By Dan Rawlinson, UK
Dan writes for UK sports site, the Sports Breakfast. You can find his work also at http://danrawly19891.wordpress.com/
The Carolina Panthers offseason has been dominated with negative talk about their lack of a certified wide receiver, but what of the running backs? At one time, the Panthers running corps was a well oiled touchdown machine. However through a mixture of injury and offensive style changes, its numbers have dwindled slightly over the past few seasons. Could this season be the year they reaffirm their status as one of the best backfields in the NFL? I'm here to explain why it could just be.
Dan writes for UK sports site, the Sports Breakfast. You can find his work also at http://danrawly19891.wordpress.com/
The Carolina Panthers offseason has been dominated with negative talk about their lack of a certified wide receiver, but what of the running backs? At one time, the Panthers running corps was a well oiled touchdown machine. However through a mixture of injury and offensive style changes, its numbers have dwindled slightly over the past few seasons. Could this season be the year they reaffirm their status as one of the best backfields in the NFL? I'm here to explain why it could just be.
Back in 2008 & 2009 Jonathan
Stewart and DeAngelo Williams earned themselves the nickname 'Double
Trouble'. In 2009, they both rushed for
more than 1,100 yards and scored 17 touchdowns between them. Fantasy players
even took to drafting both as at least one of them would always get you a
touchdown. Since 2009, the pair’s numbers have declined, with neither hitting
the 1,000 yard mark again. In fact, in the four seasons since 2009, their
combined figures make 4,820 yards. In 2008 and 2009 their combined figured were
4,601 yards. So why do I believe that this downward trend will stop this year?
Let's start with Jonathan Stewart. Those figures above
are a little harsh on Stewart. Over the last two years he has struggled badly
with injuries, including the ankle surgery that sidelined him throughout last
year’s offseason. But consider these numbers - a healthy Stewart rushed for
over 750 yards each season from 2008-2011 as a number two back. Stewart has
recently been quoted as saying he is the healthiest he has been since the 2011
season. With Williams now 31, and Stewart just 27 you could see him given an
increased number of carries. Throughout his career, his average yards per carry
increases the more touches he has, so this improved role may see career high
numbers. If he is indeed back to 2011 health, we can expect at least a minimum
700 yards from Stewart in 2014/15.
Moving on to DeAngelo Williams. An NFL running back has arguably the shortest
shelf life of all the positions in the league. Many have been retiring and
struggled to find a team from the age of 30 onwards, Williams is 31. Williams
bucks this trend though, he may be 31 but he has shared carries his entire
career. He has 1,370 career rushing attempts, at the same age Frank Gore has
2,187 attempts, more than 800 more. 800 carries is almost three season’s worth
or wear and tear that Williams still has in the tank. We all know he can still
make the big plays as we saw him burst through the Jets defense last season for
the 72 yard touchdown. (http://www.panthers.com/media-vault/videos/DeAngelo-Williams-72-Yard-TD-Catch/7eeac420-3962-43a3-95a7-014671fe63fe)
Only three times in Williams' career has he had more than 200 carries in a
single season and twice he produced 1,000 yard seasons, the other was last
season. Last season he didn't get too many scores but could always be relied on
the keep the chains moving. With plenty left in the tank DeAngelo can be relied
on to at least match his numbers from last season. If he does then we have a
minimum 1,600 rushing yards from our two main backs.
Cam
Newton is another factor that will help ‘Double Trouble’ reproduce the
numbers that earned them their nickname. In his rookie season, Newton rushed Cam matures as a quarterback, he will begin to pick and
choose his rushes better, keeping himself healthy. This will undoubtedly lead
to his handing the ball off to his backfield more often. Also when Rob
Chudzinski was offensive coordinator in 2011 and 2012, he had his offense
focusing on pass heavy plays. When Mike Shula took over in 2013 he made sure he
utilised the run game much more. Whilst I think we can all expect Cam to continue producing the kind of magic he did
against the Patriots on Monday Night Football, I think we will see it being
limited more.
The Carolina Panthers also possess
a massive red zone threat in the 'Toldozer' Mike Tolbert. Toldozer has 7
touchdowns in each of his seasons in Carolina
The Carolina Panthers offensive
line has also come under some serious scrutiny over the offseason. The left
tackle position is notably weaker after the retirement of Jordan Gross. But the
inside possibly got stronger. With perennial Pro Bowler Ryan Kalil at center,
the Panthers have Amini Silatolu returning from knee surgery. The Panthers also
picked up Trai Turner in the third round of this years draft. Turner has
impressed everybody at OTAs, players and coaches alike. With an offensive line
that is thick on the inside and thinner on the outside Cam
will probably choose to utilise his running game. The guards can open up gaps
and Stewart and Williams will exploit them for huge gains.
The Panthers also have the option
of calling on some talented youth in their running game. Kenjon Barner
possesses electric pace and is a real weapon on special teams, especially now
since the departure of Ted Ginn Jr.
In 2013, the Carolina Panthers
finished in the bottom half amongst the NFL for total yards gained and total
points scored. They used their incredible defense and the superhero talents of
Cam Newton to earn them their 12-4 record. This will NOT be the case this
season. If everyone stays fit then I believe we will see the return on the
power running game putting up some huge numbers.
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