Carolina Panthers’ Jonathan Stewart heads toward the end zone. Photo courtesy Tribune News Service
The Carolina Panthers are having a magical season. Sparked by the play and leadership of Cam Newton, the Panthers have their eyes not only on the NFC divisional game, but the Super Bowl as well. Here are three keys to Panthers bringing home the Lombardi trophy:
Keeping the momentum
The Carolina Panthers started the game against Seattle with a load of momentum. They scored on their first four drives resulting in 24 points while also receiving some help from a Luke Kuechly pick-6. However, after halftime the roles were reversed and the Seattle Seahawks stole the momentum and came within one play of tying the game in the final seconds.
Momentum without direction is useless. In order to keep their winning streak alive, the Panthers need to leverage their momentum and direct it to both the offense and defense. This will suck the life out of their opponent while allowing the Panthers to build upon the success they have already had. If the Panthers can keep pounding and keep the momentum that they have, the Super Bowl might not be too far out of reach.
Fixing the holes in the defense
The cliche saying, “defense wins championships” has been proven true time and time again. If the Panthers want to reach the goals they set out to accomplish, they need to tighten up their defense. In the second half alone the Panther defense gave up 24 points and 231 yards. As the Panthers go deeper into the playoffs, the teams get tougher and the mistakes a team can make become less and less. Linebackers Kuechly and Thomas Davis set the tone for the defense; however, the rest of the team must pull their weight so that there are no holes. The defense is only as good as its weakest player therefore everyone must step up and fill the gaps.
Sustaining the offense
With Newton having an MVP caliber season it is hard to stop a weapon with multiple targets. Tight end Greg Olsen, running back Jonathan Stewart and a slew of receivers makes it challenging for the defense to stop. They can try to stop Newton from passing but then he has Stewart in the backfield who can pound it up the middle. If they try to stop the run, Newton can hit the Olsen for a quick gain. The key to winning offensively is making sure that every facet of the Panthers offense is in rhythm and that they are not relying too heavily on Newton to make the big plays. They do this by keeping the defense guessing for what will come next. Ultimately forcing the defense to spread out and cover every yard of the field.
The Carolina Panthers have a long way to go but if they can leverage their momentum, tighten up their defense and continue to utilize their multi-threat offense the Panthers may well be on their way to Super Bowl 50.