Panthers vs Jaguars: Carolina Grades, Notes & Quotes
There would be no upset, and no slow start. For only the second time in Ron Rivera’s tenure, the Carolina Panthers won their season opener, defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars by a final score of 20-9.
Give the Jaguars full credit—they made the Panthers work for this one. The Panthers only held onto a tenuous 10-9 lead at halftime, and only had the lead thanks to a missed extra point by Jaguars kicker Jason Myers. The Panthers moved the ball well between the 20s, but stalled out in the end zone on multiple occasions. The teams exchanged touchdowns, with Jerricho Cotchery and Rashad Greene coming down with receptions in the end zone, but it was altogether an even contest going into the half.
Then the Panthers' defense decided to kick things into another gear.
Josh Norman forced two turnovers, including a pick-six interception, and added in two passes defensed and five tackles to be the MVP of this one, as the defense posted a second-half shutout. The pass rush also finally sparked to life in the second half, regularly chasing Blake Bortles down, with Mario Addison leading the way with a couple of sacks.
The game was sealed when the Panthers went on a phenomenal 15-play, 64-yard field-goal drive, converting on third downs three times and bleeding more than eight minutes off of the 10 minutes remaining on the clock. It simply took too much time off for the Jaguars to respond. The Panthers only had four drives of 15 plays or more all season long last year, but when they needed one, they got one in this game.
A shadow does hang over this one, however. All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly left the game in the second quarter, diagnosed with a concussion. The defense rallied without him, but he’s not a player the Panthers can afford to lose for any significant period of time.
One way or another, it’s a 1-0 start that propels the Panthers to the top of the division standings, and puts down a marker. It wasn’t a pretty win by any stretch of the imagination, but a win is a win, no matter how you look doing it. Let’s take a deeper look at the win and the storylines coming out of it.
Grades
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Position | Grade |
QB | B |
RB | C |
WR | C+ |
TE | D |
OL | C- |
DL | B+ |
LB | A |
DB | B+ |
Special Teams | C |
Coaching | B+ |
Cam Newton didn’t light up the stat sheet, going 18-for-31 for 175 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Some of those incompletions came on drops by his receivers, however, and the interception came when he was hit, as opposed to a bad read. Newton also added 35 yards on the ground, including some key third- and fourth-down conversions to keep the drive moving.
Running Backs
It was a surprisingly quiet day for the running backs, all things considered. Jonathan Stewart had 18 carries for 56 yards, averaging just 3.1 yards per carry, and Mike Tolbert and Fozzy Whittaker only added 14 more, with no carries for rookie Cameron Artis-Payne. It should be noted that Stewart toted the ball several times on the game-clinching eight-minute drive, so it wasn’t a horrible day—just a relatively inefficient one.
Wide Receivers
The first few minutes of the game were reminiscent of the struggles in preseason, as Ted Ginn and Cotchery dropped passes, leading to Newton’s 3-for-9 start. As the game went along, however, the receivers stepped up. Ginn had two receptions for 54 yards, while Cotchery ended up with four receptions for 45 yards and a touchdown to lead the way for the team.
Tight Ends
It was a quiet day for the tight ends. Surprisingly, Greg Olsen was targeted only three times, catching one pass for 11 yards. He also had a touchdown nullified thanks to an offensive pass interference call. You would expect Olsen to have been a larger part of the offense, considering the issues at receiver, but he was pretty much a non-factor in this one.
Offensive Line
It was not the greatest showing for the line. Michael Oher gave up two sacks and nearly gave up a couple more before Cam Newton escaped pressure. J.J. Watt should be licking his lips at that matchup next week. They also struggled handling the opposing defensive line, with the run game in general getting only 3.0 yards per carry. In more positive news, Ryan Kalil played the whole game, but that was forced by Daryl Williams’ injury early in the first quarter.
Defensive Line
Sunday was a big day for the D-line, especially considering the absence of Star Lotulelei and the questionable health of Charles Johnson. Johnson had a sack, and Mario Addison added two more. Wes Horton nearly had one of his own, as well, as the rotation across from Johnson worked very well. Kawann Short also had a solid day clogging up the middle of the line, though T.J. Yeldon occasionally found some daylight up the middle.
Linebackers
Kuechly was having his typical All-Pro first half before he was forced out of the game, but the rest of the team rose to the challenge when he left. A.J. Klein came in at middle linebacker and did an admirable job, finishing with six tackles, including one for a loss. Thomas Davis had a sack and an interception as part of an all-round solid day. Rookie Shaq Thompson didn’t get as much of a look, rotating out during nickel and dime packages more than was expected.
Secondary
Josh Norman had a day-and-a-half, forcing two turnovers and scoring a touchdown. No one else quite lived up to his standards, but as a unit, it held Blake Bortles to 22-for-40 passing for just 169 yards and a 54.5 quarterback rating, clamping down when Bortles and the Jaguars had to throw to try to catch up.
Special Teams
It was a fine day on punts, and less so on kicks, for the Panthers. Brad Nortman averaged 44.8 yards per kick, pinning the Jaguars back inside the 20 twice on his four punts. Ted Ginn averaged 15.3 yards per punt return, including a 37-yard return early to set the Panthers up with great field position. The kick return coverage allowed Corey Grant to rip off a 40-yard return against them, and Graham Gano missed a couple of field goals that would have put the game out of reach earlier.
Coaching
A gutsy—but ultimately correct—call to go for it on 4th-and-inches to set up the Panthers’ one offensive touchdown was classic Riverboat Ron. It wasn’t an obvious decision to go for it, either—a field goal to try to take the lead going into halftime would have been a defensible call, considering the Panthers’ offensive struggles in the first half. On the negative side, Rivera did lose a challenge on a fourth-down spot, which are always notoriously difficult challenges to win.
Luke Kuechly Leaves with Head Injury
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The Panthers suffered a scare late in the second quarter, as Kuechly took a shot directly to the neck and head area.
Hitting T.J. Yeldon head first, Kuechly stuttered, wobbled, tried to stand back up and fell to the ground. Trainers immediately took him out of the game, which he left under his own power.
Kuechly had just signed a new contract making him the highest-paid linebacker in football—a five-year, $62 million extension that will keep him in Panthers blue through 2021. As one of the best linebackers in football, Kuechly is a player the Panthers can’t really afford to lose.
A.J. Klein was his immediate replacement during the game, moving inside alongside Thomas Davis and Shaq Thompson, who replaced Klein in the starting lineup for this game. Kuechly did not return.
He looked loopy leaving the game, leading many to assume it was a concussion. The Panthers confirmed this just after halftime, with Kuechly staying in the locker room and undergoing the concussion protocol.
Concussions are notoriously hard to diagnose and predict. Some lesser concussions see players return by the next week, as Josh Norman did this week. Others can leave players out for a month or even longer.
The Panthers' upcoming schedule includes home games against Houston and New Orleans and a road trip to Tampa Bay. The Panthers will have to hold their breath, wait and see how long they’ll be without their all-world middle linebacker. A conservative estimate would have him at least missing the Houston matchup, but it all depends on how quickly he advances through the stages of the NFL’s concussion protocol.
According to Panthers PR representative Steven Juston (h/t to the Black and Blue Review), Kuechly was “moving around well in the locker room,” which is a good sign. Panthers fans will have to hope those good signs continue going forward.
Defense Steps Up
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Despite losing Kuechly late in the second quarter, the defense stepped up and delivered a perfect second half to help propel the Panthers to victory.
Josh Norman is your star of the game, forcing two turnovers. In the first half, he showed Charles Tillman-esque moves, punching the ball loose from Allen Hurns and recovering the fumble to stall the Jaguars out in the red zone. In the second half, he read Bortles’ pass perfectly, jumping an out route and picking up what might be the easiest pick-six of his career to make the score 17-9.
He wasn’t alone, either. The defensive line, which was a cause for concern with Lotulelei out, played very well. Addison led the way with two sacks. Johnson added one, which is bigger news, as he missed the entire preseason with various injuries. It took him a month to get his first sack last season, so a sack in this game is a much better start for him.
The linebackers also played well. Kuechly, despite missing the entire second half, still tied for the team lead in tackles with seven, picking up a sack as well. Davis also had a sack and a late interception of Bortles after the game had already been mostly decided.
If the Panthers are going to contend this year, this is the sort of performance they need out of their defense. The offense isn’t going to be one of the top units in football. They need their defense to dominate, keeping the score close and allowing the offense to grind out wins. It’s not the prettiest style of football ever, but it’s what has worked for the Panthers in the past. So far, one game, and one success for that sort of smashmouth, defensive-oriented football.
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Offense Starts Slow, Recovers
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The first half of this matchup felt like 1995 in the sense that the Panthers and Jaguars both looked like expansion teams. It was definitely not the sharp start either team wanted.
The first quarter was particularly woeful. The Panthers’ wide receiver corps started with three drops, including a near-guaranteed touchdown pass to Ginn. Newton’s pass wasn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but Ginn was wide open and had a hand on the ball.
Carolina had just 16 passing yards in the first quarter. It moved the ball fine within the 20s, but stalled out multiple times in the red zone, including a called-back touchdown when Olsen pushed off. It was reminiscent of last year’s struggles putting the ball in the end zone.
As the game went along, however, the Panthers began to get more involved on offense. Cam Newton pulled his patented Houdini act several times, dodging pressure to extend drives and hit receivers. Ginn had a 34-yard reception and Cotchery added 24 more, and the offense put together an eight-minute drive to seal the game away, converting multiple third downs on their way to kicking the game-clinching field goal.
The offense is still clearly a work in progress—Oher didn’t look as good as he did in the preseason, and the offense still seems to boil down to “watch Cam Newton do something amazing.” However, they did just enough, especially in the second half, to close out the game. That’s the Panthers’ winning strategy this season—a tough defense, and an acceptable offense.
Ron Rivera: Defense Rallying Was Beautiful
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According to the Black and Blue Review, Ron Rivera said that the “beautiful thing” of the game was how the defense rallied around A.J. Klein, who replaced Kuechly when he went down with his concussion.
Losing a stud player like Kuechly is always going to have a massive impact on the team. Not only is he just a really solid player, but he’s also the defensive play-caller and field general. You’re not just losing his seven tackles, his sack and the rest of the production he put up on defense. You’re losing the spark plug of the defense, a player who makes everyone around him play better. It would be easy for the defense to blame a lackluster second half on the loss of Kuechly.
Instead, the defense rose to the challenge, shutting out Bortles and the Jaguars in the second half and recording multiple turnovers.
Overall, Rivera was “not satisfied” with the win, pointing out that the team made too many mistakes. There will definitely be things to polish up before the Texans come to town for the home opener.
Josh Norman: “Goodbye”
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It wasn’t your standard postgame quote, but Josh Norman was asked what he said to Bortles as he ran back an interception 30 yards for a touchdown.
His response, according to ESPN’s David Newton? “Goodbye.”
Norman was chewed out a bit by Rivera for taunting Bortles during his interception return, but it’s hard to blame him too much for being fired up over such a big play. Norman’s always had a fiery personality—just look at his training-camp scrap with Cam Newton for evidence of that.
The Panthers will, to a certain point, take all that kind of attitude if Norman keeps playing the way he did on Sunday. He was the best Panther on the field for most of the day, shutting down Allen Robinson and forcing multiple turnovers.
“When my chance came,” Norman added, according to Max Henson of Panthers.com, “I took it and ran with it.” It’s easily possible to overstate the effects of momentum, but Norman’s play did appear to give the defense a spark, foreshadowing the shutout defensive performance of the second half.
Cam Newton: Offense Needs to Help More
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Newton was pleased with the win but seemed realistic about what the offense needs to do going forward, according to Henson: "We can't keep expecting that from our defense without any help from us. But it's great to get a win today."
The offense definitely wasn’t pretty at times, but Newton reiterated that the team “showed flashes” of what it is capable of doing.
That’s more or less true. There were moments—big completions to Ginn and Cotchery, and the big, clock-killing, game-winning drive—when the Panthers looked like a solid offensive unit. The moments were a bit too few and far between, however, and they’ll need to get some things sorted if they want to beat teams of a higher caliber than Jacksonville in the future.
That’s not to say they all of a sudden have to start setting offensive records and throwing for 400 yards a game or anything like that. They just need to convert better when they are in good field position. The Panthers were in the red zone three times and only came away with one touchdown. Had they converted a little more frequently, this game would have been an easy win, rather than coming down to the fourth quarter.
Bryan Knowles is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the Carolina Panthers. Follow him @BryKno on twitter.
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