2011 NFL previews: Carolina Panthers
This is going to be a tough year for the rebuilding Carolina Panthers. The best thing Carolina fans can hope for is this season will let them know if any of the Panthers QB's are up to the task of winning the starting job long term. If they are not, then the rebuild is stalled in its tracks. However, if Cam Newton can show some promise then they will be one step closer to crawling out of the NFL basement.
On offense they have gotten Newton some weapons. they have a very deep pool at RB, and we expect them to be a wide open team. How productive that will end up being remains to be seen. The O line gets Jeff Otah back and if he his healthy they should do well protecting Newton. We have to take the wait and see approach with a team with so many new things going on.
I think the defense will be aggressive, and that they will blitz 75% of the time. Again we will have to wait and see how these players react to the new scheme. I do not see how this team will be real good, but if they show some promise then Panthers fans can take a different view of how this season will unfold.
I hate to say this, because it feels like piling on but I see two winnable games for this team. They are clearly behind all of the teams in the NFC south and I guess anything could be an improvement over the 2010 season.
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