A half-dozen notes from the Carolina Panthers’ 48-33 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

 

1.) 90-Minute Nightmare

 

The Panthers’ offense hasn’t been good, and neither has the NFL’s reigning MVP, but to me, this is the most stunning stat of Carolina’s 1-3 start:

Since holding the Vikings to eight net passing yards in the first half of Week Three, the Panthers have allowed Sam Bradford and Matt Ryan to go 42-of-54 for 648 yards and five touchdowns.

It’s really hard to give up just eight passing yards in a half, so how have the Panthers suddenly morphed into a sieve?

Sure, the inexperienced secondary is taking its lumps, but this defense doesn’t work without a pass rush.

Know how many quarterback hits the Panthers have in those past six quarters? Four.

Through their first three games, a legit excuse for the lack of pressure was quick-hitting passing attacks. That’s no longer valid.

According to Pro Football Focus, Ryan threw further than 10 yards down the field on 16 of his 37 attempts. And after Trevor Siemian, Blaine Gabbert and Bradford combined for just six completions of 20-plus yards, Ryan had seven such completions.

“We could put a little more pressure on the quarterback early on,” said coach Ron Rivera. “There were a couple third-and-longs, second-and-longs where he had a little more time. So there are some things we have to look at. We have to create more pressure and we as coaches have to make sure we’re putting them in position to have success.”

 

 

2.) Third-Down Defense

 

Rivera certainly wasn’t wrong to point to third downs.

The Panthers struggled to get off the field, allowing the Falcons to convert eight of their thirds into firsts. Ryan was particularly deadly, going 7-of-9 for 122 yards and a touchdown on third down.

But wait, there’s more.

On third-and-7 or more, Ryan was 4-of-6 for 114 yards.

“We had them in a lot of third-and-longs, we just didn’t execute,” safety Kurt Coleman said. “We didn’t make the plays when we were in position.”

 

3.) Third Quarter Collapse

 

Despite a lopsided stat sheet, the Panthers faced a doable 17-10 deficit at the half. Things were also looking up when the Falcons began their opening drive of the third quarter on their 1-yard line.

But a 19-yard gain on 2nd-and-19 and a pair of 3rd down conversions led to a defensive breakdown that left rookie tight end Austin Hooper wide-open for a 42-yard touchdown.

“We went in at halftime only down by seven and feeling pretty good about the game,” Rivera said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get the stop we needed coming out.”

Minutes later, the Falcons again converted a pair of third downs on a 92-yard touchdown drive.

While the defense couldn’t get off the field, the offense couldn’t stay on it. Two three-and-outs equaled this:

Third Quarter Yards

Falcons — 235
Panthers — 7