Julio Jones Goes Bonkers
The Falcons' top-ranked offense was just a product of playing the Bucs, Raiders and Saints, right?
Well, either Atlanta's for real or the Panthers' aren't much better than those defensive bottom-feeders.
The tone was set on the Falcons' opening drive when receiver Julio Jones went 3-of-3 for 42 yards on the first three plays. Against the Saints on Monday night, Jones had just one reception, his lowest output in four years.
But whether it was James Bradberry, Bené Benwikere, Daryl Worley or a mix-and-match group of safeties, Jones destroyed the entire Panthers secondary. He grabbed 12 receptions for a whopping 300 yards, the highest total of his career and the most ever allowed by Carolina.
In his last two games against the Panthers, Jones has caught 21 of his 26 targets for 572 yards and two touchdowns. So ... Josh Norman or not, Jones is pretty good.
Defensive Disaster
Sure, we'll get to the offense's role in the loss, but the defense gave the Panthers no shot to win.
The Falcons piled up 572 yards, the second-most the Panthers have ever allowed (617, at Saints, 1/1/12). It could've been even worse if Atlanta hadn't taken its foot off the gas at the start of the fourth quarter.
Perhaps even more embarrassing than Jones's day for the Panthers was that they had the Falcons backed up to their 2-, 1- and 8-yard lines, and each time Atlanta finished the drive in the end zone.
Thanks largely to Jones, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan set a record for most passing yards against the Panthers with 503.
Since holding the Vikings to 8 net passing yards at the half last week, the Panthers have allowed quarterbacks to go 42-of-54 for 648 yards and five TDs.
Offense Remains Out of Sync
After scoring 10 points on their first two drives against the Vikings, the Panthers went 17 drives before scoring another offensive touchdown. That came early in the fourth quarter when quarterback Cam Newton found receiver Kelvin Benjamin for a 6-yard score. Moments later, Newton was getting checked for a concussion after he slowed up at the goal line while scoring a 2-point conversion.
Behind backup Derek Anderson, the Panthers put together two more touchdown drives, but that was after the Falcons had gone into their prevent defense.
The thing is, Atlanta's defense is still very much a work in progress, so the fact that the Panthers' offense was responsible for just 141 yards and three points in three quarters is alarming.
So is the status of Jonathan Stewart, who hasn't appeared all that close to returning from a hamstring strain. Because they fell into such a big hole, the Panthers had to get away from their run game early, but Cameron Artis-Payne doesn't scare defenses.
Now the Panthers are 1-3 heading into Week Five, a Monday Night Football matchup with the Bucs at Bank of America Stadium.
Can’t wait for the apologists’ position on this train wreck.
No apologies. The same problems Car had going into the year have bitten then in the butt this year so far. Tackles and Secondary and lack of pass rush. Also Newton hurt his throwing shoulder when he didn’t throw the ball away like he should have. It was def all down hill from there.
Agreed, but you forgot to mention what I have been saying is the one thing the GM inexcusably messed up on: shoring up depth behind Stewart. No excuse for assuming he would be healthy generally, let alone at his age. And clearly they haven’t thought much of CAP given that he’s only been on the active roster I think 4 times (counting this game) since they drafted him, which doesn’t quite explain why they drafted him in the first place. Fozzy is a great complement in certain respects (i.e., screen plays) but no one can seriously expect him to carry the load effectively. The bottom line is that, at least as far as the offense is concerned, the greatest weakness on this team is that the offense’s success is unilaterally predicated on beat-you-down run game, and without it you see what you get in the last two weeks. MVP notwithstanding (a direct result of the great running last year), Cam is just not capable (yet, hopefully) of picking apart opposing defenses on his own like a Brees or Brady. I think the flaws in this team are real and am now worries about whether they can even beat TB or NO with the way the defense has struggled too so far this season.
I agree with most of your post..but Cam can pick apart defenses just fine. He was doing just fine against Denver and Vikings until injuries (getting hit in the head and rolling his ankle) slowed him down. Today it was the shoulder. I just see this like the 7-8-1 season…he got beat up badly, but not bad enough to put DA in. Took a week off with the car accident, came back and won the division. Now Stewart is missed for his blocking more so than his running. THAT is where Stewart out is the biggest issue. The offense will click – it’s the defense that is the bigger concern.
I don’t care who’s playing QB or RB, the offense will always be out of sync when its front line is out of sync. And when an offense can’t put points on the board, weaknesses in the defense become magnified. On the bright side, special teams rocked today. The turnaround begins on Monday Night Football. Keep Pounding.