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Week Seven: Cam Newton Hot, Eric Washington Cold For Carolina Panthers

After a disgusting three quarters of play, Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers offense caught fire in a comeback victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Cam Newton Hot

Wow, what a rollercoaster of emotions that were felt on Sunday. The Carolina Panthers miraculously pulled one of the greatest comebacks in franchise history after being down 17-0 to the Philadelphia Eagles. Fans were screaming for everyone to be fired for the first three quarters and to be quite honest, they had every reason to.

The Panthers looked flat and the playcalling on both sides of the ball was extremely dry for much of the game. But thankfully, something switched on for the Panthers in the fourth quarter. It was truly remarkable to watch and while the win may have fans in a state of euphoria, there is still plenty of problems that need fixing.

Cam Newton Hot, Eric Washington Cold After Week Seven Victory

Hot:

Torrey Smith

Remember a couple weeks ago when I said Torrey Smith needed to be benched? Well, I take that back after Sunday’s performance against the Eagles. Smith balled out against his former team and finished the game as the top-graded offensive player for Carolina.

Smith struggled to get open, drops were becoming an issue and he was starting to be looked at as a useless part of the offense. All of that went out the window in the 21-17 victory in Philadelphia. The numbers were not stellar, but Smith was the second-leading receiver with four receptions and 61 yards on six targets. None of his catches were bigger than the one on fourth down late in the fourth quarter. Smith not only ran his routes beyond the sticks and made the catch, but he also had the whereabouts to make a move in the open field and pick up 23 extra yards after the grab. This was practically the play of the game for the Panthers offense.

Hot Scale: A ceramic dish after you pull it out of the microwave.

Cam Newton’s Fourth Quarter Heroics

Having the nickname of ‘Superman’ can add a lot of pressure to an athlete, but Cam Newton most certainly saved the day for the Panthers in their victory over the Eagles. Newton struggled to find any rhythm through the first three quarters due to a combination of poor pass protection and dry playcalling. Offensive coordinator Norv Turner then gave the keys to his quarterback to run the offense in the fourth and that is when the former MVP took over.

Newton orchestrated three back-to-back-to-back drives of beautiful football and led his team to three straight touchdowns. He had a stretch where he completed seven passes in a row and finished with 200 passing yards in the fourth quarter alone. Newton made two huge throws in the final possession, one on fourth down to Smith and the final being the touchdown throw to his tight end Greg Olsen.

NFL analyst Chris Carter said on his show Monday that the league’s media did not give enough credit to Newton’s fourth-quarter performance. The quarterback is quietly having a  spectacular season this year but has been pushed under the radar compared to other household names. Have a listen:

Hot Scale: Del Taco’s Del Inferno Salsa

Eric Reid

Signing Eric Reid was the best move the Panthers could have made this season and it sure paid dividends versus the Eagles. The social advocate was a little heated to start the game as he had to be restrained by teammates after confronting Philadelphia safety Malcolm Jenkins. Reid called Jenkins a “sell-out” and explained his thoughts in a postgame interview.

After that pregame altercation, Reid played a little more motivated throughout the game. He had a handful of impact plays on Sunday and his most impressive came after the whistle when he put Zach Ertz on his back after the tight end tried to rush him. It was quite comical, but both players received personal fouls that offset.

In all seriousness, Reid’s biggest play of the game came in the fourth quarter with four minutes left to go. He makes an open field tackle on wide receiver Nelson Agholor, which leads to the Panthers forcing a three and out that same possession. Colin Jones does not make that play. Rashaan Gaulden does not make that play.

Reid almost came away with an interception late in the fourth quarter too that would have sealed the victory sooner but it was overturned. Nonetheless, the Panthers are glad to have Reid on their squad after Sunday’s win.

Hot Scale: A flamethrower attack from Charizard.

Cold

Eric Washington

The cold section was going to be far longer than the hot if the outcome was different, but the fourth quarter changed that. Still, the Panthers need to fix some things about their defense. A coach at the high school level will tell you that you cannot sit back and play a soft zone coverage for the majority of a game, yet that is what Eric Washington has done. Wentz carved up the Panthers defense for three quarters and had little pressure in his face.

What used to be the strength of this Panthers team is now a weakness. Carolina is 20th in total defense, 18th in sacks and 16th in passing yards allowed. The run defense has taken a step back from the years past and tight ends are having plenty of success against Carolina. It may be time for a change of leadership on the defensive side for the Panthers.

Cold Level: A frozen bag of peas.

The Misuse of C.J. Anderson

The Panthers finished with 121 rushing yards in the victory but zero handoffs went to running back C.J. Anderson. The running back was one of the Panthers better acquisitions this off-season and is coming off a 1,000-yard campaign with Denver in 2017. He was projected to be the change of pace back to Christian McCaffrey, would take the handoffs up the middle and punish a defense physically. Yet, Carolina has utilized him rarely the last two weeks and it is disappointing. McCaffrey finished the game with only 29 yards on the ground, Newton with 49 and Jarius Wright with 34 on a reverse. If the Panthers want to keep the number of hits Newton takes low and see McCaffrey’s numbers rise, playing Anderson could solve both those problems.

Cold Level: An icy wind attack from Dewgong.

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Noah Alvarez

Noah Alvarez

Sacramento State grad. Contributor for lastwordonnfl.com, only1nation.com and otbsportsnetwork.com. Southern california native, hip hop fanatic, fans of all things NFL, NBA, CFB, MLB, NHL and NCAAB and co-host of the Podfathers Podcast.

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