New York Giants Week 10: A Look at the Carolina Panthers Offense

The New York Giants defense should be able to impact Bryce Young and the Carolina Panthers.

Nov 3, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) calls a play as offensive tackle Taylor Moton (72) looks on and New Orleans Saints defensive end Carl Granderson (96) prepares to defend in the first qarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The New York Giants and Carolina Panthers are set to face off in what is sure to be an ugly game between two teams still trying to figure things out. But does the Giants defense at least have an advantage against the Panthers offense? We think they just might.

Personnel

The Panthers drafted quarterback Bryce Young with the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, made him their starting quarterback out of the gate, benched him, and have now gone back to him after Andy Dalton missed a game with a right thumb injury.

Despite having elite college film at Alabama, Young has struggled to find consistency as a passer. He is, however, coming off of one of his most impressive games in the NFL against the New Orleans Saints, where he led the Panthers to a comeback win.

Despite the losing record and quiet overall offensive season, running back Chuba Hubbard has been one of the more impressive rushers in 2024. Hubbard is fifth in the NFL in rushing yards while averaging five rushing yards per carry and over 3.5 yards after contact per carry.

The Panthers put an added emphasis on improving their offensive line this past offseason to keep the pocket clean for Young but have created a much more effective run blocking line.

Ikem Ekwonu at left tackle missed the last game and may miss this week as well, in which case Brady Christensen would likely get the start again there.

Damien Lewis, Cade Mays, Robert Hunt, and Taylor Moton fill out the rest of the offensive line from left to right.

Before getting hurt, Ekwonu was the weak link in pass protection on the line. Christensen hasn’t been very impressive in his limited snaps either, so there could be a target at that left tackle spot regardless of who plays.

The receiver room could best be described as unimpressive to this point in the season. There’s youth and promise at the skill positions, but the talent isn’t quite there yet.

First-round pick Xavier Legette is a clear focal point of the passing game with 39 targets, the most on the active roster. Still, most of his completions have come on underneath throws with a complete inability to connect downfield.

Veteran receiver David Moore is in his first year with the Panthers but has spent most of his career on teams that had head coach Dave Canales on the coaching staff.

Moore has emerged as a third option in the passing game behind Legette and rookie tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders, with Hubbard as the main check-down option.

Sanders has taken over the starting tight end role this season, and while he’s had inconsistent performances, he’s shown flashes despite playing the position with the steepest learning curve from college to the pros.

The Panthers also announced that they will be activating second-round rookie running back Jonathon Brooks for the first time in his career. Brooks tore his ACL last year at Texas.

Scheme

Few offenses throw the ball as often as the Panthers' 59.7% pass rate, the eighth-highest rate in the NFL this year.

Part of that is due to them trailing frequently, but it’s also because Canales tends to use the quick game as an extension of the run game.

On the ground, this has been a mostly zone-heavy run game that focuses on running both inside and outside zones and calling duo to create multiple gaps.

This offseason it was clear that the focus of the run game would be zone blocking with their linemen signings, but Hubbard has seen the most benefit from the scheme change.

The Panthers' passing attack will feature a heavy dose of screens, whether they are part of an RPO game or just straight-designed screen plays.

Overview

Despite the improvements to their offensive line, the Panthers still have the eighth-quickest time to pressure allowed so far.

The Giants need to be able to generate a quick pass rush on Young, and they should be able to consistently do so despite the less-than-stellar offensive tackle play and Dexter Lawrence playing the nose.

Eye discipline will be a priority for the back seven as they deal with one of the more play-action-heavy passing attacks paired with an effective run game, a lethal combination.

The Panthers are averaging 5.5 yards per carry against defenses that operate with light boxes, which the Giants run 61% of the time, which could spell disaster when Lawrence comes off the field and the Panthers inevitably go up-tempo.

---

JOIN THE NEW YORK GIANTS ON SI COMMUNITY!

• Follow and like us on Facebook.
• Submit your questions for our mailbag.
• Follow on Instagram.
• Check out the Giants Country YouTube Channel.

---