Saints vs. Panthers: 5 Halftime Adjustments Carolina Must Make

What an intense game so far as the Carolina Panthers take on the New Orleans Saints at Bank of America Stadium. The 1-3 Panthers are looking to stop the league's No. 2 offense led by QB Drew Brees and rebound from last week's disappointing loss. 

We should be in for a shootout in the second half and if Carolina wants to take down this high-powered Saints offense, they must step up for the remainder of the game.

Here are five halftime adjustments the Panthers need to make in order to leave Week 5 with the win.  

1. Limit Mistakes

To say the least, the Panthers' first half has been riddled by stupid mistakes. Cam's early interception set up an easy NO touchdown, while Munnerlyn's pass interference penalty put the Saints deep in the red zone. If Carolina wants to win this game, they need to clean up their play and not give Brees the ball with good field position.  

2. Find the Playmakers 

The Panthers need to keep getting their playmakers the ball. Whether they look to Steve Smith deep, Greg Olsen in the slot or Deangelo Williams on a screen, Carolina should try to get Newton into rhythm by giving him easy looks to his favorite playmaking targets. 

3. Disrupt Brees' Rhythm 

New Orleans' offense is extremely rhythm based. Carolina needs to bring pressure at the edges to hurry Brees and disrupt the flow of the Saints' offense. If the Panthers give Brees too much time, he will easily be able to find open receivers in single coverage. 

4. Red Zone Defense

The Saints are coming off of a disappointing red-zone performance last week against the Jaguars. Carolina can expect Brees and New Orleans' offense to be hungry for touchdowns near the end zone. If the Panthers want to finish the upset, their defense must play well in the red zone 

5. Newton on 3rd Down 

The Saints have been dialing up the pressure on third down throughout the first half. Newton needs to feel out the pressure, step up in the pocket and deliver when it counts. On Carolina's first scoring drive, Cam converted on two huge third downs for big gains up the middle of the field. If the O-Line can continue to protect Newton, the Panthers should be able to roll on offense.