Panthers Came To Play

[AROS]

Hat's off to the Panthers. They knew they were playing with house money, they knew they had nothing to lose to come in loose and play for fun and it showed. The game was closer than it would have ever been if the story was different. Cam smiling throughout, it's like he held a secret. "Yeah, I know we likely won't win, but we're going to give them a game." And a game they did.

Unfortunately for the Panthers they simply are not on our level, and with Wilson in Playoff Mode, well you might as well forget it.

Our defense surprisingly kept them in the game but made the key turnovers when it mattered. "Cam to Kam" was the play of the night. 90 yard pick six....Kam's first of his career and what a coming out party!

Enjoy tonight 12's!!!

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP NEXT SUNDAY!

BOO-YEAH!! (tip o' the cap to Stuart Scott)

 

[kearly]

If Rivera is a bad coach, he's never shown it in the way he prepares his teams for Seattle. Carolina had a better game plan to open the game than Seattle did. They guessed right on almost every Seahawks run play, and they got the Hawks to guess wrong on defense quite a few times as well.

When Newton is at his very best, he resembles Andrew Luck. The kind of QB that can beat our cover 3. I feel very fortunate that we got one of Newton's best games and still won. He bought time in the pocket like Tony Romo, while throwing with zip and accuracy. Carolina did their homework, running a lot of cover 3 beating throws in this game, mostly with success. And Carolina ran the ball pretty well, too.

I thought their undoing would be in the trenches, but Carolina's pass pro was mostly excellent, and their run defense didn't miss Lotulelei at all.

Even in the 4th quarter, it kinda sorta felt like Carolina was controlling the game, but Seattle was winning because of a huge edge in toxic differential.

 

[M2MG]

If Rivera is a bad coach, he's never shown it in the way he prepares his teams for Seattle. Carolina had a better game plan to open the game than Seattle did. They guessed right on almost every Seahawks run play, and they got the Hawks to guess wrong on defense quite a few times as well.

When Newton is at his very best, he resembles Andrew Luck. The kind of QB that can beat our cover 3. I feel very fortunate that we got one of Newton's best games and still won. He bought time in the pocket like Tony Romo, while throwing with zip and accuracy. Carolina did their homework, running a lot of cover 3 beating throws in this game, mostly with success. And Carolina ran the ball pretty well, too.

I thought their undoing would be in the trenches, but Carolina's pass pro was mostly excellent, and their run defense didn't miss Lotulelei at all.

Even in the 4th quarter, it kinda sorta felt like Carolina was controlling the game, but Seattle was winning because of a huge edge in toxic differential.

Great analysis, as usual. I don't have the acumen to say if Newton is great or not, but I think in my limited observation he is at least a very good QB. I was impressed with, and sometimes worried by, his ability to find the open receiver in relatively crucial situations. I think he gets vilified by the fact he was a Heisman Trophy, National Champion, 1st Round Draft Choice and the expectations on him are almost unrealistic in the era he plays in, to the national media anyway. The guy is a baller. Not at Steve McNair level yet, but who is?

Oh, yeah, Russell Wilson.

 

[BlueThunder]

Awesome game! I thought it might be a struggle, and it was! I predicted a blowout, but it didn't turn out the way I thought. I thought it would be a total domination. WRONG! Panthers are tough! If they ever get Cam some real weapons, they will be, well.... Us!

Props to them... Definitely a "Worthy" opponent. I was really scared of them last year, and they still got some of that baddass left in 'em... Mad props...

 

[AROS]

I think Cam played one of his best games of his NFL career. Even in the face of adversity, as if there could possibly be a more violent environment from the stands to the defense he would face, he seemed to play with poise. Part of that is like I said before, they were playing with house money and they knew it. That is one hell of an elixir for any team facing what would otherwise be an insurmountable challenge.

Still, I was impressed with his calm in the pocket and decision making. His turnovers were a direct reflection of who he faced. Even still, he came back with the same poise. If he can manage to keep up that type of effort moving forward, perhaps he could be the QB he was projected to be.

And here we are, left with little ol' Russell Wilson. Oh whatever shall this league do with him? Doesn't throw 40 TDs a year. Doesn't throw 4,000 yards a year.

All he does is win.

 

[BlueThunder]

I think Cam played one of his best games of his NFL career. Even in the face of adversity, as if there could possibly be a more violent environment from the stands to the defense he would face, he seemed to play with poise. Part of that is like I said before, they were playing with house money and they knew it. That is one hell of an elixir for any team facing what would otherwise be an insurmountable challenge.

Still, I was impressed with his calm in the pocket and decision making. His turnovers were a direct reflection of who he faced. Even still, he came back with the same poise. If he can manage to keep up that type of effort moving forward, perhaps he could be the QB he was projected to be.

And here we are, left with little ol' Russell Wilson. Oh whatever shall this league do with him? Doesn't throw 40 TDs a year. Doesn't throw 4,000 yards a year.

All he does is win.

You just wrote my exact thoughts... Cam is mannnnnn.... His calm demeanor in the face of adversity reminded me of somebody....

Hmmm... Now who could that be?

Hats off to you, Mr. Newton... Well done. Seriously.

 

[Reaneypark]

Not ripping on you, just an observation, our defense allowed just 10 meaningful points through 52 minutes and it feels like they didn't play up to snuff. How crazy is that?

 

[bigskydoc]

If you go back and watch the first Carolina series, it looks to me like Cam was coached to relax before taking the snap. They get to the line, Cam stops, pauses, assumes an almost meditative facial pose for a split second then calls for the snap.

I am betting Rivera wanted him to take a few seconds after getting lined up to just get mentally right so that the Clink wouldn't get to him and get him overexcited and making mistakes.

Nicely done.

- bsd RPA

 

[CurryStopstheRuns]

If you go back and watch the first Carolina series, it looks to me like Cam was coached to relax before taking the snap. They get to the line, Cam stops, pauses, assumes an almost meditative facial pose for a split second then calls for the snap.

I am betting Rivera wanted him to take a few seconds after getting lined up to just get mentally right so that the Clink wouldn't get to him and get him overexcited and making mistakes.

Nicely done.

- bsd RPA

If that was the case then Cam forgot to meditate in the fourth quarter.

 

[HawKnPeppa]

Not ripping on you, just an observation, our defense allowed just 10 meaningful points through 52 minutes and it feels like they didn't play up to snuff. How crazy is that?

I feel like they missed Mebane on few of those inside runs. We could have collapsed the pocket better as well. What we have right now is speedy and chaotic when it gets come. Stay well, Kevin Williams. I think that Russ building that lead really saved our bacon because CAR moved the ball well, and would have eventually worn our small DL out.

 

[OceanPanther]

Thanks for the kind words about the Panthers.. We as fans are usually more critical of our own teams since we watch EVERY PLAY ALL SEASON..

Rivera,, We went 63 days,, two months without a win. There were bad coaching " choices" in that run ( to no where )
I think many of the Panthers fans believe His staff is not championship quality , especially Shula as Offense Coordinator and who ever is our Special Team coach,, We have a punt returner who wouldn't make 98% of other NFL rosters, and scares us to death with every "fair catch" ,, we've not really seen run backs,, same for kick offs.. our blocking schemes for punts ( we had two blocked for TD against Minn in one quarter and caused us ANOTHER game ) and as you saw last evening,, our blocking on extra points / field goals might not be the best lol ..

Cam,, I love him,, he is not there yet,, That wasn't close to one of his best games,, Seattle gave him fits,, He can throw a laser,, but you can't throw that pick 6 in the red zone,, and the pick that was over turned , in the red zone.. You can't do that .. Russell Wilson didn't make the big mistakes.. That's not so much game management as it is a QB in control of himself , what has to be done etc..

Remember, as fans, we pick our own team apart,, glaring mistakes, etc.. If some how Seattle had lost,, you'd be here this morning picking your team apart as to what went wrong.. We are fans,, We can do that lol.

I LOVED OUR LAST 6 WEEKS..

Once again, thanks for the kind remarks,, best wishes to the Seahawks next week and moving forward,, No Injuries..

Oh,, I loved seeing how , for the most part, the players for BOTH teams were "nice" and respectful of each other,, unlike when , say,, the Niners are on your field lol,, or for us the Falcons, Saints, etc,, where tempers / rivalries run deep,,

 

[Riley12]

Oh,, I loved seeing how , for the most part, the players for BOTH teams were "nice" and respectful of each other,, unlike when , say,, the Niners are on your field lol,, or for us the Falcons, Saints, etc,, where tempers / rivalries run deep,,

That stood out to me too. Big play, small play or whatever, it seemed like both teams were helping each other off of the turf and giving each other butt slaps and helmet taps all night long.

After both P Rich and the defender went down, Russell went to check on Richardson, but then he also made a point of checking in with the Panthers defender as well.

As you said - so refreshing compared to when we play the Santa Clara Douchenozzles.

 

[googoodan]

If you go back and watch the first Carolina series, it looks to me like Cam was coached to relax before taking the snap. They get to the line, Cam stops, pauses, assumes an almost meditative facial pose for a split second then calls for the snap.

I am betting Rivera wanted him to take a few seconds after getting lined up to just get mentally right so that the Clink wouldn't get to him and get him overexcited and making mistakes.

Nicely done.

- bsd RPA

Cam does that before the first snap of every game. It's something he promised his mother years ago; I don't remember the story.

 

[ctrcat]

Thanks. Not sure I can add anything that hasn't been seen or said, but thanks and congrats! I don't know how you guys are gonna be stopped from repeating.

 

[googoodan]

If Rivera is a bad coach, he's never shown it in the way he prepares his teams for Seattle. Carolina had a better game plan to open the game than Seattle did. They guessed right on almost every Seahawks run play, and they got the Hawks to guess wrong on defense quite a few times as well.

When Newton is at his very best, he resembles Andrew Luck. The kind of QB that can beat our cover 3. I feel very fortunate that we got one of Newton's best games and still won. He bought time in the pocket like Tony Romo, while throwing with zip and accuracy. Carolina did their homework, running a lot of cover 3 beating throws in this game, mostly with success. And Carolina ran the ball pretty well, too.

I thought their undoing would be in the trenches, but Carolina's pass pro was mostly excellent, and their run defense didn't miss Lotulelei at all.

Even in the 4th quarter, it kinda sorta felt like Carolina was controlling the game, but Seattle was winning because of a huge edge in toxic differential.

Where Rivera fails as a coach.... yes, he had us prepared in the beginning. Seattle adjusted. The Panthers didn't.

While I understand the logic of blitzing linebackers more than we usually do because Loutulelei was out (if you don't double team Loutulelei, you'll be in for a long night) but Luke Willson is STILL, 12 hours later, waiting on someone to cover him. If it happens once, then hats off to Russell Wilson for spotting the hole in our defense. If it happens multiple times (it did) then why are we not adjusting?

I believe we should have taken a shot or two at the endzone at the end of the first half. You don't simply run down the clock, call a timeout and settle for a FG against a team like the Seahawks.

His clock management and over reliance on field goals kill any offensive momentum we get going.

The fact that, down multiple scores in the fourth quarter, we continued with our slow ball control offense. I could picture Shula up in the booth, shaking his fist at Pete Carroll, saying "you may win this game, but T.O.P. is ours, bitch."

I would estimate 90% of our routes are comeback routes. We even ran a comeback route in the redzone. The problem with that one was the receiver didn't come back. He simply squatted like a toilet was behind him. That particular play was Kam Chancellor's pick six.

In my opinion, Rivera is an excellent X's and O's guy. His major weaknesses are talent evaluation, clock management, and in-game adjustments.

 

[tom sawyer]

Yeah it seems like a boxing match between two old heavy weights but one is elite, we warmed up at the same speed, but then as we have said and done before we separated by hitting the turbo thrusters and ripping it up.

great game, blowouts are fun but good tight battles are won in glory!

 

[Steve2222]

Call me crazy but this game turned out how I expected. Seattle is getting notorious for letting teams hang for three quarters, then blowing the lid off the game in the 4th.

In meaningful time, the score was 31-10. In actuality the final was 31-17. However, no need at that point to run the score up, we were on the verge of winning 38-17.

Maybe we're just getting too good and seeing a team come in and have a little success on offense is impressive. But imo the Panthers were who we thought they were. Not impressed.

 

[Schadie001]

I think Cam played one of his best games of his NFL career. Even in the face of adversity, as if there could possibly be a more violent environment from the stands to the defense he would face, he seemed to play with poise. Part of that is like I said before, they were playing with house money and they knew it. That is one hell of an elixir for any team facing what would otherwise be an insurmountable challenge.

Still, I was impressed with his calm in the pocket and decision making. His turnovers were a direct reflection of who he faced. Even still, he came back with the same poise. If he can manage to keep up that type of effort moving forward, perhaps he could be the QB he was projected to be.

And here we are, left with little ol' Russell Wilson. Oh whatever shall this league do with him? Doesn't throw 40 TDs a year. Doesn't throw 4,000 yards a year.

All he does is win.

If that was one of Cam's best games then in my humble opinion he isn't very good. He should have had 4 picks in the game yesterday (two easy picks dropped by Sherm and Thomas) and one could argue 5 if Thomas makes a great play and intercepts the ball instead of knocking it down. The only reason Carolina was in the game was because their D matched our D early and stopped us on the first 3 drives. If we would have stayed with the pass early I think we score at least twice, but instead we do the predictable and run up the middle stopping the first 3 drives. The get taken out of FG range on a stupid penalty.

We on the other hand did exactly what ALL the analysts said we couldn't do (win through air). Stop Lynch and you beat Seattle is all I heard for 2 weeks. But guess what they stopped Lynch and Russell smoked them. Just like he always does, ala the Arizona game a few weeks back. Now I'm watch ESPN and the NFL network and they haven't mentioned our win yet. Wonder why.

 

[brimsalabim]

Awesome game! I thought it might be a struggle, and it was! I predicted a blowout, but it didn't turn out the way I thought. I thought it would be a total domination. WRONG! Panthers are tough! If they ever get Cam some real weapons, they will be, well.... Us!

Props to them... Definitely a "Worthy" opponent. I was really scared of them last year, and they still got some of that baddass left in 'em... Mad props...

"Get Cam some real weapons" ? I don't get this statement at all. He has a great OL, a young mega tron on the outside, a top notch possession receiver in Cotchery, a very good tight end, a great hard running back in Stewart and a solid full back in Tolbert.

 

[Jacknut16]

Awesome game! I thought it might be a struggle, and it was! I predicted a blowout, but it didn't turn out the way I thought. I thought it would be a total domination. WRONG! Panthers are tough! If they ever get Cam some real weapons, they will be, well.... Us!

Props to them... Definitely a "Worthy" opponent. I was really scared of them last year, and they still got some of that baddass left in 'em... Mad props...

Cam Newton has a very Good TE, a very good WR, and Stewart is a very good RB.

He ran the ball well at times, he passed with confidence, they ran the ball well, and kept the Hawks off-balance.
Yet it still wasnt near enough.

I really have no idea what you are talking about as far as him needing weapons, he has more than most teams in the league.