Carolina Panthers Should Dump DeAngelo Williams

I am going to depart from conventional wisdom, the desire of the fans, and the opinion of just about every journalist I have read on the subject.  And I do this having been a Carolina Panthers fan and a season ticket holder for 15 years, and having sat through the George Seifert years and last year's 2-14 debacle.

The Carolina Panthers should let DeAngelo Williams walk.

The Best RB the Panthers Have Ever Had

D-Lo, or D-Will, as he is called here locally, is the best back the Panthers have ever had.  Stephen Davis gave Carolina a few good years after leaving the Redskins, and his power running game took the Panthers to the 2003 Super Bowl.  DeShaun Foster had his moments in the early '00s.  But Williams had a 1,000+ yard season and 18 touchdowns in 2008, when the Panthers went 12-4, and over 1,500 yards in 2009, when every opponent the Panthers faced knew that they had no passing offense and had to run the ball.

But Williams Was in Street Clothes for 10 Games Last Year

But D-Lo only played in six games last year.  The rest of the time, he was injured.  Reports are vague about the injury—"a mid-foot sprain" is how it has been described.  Is that the arch of the foot?  Hard to know, but it could easily become a recurring problem.  And Williams is entering his sixth year in the NFL. The next few years are when running backs begin to break down.  

Who Was the Panther's Rushing Leader Last Year?

Who was the Panther's leading rusher last year?  You might hazard a guess at Jonathan Stewart, the Thunder to William's Lightning, and indeed Stewart finished with 873 yards from scrimmage. But this man, Mike Goodson, of the Texas A&M Aggies, gained almost 1,800 yards total in '10, when you factor in his yards from returning punts and kicks.  Goodson is an all-purpose runner, lacking the breakaway speed of Williams but with better power between the tackles.

Power Back Jonathan Stewart Still Packs a Punch

Jonathan Stewart is in his third year in the league, and virtually all of his yards came between the tackles.  If Williams left, the Panthers could still pack a nice one-two punch in Goodson and Stewart.  Even last year, when the entire league knew that the Panthers had no passing game, Carolina managed to finished 13th in total rushing yards, with Williams mostly on the bench.

Recognize This Guy?

Still, the most pressing argument for ditching Williams isn't that he is getting old (he is) or injury-prone (maybe) or that the Panthers have other options (they do).  It's that the Panther's passing game is horrible, which stems both from lousy quarterbacking AND from their failure to develop a receiver opposite the dynamic Steve Smith.  

This is David Gettis, the second receiver on the depth chart.  He was good for 37 catches and 3 TDs last year.

How About This Guy?

This is Brandon LaFell, good for 38 catches and one TD last year.  So the Panthers have been woefully inadequate in developing any receiving alternatives to Steve Smith.  And that's why Smith saw so many double-teams last year, and why they were last in passing offense and total offense.

Supposedly the QB Situation Is Under Control...

So if this guy fixes the QB situation, then why not spend the money you would spend on DeAngelo Williams for one of the first-class receivers available in free agency?  Williams is an unrestricted free agent, and so can't really be traded, but the millions he will undoubtedly demand could better be spent on a difference-making wide receiver.

The overriding issue here is that the NFL is has clearly become a passing league, and the Panthers are still a running football team.  Why not take some of the depth from running back, and use it to improve your starting receivers, your passing game, and your ability to score points?

It's not likely to happen, of course.  The Panthers are loyal to their veterans, to a fault.  And I would hate the see the young man from Memphis go.  He has been a professional in the finest sense of the word.

It's just that for once, it would be nice to see Jerry Richardson as loyal to the fans paying the bills as he is to his players.