Why is Jeremy Chinn Not On the Field More? Evero Explains

Carolina's most versatile player is being limited. Why is that?

Author:
Schuyler Callihan
Oct 13, 2023 2:17 PM EDT

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Jeremy Chinn hasn't played anywhere near the number of defensive snaps this season in Ejiro Evero's system as he did in his first three years under Matt Rhule and Steve Wilks.

To put some numbers to it, Chinn has appeared in just 55% of all defensive snaps in 2023. His first three years in the league? 97%, 99%, and 91%. He's barely on the field and no one understands why.

In the offseason, preseason, and training camp, Evero and the rest of the staff couldn't stop talking about Chinn's versatility and how they were surprised by how much he could do.

"He's really just embracing his role. It's going to be different for him," said Reich in the offseason. And talking to EJ [Ejiro Evero] the other day about some other possibilities and I know it's offseason and we've only done phase one, phase two, and this is just the start. But we're really excited about how he's going to fit into our scheme. After talking to EJ, there's probably even more roles for him than what we thought."

Evero echoed similar thoughts and even stated how important it was for Chinn to be on the field.

"We think very highly of him," Evero said in the spring. "I think he's a heck of a player. He's a weapon that we're definitely going to try to utilize and I know that he's an asset for us to have. I don't want to get too much into the specifics but we value his skillset. He's a guy that can do a lot of different things. You just got to have him on the field and we're going to figure that out as we work."

So why is Chinn on the field only 55% of the time? Could it be he doesn't fit into this scheme as well as the staff initially thought? Is he being limited to a certain role? Here's what Evero had to say about his usage this week.

"There is specialized packages for him. We're obviously trying to play him and Troy (Hill) at that nickel position and then have Jeremy in some of the dime positions. Getting more third downs is how we get him on the field obviously and then some of those specialized first and second down deals too. Our execution level, our ability to play the run game better and get into more pass situations is going to allow that to happen."

Specialized first and second downs? I don't know about all that. This is one of the most talented players on that side of the ball, yet he's primarily a third down defender? Something doesn't seem right about that. I'm not going to pretend to know the answers, but I will suggest that if Carolina doesn't see Chinn fitting in with this staff, you should look to move him. Matt Alquiza did a good job (in the article below) of breaking down why trading Chinn makes sense.