Now that the Super Bowl has been played and Free Agency is approaching in a month, the Last Word On Sports NFL department will be looking at the Top three offseason needs for each team. The next franchise under the microscope is the Carolina Panthers.
What to Know
2014 Record: 7-8-1
Draft Picks: 25th Overall
Notable Free Agents: Greg Hardy
Carolina Panthers 2015 Offseason: Top 3 Needs
2014 In Review
If there was an award entitled “The NFL’s Most Surprising Team,” the Carolina Panthers would now be back-to-back winners of the honor. In 2013, the Panthers reeled off 11 wins in 12 games after starting 1-3 to clinch the NFC South. This season, after enduring a difficult offseason with the Steve Smith fallout and the losses of key starters, Carolina became the first team to win the division in consecutive seasons.
Going into the 2015 campaign as the division’s most well-rounded club, yet concerns at multiple areas, what are the key positions the Panthers need to address in order to complete the three-peat of the NFC South?
The Needs
Left Tackle: As expected, the retirement of All-Pro Jordan Gross heavily affected the Panthers’ offensive line. Byron Bell and Nate Chandler were among the league’s worst-rated offensive tackle pairs in 2014, according to Pro Football Focus. PFF also states only two left tackles were ranked lower than Bell. Carolina finished toward the bottom of the NFL in sacks allowed with 42, including 67 hits on the quarterback. Surrendering an average of 2.6 sacks per game, the Panthers must draft a cornerstone tackle who can resist outside rushers.
Defensive End: When Carolina boasted the No. 2 defense in the NFL in 2013, they led the league with 60 sacks. Their nightmarish pass rush was lead by the disruptive Greg Hardy, who had 15 of those quarterback takedowns. The Pro Bowler missed all but one game in 2014 due to his domestic violence case. Although the charges were recently dismissed, his future with the franchise appears bleak. If he ultimately lands elsewhere in Free Agency, the Panthers will be in desperate need of a pass rusher. Without Hardy, Carolina’s sack total dipped significantly, dropping to 40 this season. Veteran Charles Johnson’s sacks decreased while rookie Kony Ealy accounted for only four takedowns. Ealy has a bright future in North Carolina, but with Hardy likely leaving and Johnson turning 29 this summer, adding another edge rusher or two will be essential.
Wide Receiver: Good news for the Panthers is that they have two formidable receiving options in Kelvin Benjamin and Greg Olsen. The bad news is that these guys are their only two formidable options in the passing game. The rookie wideout and the Pro Bowl tight end, respectively, became the first pair of Panthers to surpass 1,000 receiving yards in a single season since Mushin Muhammad and Patrick Jeffers in 1999. Combining for 2,016 yards of the team’s 3,832 total passing yards, production outside of the Benjamin-Olsen duo was nonexistent. After losing Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell, Ted Ginn and Domenik Hixon last offseason, Jerricho Cotchery and Jason Avant were brought in as the replacements. Although they have been reliable veterans throughout their careers, they were not enough to elevate a passing game. If they don’t address the receiver position in the draft, look for the Panthers to examine a stacked class of free agents this spring. Currently holding approximately $12 million in cap space, Carolina might look for someone who won’t demand a great deal of cash (i.e. Hakeem Nicks).
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