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Heading into the 2022 season, it seemed like the Carolina Panthers would be initially carried by their high-flying offense, and then, later in the season, the young and extremely fast defense would be working its way into its stride. That was not the case, however, as Joe Brady's offense has sputtered intermittently and on a couple of occasions, Sam Darnold has been pulled from his starting quarterback job due to ineffectiveness. Couple that with the fact that they are getting absolutely NOTHING from Robby Anderson and their tight ends, Christian McCaffrey has missed most of the year and there have been some bad clock management issues with the Panthers coaching staff.
The good news is that the defense is coming around much quicker than anyone ever expected. The pass-rush is extremely formidable and the team has former first-rounders in the secondary including veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore. Gilmore was recently brought over in a trade from the New England Patriots and sealed the Panthers last Sunday with an interception. That leads me to my four bold predictions.
Panthers: 4 bold predictions for Week 9 vs. Patriots
4. Stephon Gilmore will intercept his former team
You know Gilmore has to have this game circled on his calendar since the day he was traded. Still one of the best lockdown corners in the NFL today, Gilmore will be out to prove to his former teammates and coaches that he is still “that guy”. Also, with the Patriots having a rookie quarterback under center and the fact that the Panthers NEED this defense to make plays, this seems like a match made in interception heaven. Those are the types of plays Carolina needs to make if they want to hold the fort down while the offense reintegrates McCaffrey and tries to get the quarterback situation more settled down.
3. Sam Darnold will not start or he will be benched again
The Patriots–and Bill Belichick especially–have had Darnold's number when he was a member of the Jets. Belichick knows the strengths, weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and just about anything, there is to know about Darnold. The Panthers will need to have a completely different game plan than most of what they have run all year long because we all know that is what the Patriots will be preparing for. They want to stop what you do best, and they usually do a good job of that. To add to that, Darnold was limited in practice the last two days and is looking very questionable to play at all on Sunday. If the Panthers really thought he was a HUGE upgrade over backup PJ Walker then it wouldn't even be a question. Darnold would be starting. But, due to the fact that the Panthers see these two as equal at this point, even a semi-hurt Darnold is not going to be a better option than Walker.
2. PJ Walker will play better than Darnold anyways
When PJ walker was in the XFL less than two years ago, not many people saw the rise that was coming. Sure he was one of the better players in the league, but it was not until his former head coach at Temple University, Matt Rhule, decided to give him a shot that he would truly get noticed. Every time Walker has come into the game, he has held his own, if not more. He plays the game with a much more level head than Darnold and it shows up on the field and usually in the box score…which leads me to my last bold prediction.
1. PJ Walker will lead the Panthers to a victory in front of a great defensive performance
This Panthers defense is no joke. If you think it is going to be easy to score on them to move the ball on them, or to even get a first down, you're wrong. The guys up front get pressure without blitzing better than any team in the NFL outside of Los Angeles. That allows their speedy coverage linebackers to take away passing lanes and allows for the OPanthers corners to focus on the outsides of the hash marks. That is the sign of a great defense and all Walker will have to do is turn around and hand the ball off to whichever stud running back he has lined up behind him (Christian McCaffrey or Chuba Hubbard), make a couple of deep shots to DJ Moore, and let the great defense that they have over in North Carolina do the rest of the dirty work.
