Keys to the Game: Panthers at Rams

The keys to Carolina's first game of the Steve Wilks era in Carolina.

The deed is done. Matt Rhule is out, Steve Wilks is in.

A new era of Panthers football starts this week against the Rams as the team looks to make sense of the rest of the season and beyond. Fan focus may already be shifting to next season, but there is still plenty the team needs and hopes to accomplish in 2022. 

Here are the keys to finding those successes this weekend:

Get creative. Find an identity.

Through five games, and really since 2020, the Panthers have performed as a team without a strong sense of strengths and weaknesses. Game plans haven't matched the personnel of the Panthers or opposing teams, inconsistencies have been rampant, and leadership has been lacking. The players really can't shoulder much of the blame for many of the missteps of the coaching staff and ownership, but it's not a roster that has been outperforming coaching thus far either.

So where does this leave the young and hungry Panthers roster? In desperate need of a captain to steer and ship that has moved only how opposing teams have steered it thus far. Enter Steve Wilks.

The interim coach has been around the league for a while and has been a part of some really successful teams in Carolina. Those who have been around him describe him as a "leader of men" and a guy who is really able to connect with his players. This is just what the Panthers need for the remaining 12 games in which winning will be less important in the box scores, and rather measured by development, assessment of talent, and finding out where this team could thrive in the future.

Wilks didn't make the mess he now has to clean up, but he has already pointed to incoming changes in his first press conference as head coach. "The schemes aren't going to change much, but I think you have to be creative in the process of what you are doing- and everything is predicated off of who we're playing."

This sounds like it would be a given, but the Rhule era in Carolina was extremely lackluster in this department, rarely seeming to attack opponents proactively and rather figuring things out as the game unfolded. If Wilks' lead can breathe some creativity into the Panthers, the dormant talent on the roster may be able to show what they are truly capable of.

Wilks also hinted at a potential identity for this Carolina squad - running the football. Based on the quarterback room's talent and health, and the fact that the Carolina offense has ranked dead last in Expected Points Added per dropback this season, unlocking a running game behind the talent of Christian McCaffrey could help this team move the ball much more consistently. 

This team won't just be throwing stuff at the wall this weekend against the Rams and hoping something works, but expect this team's effort to be centered on actively forming an identity based on strengths, regardless of the final score.

Find the players who can execute

When a team is 1-4 and has already undergone a coaching change, one of the benefits is an opportunity to assess the roster from top to bottom. Wilks has already alluded to the fact that both reserves and even practice squad players are going to have an opportunity to prove that they can execute and expand their roles, which is exactly what the team should be doing. 

The team knows players like Christian McCaffrey and Brian Burns are good at football. The question is which players on the roster prove they belong in more successful lineup iterations in the future? 

For some, this opportunity will probably be more gradual as the season carries on. With injuries to key players like Jaycee Horn, Jeremy Chinn, and Baker Mayfield though, expect Wilks and his staff to give many of the youngsters as much as they can handle, and maybe even more. 

Don't be afraid to make mistakes

The strategy of letting players show what they are capable of isn't always as easy as it sounds. Players who have not seen the field as much as starters are generally not going to be as sharp and successful as the guys who were already penciled in for playing time. They just don't have the reps under their belt. This strategy can result in plenty of hiccups and headshakes in the short term, but that is OKAY!

The long-term success of this franchise starts with assessing what is currently available. Every nook and cranny of the roster should be examined and tested exhaustively, even if that produces some ugly play in the process. Anything less is simply delaying future success at the cost of potential mediocrity in the short term. The team is 1-4 and it would take a nearly unprecedented turnaround to sniff the playoffs.

Now that's not to say this team should simply not try every Sunday. The team should be working hard to win every game possible for now for culture-building and process development reasons. Rather, the team should be congruently trying their hardest with the future in mind. Coaches and fans alike should be focused on identifying players that can be part of the winning culture, and not necessarily who gives them the best chance to win this season. 

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