Just because you’re better on paper doesn’t mean you’re better on the field. That about sums up what’s going on with the Panthers offensive line right now. This offseason, the front office brought in a few new promising pieces to help fix the unit.
The additions of Matt Paradis and Greg Little were supposed to solidify the front line and finally give Cam Newton the breathing room he deserves. Expectations for this group are high – Pro Football Focus has them ranked as the 10th-best offensive line in the league this year. We’ll see how long that lasts, because this big improvement we have been hearing and writing about throughout the spring and summer hasn’t happened yet.
In last night’s preseason loss to the Patriots, the front line was a study in failure. Of all the things that went wrong, coach Ron Rivera told the media afterwards that the offensive line was probably the “biggest disappointment.”
Probably is being entirely too generous.
The offensive line was a disaster and Newton was under constant fire from the moment he stepped on the field. Cam took pressures from several Patriots and two sacks, the second of which knocked him out of the game.
The good news is that Newton’s injury is only a mild mid-foot sprain and the team is optimistic about him playing Week 1. The bad news is when Newton does get back out there he has to throw behind the same line.
