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In this battle of the big cats, the Carolina Panthers dropped their second game in a row, 42-21, to the Cincinnati Bengals on the road in Week 9 of the 2022-23 NFL season. At 2-7, the Panthers continue to bring up the rear in the NFC South. Here are the four players who are most to blame for the Panthers' Week 9 loss vs. the Bengals.
The Panthers were thrashed by a tenacious Bengals side over the weekend. This was, sadly, a nasty outcome for the Panthers despite some rays of optimism in their two previous games.
The Panthers would do well to quickly forget about this lopsided defeat. There were, after all, very few bright spots. The main concern moving into the bye week will be what to do about the quarterback position. PJ Walker has been the most successful starter this season, but his performance in Week 9 was as terrible as it could have been. Keep in mind that the Panthers have just a few days to work things out before hosting the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday.
Let us look at the four players who are most to blame for the Panthers' Week 9 loss vs. the Bengals.
4. CB CJ Henderson
Panthers cornerback CJ Henderson tallied eight tackles in Sunday's loss to the Bengals.
Despite playing only half of the Panthers' defensive snaps, Henderson finished second on the team in tackles, trailing only Shaq Thompson. The cornerback's eight stops equaled his career single-game best and were the most he had in any game this season.
Those numbers suggest he actually had a decent game, but keep in mind that the Bengals and quarterback Joe Burrow routinely targeted Henderson almost every time he was on the field. The former ninth-round pick was targeted eight times, and he actually allowed eight catches for 65 yards.
3. WR DJ Moore
Carolina wide receiver DJ Moore caught two of his six receptions for 24 yards in this game. He failed to catch more than two passes for the first time since Week 3 just as he seemed to be emerging as a borderline stud of a wideout. Baker Mayfield came in at halftime to replace PJ Walker, and while Walker was dreadful on Sunday, Moore has shown very little connection with Mayfield this season. The QB change didn't do much to improve Moore's play, and he certainly didn't make much of a positive impact in this game.
2. RB D'Onta Foreman
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In this loss to the Bengals, Panthers running back D'Onta Foreman had only seven runs for 23 yards. He also lost two yards on two receptions. Foreman saw actual workhouse volume on his way to a three-touchdown effort in Week 8. However, both Spencer Brown and Raheem Blackshear got engaged on the ground this week. The Panthers were also down 35-0 at halftime and changed quarterbacks for the second half. It's no wonder then that Foreman was used sparingly.
That said, Foreman might be due for a big one in Week 10 because they'll face the Falcons again. Recall that Foreman ripped up ATL a week ago so Panthers fans are hoping he can reprise that again.
1. QB PJ Walker
Walker fell short of expectations and possibly squandered a golden opportunity to permanently secure the starting spot for the remainder of the season.
He had trouble connecting with receivers and completed only three of his ten passes for nine yards with two interceptions. He was then benched for the entire second half due to that performance and a 35-point deficit at the intermission.
Still, Walker will reportedly start in Week 10 against the Falcons. Remember that he had his finest game of the season in Week 8 against Atlanta when he completed 19-of-36 passes for 317 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
Steve Wilks details why the Panthers are rolling with PJ Walker vs. Atlanta and more updates from the day after… https://t.co/U2w0wxXZpn
— Augusta Stone (@augustalstone) November 8, 2022
Sure, some may be surprised by this development. However, take note that the Panthers may have their 2023 conditional draft pick in mind. The fifth-round pick they handed up in exchange for Mayfield becomes a fourth-round pick if the quarterback plays 70 percent of the offensive snaps. Mayfield is currently playing 61.05 percent of offensive snaps. That alone might be the reason we see way more of Walker down the line.
