Old North Banter
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3 Things Panthers Fans Should Be Thankful For This Thanksgiving

By Luke Tucker

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 24: Christian McCaffrey #22 of the Carolina Panthers warms up prior the game against the New Orleans Saints at Mercedes Benz Superdome on November 24, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 24: Christian McCaffrey #22 of the Carolina Panthers warms up prior the game against the New Orleans Saints at Mercedes Benz Superdome on November 24, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
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CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 12: Brian Burns #53 of the Carolina Panthers celebrates his sack in the second quarter during their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Bank of America Stadium on September 12, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 12: Brian Burns #53 of the Carolina Panthers celebrates his sack in the second quarter during their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Bank of America Stadium on September 12, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images) /

Rebuilt Pass Rush

This past offseason, the Panthers’ placed more emphasis on improving the pass rush than they did any other area of the football team. That led to the drafting of Brian Burns, the signing of Gerald McCoy and Bruce Irvin, and the continued reliance on veteran Mario Addison. In another attempt to fix the club’s pass-rushing woes from 2018, the Panthers also switched to a 3-4 defense, allowing the team to put more athletic playmakers on the field at any given moment. From a pass-rushing standpoint, it has been a smashing success.

11 games in, only the San Francisco 49ers have more sacks than the Panthers’ 41. Carolina currently has eight players with at least 3.0 sacks, and is led by Addison’s 8.0. Burns, the Panthers’ rookie first-round pick, is second on the team with 5.5 sacks, and has shown flashes of his enormous potential. It wouldn’t be one bit surprising to see him go from good to one of the elite pass-rushers in the league next season.

Even the veteran signees McCoy and Irvin have made their presence felt, combining for 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss. As an added bonus, Carolina’s ability to pressure opposing quarterbacks has helped lead to 13 interceptions, good enough for third-best in the league.

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