The defense for the 2011 Carolina Panthers was not great but did show some potential. The Panthers certainly have the base players to build a decent defense with. And face it with Cam Newton on the offense; you don’t need a GREAT defense to win.

The biggest weak spots on the Carolina Panthers defense are defensive tackle and cornerback. The Carolina Panthers had rookie defensive tackles in McClain and Fua in 2011 and they should improve but more talent is needed at the position.

Chris Gamble did step it up this year at cornerback but Captain Munnerlyn should be the nickel corner rather than a starter. If a good second corner to Gamble is picked up by the Carolina Panthers then I would be happy with the position. I like Butler in the secondary and the safeties are adequate. Brandon Hogan should get to show what he has next year after missing most of his rookie season with a knee injury.

Charles “Big Money” Johnson had an ok but not great season but he is the best defensive end for the Carolina Panthers. Johnson and Greg Hardy are a good enough pair to win with in the NFL.  I really like Antwan Applewhite who played well after being picked up by the Panthers after the season started. Applewhite is a free agent though and it’s unclear if he will be resigned by the team for 2012.

Of course the strength of the Carolina Panthers defense is the linebacker position. Getting Jon Beason back from injury is crucial as he is a top three middle linebacker when healthy. The only problem with that is putting Connor back on the bench. Dan Connor plays decently but middle linebacker is his only position.

James Anderson had a great year and teamed with a healthy Beason forms the base of a great unit of linebackers. I have given up on Thomas Davis after his third knee injury and that is a shame as he is one of my favorite players. Jordan Senn and Omar Gaither added some quality depth to the unit and played well at times.

Of course the defense is ran by Sean McDermott who came over after being fired by the Philadelphia Eagles. McDermott is a disciple of deceased Eagles defensive guru Jim Johnson. This system is a 4-3 look with lots of blitzing almost the way a 3-4 defense would do. While I am not sold on McDermott I do think he deserves another season and this time with full camps to install his system.

Thanks for checking out my preview of the Carolina Panthers at the New Orleans Saints game to be played on Sunday January first 2012. Earlier this year the Saints defeated the Panthers 30 to 27 and you can read the review of that game here.

The New Orleans Saints will be bringing their best this week to play the Carolina Panthers. The Saints are thought to be many as the only team that can beat the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Playoffs. New Orleans won the NFC South division title but want the chance to play everyone but the Packers on their home field.

The Carolina Panthers can upset the Saints and really put a crimp in their postseason plans. The Saints have a great offense and can stop the run with their defense. However the New Orleans Saints struggle defending the pass which is what the Panthers do very well.

The Carolina Panthers offense must throw the ball early and often and run in selective situations to upset the New Orleans Saints. The Panthers need to get Steve Smith more involved this week to beat the Saints. If Smith makes a big play early he seems to feed off that and make more big plays as a game progresses.

Knocking of the New Orleans Saints would be a big feather in Coach Ron Rivera’s cap. Rivera is a defensive specialist who has managed to help improve the Panthers defense despite a lack of talent on the line and a rash of injuries all over the unit.

The Panthers can create a buzz and some momentum for 2012 if they knock off the New Orleans Saints. On defense the Panthers must try to pressure Drew Brees who quietly is having a monster year for the Saints.

James Anderson and Charles “Big Money” Johnson will be the keys for the Panthers defense. Johnson has had a decent but not great season but he is the best bet on the Panthers to get to Brees. James Anderson is the team’s best all around player and I feel he is the Panthers defensive MVP.

If the Panthers defense can pressure Brees and cause a turnover or two then Carolina has a good chance to upset the Saints. Cam Newton and the offense can and will score on the Saints and I expect this game to be a shootout from whistle to whistle. Go Panthers!

This is a preview of the Carolina Panthers at the Indianapolis Colts game to be played on Sunday November 27^th 2011. The Indianapolis Colts are having a terrible season without Peyton Manning and former Panthers GM Bill Polian is no longer considered a genius.

The high flying Carolina Panthers offense can score on anyone and I expect them to have a field day with the old dudes on the Colts defense. The problem is that the Carolina Panthers run defense may look Ronald Brown look like a combination of Eric Dickerson and Alan “The Horse” Ameche

Look for the Panthers to keep working more run plays into the game plan to take pressure off of Cam Newton. Also if the Panthers can run against the Colts and control the clock then that keeps Indy from running on the Panthers defense.

Cam Newton needs to settle down and dump the ball off more, Jonathan Stewart has proven to be a great check down passing option for the Carolina Panthers in 2011. Dinking and plinking can be effective in keeping the clock rolling and the Panthers defense off the field.

I hope that Brandon LaFell gets some opportunities against the Colts and I think Steve Smith will get open deep better than what the Lions allowed him to do. Once again the Panthers will be hoping for the return of Jeremy Shockey from a rib injury. The passing offense is more efficient with Shockey and Olsen playing at the same time.

On defense the Panthers need to get pressure. This is supposed to be a blitzing defense but the widespread injures to the linebacking unit has stopped that. James Anderson is having a Pro Bowl year but he needs help from the defensive line.

Charles “Big Money” Johnson is not having a great season and he needs to step up. Greg Hardy is coming on at the other end and he and Johnson have the potential to be pretty good.

Chris Gamble has quietly been having a good year and I think he will play well for the Panthers against the Colts. Safeties Charles Godfrey and Sherrod Martin will be important in helping with the run defense against Brown and company.

The Carolina Panthers special teams finally had a good game last week and I hope that continues against the Colts. I would like to see what Pilares can do on punt returns after his 101 yard kickoff return for a touchdown against the Lions. Field position is so important for Cam Newton and the offense, and special teams play a big part in that.

In this preview of the Carolina Panthers at the Indianapolis Colts, I predict at Panther blowout win by the score of 35 to 21. Feel free to check me out on Twitter with this link.

The Carolina Panthers lost a 49 to 35 barn burner to the Detroit Lions today. I am sorry but I am not too bummed by the loss to the Lions by the Panthers. The Panthers offense is back and Cam Newton played well against the Lions for the most part.

Two of Cam Newton’s interceptions came at the end of the game with the Panthers trying to place catch up. Rookie quarterbacks throw interceptions that is just a fact. But Cam Newton didn’t get down like he did against the Titans. Newton kept his head in the game and kept trying.

I was impressed that the Panthers didn’t give up after the Lions came back on them.Carolinahad the lead then Stafford and company got into the game.Carolina was outplayed by the better team.

Against the Lions Cam Newton completed 22 of 38 passes for 280 yards with one touchdown and four interceptions. Newton did run for two touchdowns had to deal with a dropped pass or two.

DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart both had a good game against the Detroit Lions. Both had over 100 yards combined running and receiving and Williams had a 29 yard run. LaFell had a good game with three receptions for 51 yards. Steve Smith was held to five catches for 41 yards but did catch a touchdown pass.

James Anderson once again had a great game with seven tackles, three assists and one interception. The Panthers did a decent job on Calvin Johnson but Stafford threw five touchdowns to other receivers.

The Carolina Panthers special teams were much improved against the Detroit Lions. Kealoha Pilares the rookie wide receiver took a kickoff for 101 yards and a touchdown. The special teams also tackled well and didn’t give up a big return against the Lions.

As Fox commentator John Lynch told us numerous times Matthew Stafford was wearing a glove to protect a broken finger.Stafford played a great game despite some early issues against the Panthers

I can’t help but feel a little good for Detroit Lions running back Kevin Smith. The Lions had cut Smith in the offseason due to his injury history. Injuries and ineffective play by the other backs earned Smith a shot on the Lions again. Kevin Smith ran for 140 yards against the Carolina Panthers and played a huge part in the win by the Lions.

This is a review of the Carolina Panthers 30-3 loss to the Tennessee Titans on November 13^th 2011. Cam Newton came into the Titans game with a injured shoulder that he had had a MRI on. To my knowledge Brett Jensen of WFNZ broke the story about the MRI which was negative.

But Cam Newton’s injured shoulder was not why the Carolina Panthers lost to the Tennessee Titans. Apathy was the reason the Panthers lost to the Titans today. To me the Panthers looked largely disinterested in the game and played very sloppy football. This looked very much like the 2010 Carolina Panthers.

The Panthers offense looked shaky even though Cam Newton only threw one interception. Against the Titans Cam Newton completed 23 of 42 passes for 212 yards and rushed for 55 yards. Tight end Greg Olsen had his worst game as a Panther with one fumble and at least one drop of an easy pass. Cam Newton looked more frustrated than I have seen him. I feel that once the game’s outcome was clear then Newton should have been benched to prevent possible injury, but he played the whole game.

Matt Hasselbeck completed 15 of 27 passes for 219 yards with one touchdown pass and one interception. Chris Johnson looked like his old self as the Panthers run defense took a step back. Johnson rushed 27 times for 130 yards and a score. Johnson added four receptions for 44 yards as well. The Titans seemed to break the Panthers will with a long punt return for a touchdown early in the first quarter.

Playing catch up the Panthers never did get a running game going as Stewart and Williams got a combined 12 attempts for 58 yards. Cam Newton ran seven times for 55 yards including a career long of 26 yards.

The Carolina Panthers defense looked very flat despite a good game by James Anderson who played with an injured ankle. The Carolina Panthers defense and special teams must step up in games where the offense isn’t playing well. Until that happens the Panthers will be blown out occasionally like they were against the Titans.

As you could see by all the empty seats at Bank of America Stadium the fans are tired of losing and bailed out early in the blowout. The Panthers need to get their offense flowing again and start cutting and adding players until the special teams improve. The defense can’t be helped by street free agents but the special teams certainly can.

I think Cam Newton should be voted to the Pro Bowl this year. The Pro Bowl is supposed to be an exhibition of the NFL’s biggest stars and Cam Newton is certainly that. Since fan voting plays a part of the selection process then popular players go to Pro Bowls over more talented players all the time.

Cam Newton has energized the Carolina Panthers and the city of Charlotte. He has given a bad football team hope for the future. Considering that Cam Newton had no real training camp his play as a rookie quarterback is amazing.

It is in the NFL’s best interest if Cam Newton makes the Pro Bowl. Face it not many people watch the game but more will tune in if Cam Newton is playing in the Pro Bowl. And it makes since from a playing stand point as well for Newton to go.

One of the elite NFC quarterbacks will opt out of the Pro Bowl due to Super Bowl play. Cam Newton can be argued as a top five NFC quarterback right now.  Say Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees or Eli Manning goes to the Super Bowl. I don’t think Matt Ryan merits Pro Bowl consideration at this point. Cam Newton could easily be one of the three remaining NFC QB’s voted to the Pro Bowl.

I don’t think Cam Newton should be the only Carolina Panther voted to the Pro Bowl. Steve Smith is a lock to go but I would also love to see linebacker James Anderson, and tight ends Greg Olsen and Jeremy Shockey in the Pro Bowl. Click here Cto vote Cam Newton or anyone else into the Pro Bowl this year.