Carolina Panthers: Lessons from Falcons-Saints
The Carolina Panthers went to bed last night tied with the Atlanta Falcons for the division lead with both teams sporting undefeated records. Then the New Orleans Saints remembered that they love to play at home in prime time.
The result is that the NFC South division shifted slightly, with the Panthers gaining a little leeway going into their game with Seattle. Now the Panthers could lose at Seattle without losing ground in the division or they could win and build some breathing room for later in the season.
Here are the lessons of Saints-Falcons for the Panthers to learn:
1. Atlanta functions worse when they lose offensive balance
Turnovers forced the Falcons out of their standard formula on offense. The Saints took the ball away twice in the red zone. The result was that the Falcons had to abandon their running game, which played into the Saints’ hands. Devonta Freeman still had a hundred yards, but the Falcons did not call on him as much as they could have. With over seven yards per carry, Freeman is still the man to stop on offense since the only guys who have stopped him so far are the Falcons themselves.
2. The Falcons pass rush can be controlled
Despite dealing with injuries on the offensive line, the Saints kept Drew Brees upright and safe throughout the game. That enabled Brees to find tight end Ben Watson for a big night. Brees was thirty of thirty-nine on the game. Looking at the how the Saints blocked the Falcons defensive line could teach the Panthers what they need to do to have a big game from Cam Newton later this year.
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3. Are the Saints resurging?
It was hard to understand how bad the Saints were at the beginning of the year. Injuries do eventually heal. Brees can use Watson like Jimmy Graham in short doses. However it should be noted that the Saints are always good in front of the home crowd at night. The fast track and energy just seem to work.
The Saints will need to do it in another situation for new believers to emerge.
Similarly the Falcons are not crashing. You cannot win a game with three turnovers and a blocked punt returned for touchdown.