CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- “Never a dull moment," Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera said softly on Friday as he exited his final news conference before Sunday’s game at Atlanta.
Never, indeed, for the defending NFC champions.
Just when it appeared there was a return for normalcy a week after violent protests near Bank of America Stadium had players and coaches on high alert, starting left tackle Michael Oher entered the concussion protocol three days before the team’s NFC South opener.
It left Rivera and company scrambling as the Panthers (1-2) begin a three-game stretch that could go a long way in deciding whether they win their division for the fourth straight season.
The Falcons (2-1) are the first of three straight division opponents, followed by a home Monday night game against Tampa Bay and a trip to New Orleans.
The Panthers have lost only four division games in the past three seasons, one in 2015 and 2013. So the best way to the title is winning division games.
Here are five things to keep an eye on in the 1 p.m. game:
The blind side: Fortunately for Carolina, the Falcons are the worst team at pressuring the quarterback since the start of last season. They have pressured quarterbacks only 17 percent of the time on dropbacks this season. That’s the third-lowest rate in the league. Carolina’s problem is there aren’t a lot of good options behind Oher, particularly when the news came on Friday after the game plan was established. Do the Panthers move right tackle Mike Remmers from the right to left side and replace him with Daryl Williams, which is essentially making two moves? Or do they start Donald Hawkins or Williams on the left side, where neither have started? The latter sounds more likely, but either way, this changes the complexion of this game.
Cam’s comeback: The Oher situation could have a direct impact on quarterback Cam Newton, who has thrown five interceptions through the first three games. He’s never thrown more than five through the first four games, so odds are he will bounce back against a mediocre Atlanta defense. But pressure on Newton has been a major factor in the interceptions and Carolina’s two losses. Atlanta knows that. Minnesota pressured him 17 times last week, leading to three interceptions. The odds that Atlanta brings more pressure than normal just went up with Oher out.
Cam’s promise: Newton vowed that wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin wouldn’t go another game without a catch under his watch if he had anything to do with it. Benjamin had no catches on one target last week against Minnesota, the first time he’d gone catchless since his redshirt freshman season at Florida State in 2012. The Panthers have worked on quicker routes and ways to get Benjamin more involved this week, and Oher being out might make that more of a priority. Newton has completed 68.4 percent of his passes to Benjamin this season, compared to 47.1 to the rest of his wide receivers. He has three touchdowns to one interception when targeting Benjamin. He has one touchdown and two interceptions when targeting the other wide receivers.
Air it out: As mentioned above, the Falcons have a mediocre defense. They’ve allowed 10 touchdown passes this season, tied for the most in the NFL. They’ve allowed at least three in each game, so the Panthers will have opportunities. With starting running back Jonathan Stewart out for the second straight week with a hamstring injury, it will be important to establish the run to establish the play-action game to keep the pressure off Newton. With Oher out, that is more important. Carolina has rushed for more than 100 yards in 30 straight games, so that streak should continue. But they need the running backs to take more of a lead role in this than Newton.
Stop the run: This always is a priority for Carolina’s defense, but even more so against an Atlanta team that has a dynamic duo of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Freeman is fifth in the NFL in rushing with 265 yards. That sets up Coleman for passes out of the backfield. Coleman has 176 yards receiving, the second-most in the NFL by a running back this season. Stopping the run also would allow Carolina’s front seven to put more pressure on quarterback Matt Ryan, who works with a more traditional five- to seven-step drop as compared to the three-step drops that Carolina’s first three opponents have used to negate some of the pressure.
