanta to play in their first division game against the Falcons.


Their season opener against the Eagles is a game which they will need to put the pain of the loss behind them, while focusing on the glaring mistakes that made their first loss so meaningful.
This team still has the right attitude and has the right answers during television interviews, but somewhere between what is said and how the game is being played, the message gets lost.

This week, focus needs to be on providing better protection for the quarterback. I was not at all enthusiastic with the poor protection provided Jake Delhomme, and while it is next to impossible for five offensive lineman to block seven defenders, the Eagles didn't bring seven defensive players to blitz on every down.

Jake Delhomme had his share of faults, as well. Staring down receivers Muhsin Muhammad and Steve Smith while they were obviously covered quite well and not hitting targets that were obviously open was the biggest mistake. Not protecting the football was the other. The most costly mistake of course were the four intercepted passes he threw.

Overall, the offense played poorly. The playcalling was a bit erratic. The defense, though improved, still has a couple areas to clean up. Special teams also needs to work on the defensive aspect of their game as well.

The last time the Panthers played in Atlanta, they suffered a heartbreaking loss.
This time around, there are still so many unanswered questions, that it's likely impossible to predict against the division-rival "Dirty Birds."

For starters, the Panthers defensive line will have to do everything it can to stop Falcons running back Michael Turner. As it is, the defensive line's efforts to stop Eagles running back Brian Westbrook were futile.

The other big weapon the Falcons have is the one who lines up behind center, Matty "Ice" Ryan. Ryan has a big arm and at least three reliable receivers in Roddy White, Jerious Norwood, and tight end Tony Gonzalez. They're good at catching short chip-shots and White is deadly when deep in the open field.

The Panthers return duo of Mike Goodson and Captain Munnerlyn played well against the Eagles return defense. The key contributing factor on both their parts, was neither player committed a fumble on the return.

So Sunday's keys to victory at Atlanta are to limit: costly penalties, turnovers, and interceptions. The defensive responsibilities will be to contain the run, put pressure on the quarterback, create turnovers, and make tackles--a tall order to fill at this point, to say the least.
As usual, I'm hoping for a better performance this week than the one that I--and many other Panthers fans--was so rudely slapped in the face this Sunday past.

On a quick side note, if the Panthers can pull off a win this Sunday and if the Saints were to lose in Philadelphia, it will put the Cats in a tie with Atlanta for first place in the division.
In being a little more humble and quite cautious this week, I give the Birds of the ATL a win in this matchup, lifting them to 2-0 and dropping the Panthers to 0-2.

Falcons by seven.