Plays to Love Cam Newton Jersey 2019 , Plays to Hate (aka “P2L, P2H”) looks at the most significant plays in swinging momentum and impacting the eventual outcome of the game. There is always plenty to hate about NFL officiating, so we will only focus on the plays on the field, not the refs.Three plays to love1st Quarter 11:58 – Panthers 0, Buccaneers 0. Bucs ball 2nd-and-8 at TB 22The Situation: The Bucs and the Panthers had both gone three-and-out on their first possessions. Tampa Bay was now just beginning their second drive.The Play: Ryan Fitzpatrick overthrew his intended receiver by a country mile and the ball sailed right into the hands of Eric Reid for an easy interception. Reid returned the interception 39 yards down to the Tampa Bay 10 yard line, setting up an Alex Armah touchdown and an early 7-0 Panthers lead. 2nd Quarter 6:33 – Panthers 28, Bucs 7. Bucs ball 4th-and-9 at TB 26The Situation: The Panthers had scored touchdowns on four straight drives to jump out to a 28-7 lead midway through the second quarter. The Bucs were desperate to change momentum as they lined up to punt. The Play: The Bucs gambled on a high-risk, low-reward fake punt from deep in their own territory. Ben Jacobs pressured punter Bryan Anger on the throw while David Mayo deflected the pass. The Panthers took possession at the Tampa Bay 25 and scored yet another touchdown to go up 35-7. I think Tampa Bay’s coaching staff panicked here. Yes, Carolina’s offense was an avalanche at this point, but we all know how the second half played out. After the Panthers went up 35-7, the Bucs scored the next 21 points to narrow the gap to 35-28 early in the fourth quarter. What if Tampa Bay had just punted here? What if Carolina’s offense fell apart with 28 points instead of 35? What if the Bucs tied the game at 28-28 instead of still being down a touchdown? The second half could have played out very differently if Tampa just punts here, but that’s only a guess on my part. 4th Quarter 13:04 – Panthers 35, Bucs 28. Panthers ball 3rd-and-2 at CAR 33The Situation: The Panthers offense had gone ice cold. After scoring touchdowns on five straight drives to go up 35-7, Carolina’s offense went punt (three-and-out), punt (three-and-out), and turnover on downs (burned all three timeouts). In the meantime, Tampa Bay’s offense caught fire and cut the lead to 35-28. The Panthers had lost all momentum and were now facing the prospect of another three-and-out as they lined up for 3rd-and-2.The Play: Christian McCaffrey slipped out of the backfield and into the left flat and found himself open. Cam Newton hit him with a short pass and CMC motored 20 yards to the Tampa Bay 47. The third down conversion extended a drive that ended with a Curtis Samuel touchdown and a 42-28 Panthers lead. If the Panthers don’t convert here, they would have punted deep in their own territory with a seven point lead. Yes, there were more spectacular plays in this game including McCaffrey’s hurdle, Curtis Samuel’s double reverse, and Greg Olsen’s one-handed touchdown, but I think getting this first down was a huge momentum shifter to get the Panthers offense back on track. Three plays to hate2nd Quarter 0:19 – Panthers 35, Bucs 7. Bucs ball 4th-and-Goal at CAR 3The Situation: The Bucs had one final play to end the half to try to cut into the Panthers overwhelming 35-7 lead.The Play: O.J. Howard came in motion from left to right and used the momentum to just run away from Luke Kuechly in coverage. Howard scored an easy touchdown and made Luke look shockingly slow on the play. The play cut the Panthers lead to 35-14 at the half.3rd Quarter 4:25 – Panthers 35, Bucs 21. Panthers ball 1st-and-10 at CAR 41The Situation: After two three-and-outs to start the third quarter, the Panthers offense needed to get something going.The Play(s): I hated multiple plays on this entire drive and will pin these on Norv Turner and Ron Rivera. At the 4:25 mark the Panthers had to burn a timeout to prevent a delay of game. At 3:02 they burned their second timeout. At 2:58 they challenged a play and lost, thus losing their final timeout. At 2:09 the Panthers faced 4th-and-1 from the Tampa Bay 34 and converted with a Cam Newton sneak. However, Carolina was flagged for illegal motion and now faced 4th-and-6 from the Tampa Bay 38. Rivera went for it and Cam Newton’s underneath throw to Devin Funchess only gained two yards and the Panthers turned it over on downs. This sequence was a two minute clown show.3rd Quarter 0:18 – Panthers 35, Bucs 21. Bucs ball 3rd-and-17 at TB 14The Situation: Tampa Bay had reeled off 14 straight points to cut Carolina’s lead to 35-21 near the end of the third quarter. The Panthers defense just needed to hold on 3rd-and-17 to stop theBucs momentum.The Play: This “Play to Hate” gets pinned squarely on defensive coordinator Eric Washington. Rather than staying at least somewhat aggressive, Washington went into a deep, soft zone. Both Eric Reid and Mike Adams were more than 20 yards off the line of scrimmage at the snap. Donte Jackson released Chris Godwin on a streak down the sideline and safety help over the top was nowhere to be seen. Godwin easily converted with a 25-yard gain. This drive ended with a touchdown to trim the Panthers lead to a sphincter-clenching 35-28. Just a horrible scheme by Washington. Closing it out and summing it upThe Panthers are 6-2 and that’s all that matters. They have the third best record in the NFC, trailing the one-loss Los Angeles Rams (8-1) and New Orleans Saints (7-1). It might not always be pretty, but the Panthers just keep on winning. Let’s be happy with that. On offense, Newton and McCaffrey were brilliant. Greg Olsen is an old reliable security blanket. Curtis Samuel and D.J. Moore looked incredibly explosive with the ball in their hands. Blocking was generally solid. Play calling was creative. It’s all love when the offense hangs 42 points on a division rival. Defensively Blue Cam Newton Jersey , Eric Washington’s soft defensive coverages on third-and-long has got to stop. In addition to the “Play to Hate” above (converting on 3rd-and-17), the Bucs also converted on a 3rd-and-15 in the first quarter. Be more aggressive, Eric! James Bradberry (with help from Eric Reid) was incredible in shutting down Mike Evans with just one catch on 10 targets. Donte Jackson came up with yet another clutch interception to seal the game. Mario Addison was a sack machine with a little help from his friends. I love the black-on-black uniforms. We are the Panthers. Panthers are black. More black-on-black uniforms please. The Panthers need to learn how to put teams away. This game never should’ve ended up 35-28 in the fourth quarter. That said, it’s hard to be unhappy with a 14-point win against a division rival. Let the good times roll!Plays to love season leaders3 - Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, James Bradberry2 - Efe Obada, Kyle Love, Torrey Smith, 1 - Ben Jacobs, Colin Jones, David Mayo, Devin Funchess, Donte Jackson, Eric Reid, Graham Gano, Greg Olsen, Julius Peppers, Kawann Short, Mario Addison, Norv Turner, Taylor Heinicke, Wes HortonPlays to hate season leaders4 - Mike Adams3 - Eric Reid2 - Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, Dontari Poe, Eric Washington1 - Amini Silatolu, C.J. Anderson, Captain Munnerlyn, Colin Jones, Devin Funchess, Donte Jackson, Ian Thomas Kawann Short Jersey 2019 , Luke Kuechly, Norv Turner, Ron Rivera, Thomas Davis, Trai TurnerPanthers expected to finish 7-9 according to Sports Illustrated prediction Despite promise from a retooled receiving corps and a new offensive coordinator in Norv Turner, the fine folks at Sports Illustrated believe that the efforts are just enough to power the Carolina Panthers to a 7-9 finish for third place in the NFC South.Their reasoning? Cam Newton’s struggles with accuracy and ‘mechanics’ plus an inconsistent offensive line and a porous secondary. SI’s 2018 NFL Preview claims that Turner will have to rely on Newton’s speed more often than not.(Ed. Note - The following quotes were taken from the physical issue of Sports Illustrated’s 2018 NFL Preview. To subscribe, click here. -BS)“While Turner’s downfield attack would seem a perfect match for Newton’s power arm, the QB’s erratic mechanics can cause him to miss-often wildly- on routine throws , and that won'tchange eight years into his NFL career. That’s why Turner must use Newton’s legs to stabilize the offense.” On the offensive line, the preview had this to say:“Even with Newton and the signing of running back C.J. Anderson from Denver, the ground game won’t prosper if Carolina’s O-line doesn't generate more push, and that’s going to be a challenge.” The piece went on to mention the age of center Ryan Kalil and the departure of left guard and top blocker, Andrew Norwell to the Jaguars.”First of all, the concerns about the offensive line are valid. Before undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery, Kalil had his share of struggles in the preseason. The losses of right tackle Daryl Williams (torn MCL) and Amini Silatolu (torn meniscus) are a concern for a unit that’s ranked no 23 in the league.Even if healthy, one can say that the biggest reason why Turner will have to rely on Newton’s speed and athleticism is the fact that he can get no protection from his line, thus making it easy for opposing defenses to flush him out of the pocket and easier to force errant passes.That criticism is fair. However Newton’s accuracy is another issue. “Not accurate? That’s cool, watch this!” In the preseason, Newton completed 26/38 passes for 68.4 percent and a touchdown in limited action.Against the Patriots, Newton spread the ball beautifully- getting Devin Funchess, Greg Olsen, and Curtis Samuel involved for a combined nine catches for 137 yards before the backups’ reps.Granted , these numbers are a small sample size, but it’s indicative of Newton’s capability to be accurate.Furthermore, Turner has a penchant to utilize the backfield as viable targets for a few outs and screens. Christian McCaffrey proved last season that he is more than just a capable option for Newton: he’s reliable. Last season, McCaffrey recorded 80 catches for 651 yards and five touchdowns. For the Broncos last season, C.J. Anderson chipped in with 28 catches for 221 yards. Don't bet against Newton spreading the ball around and hold a high completion percentage. If the Panthers consistently perform like they did against the Dolphins and the Patriots respectively, I believe that they will end up finishing with a winning record.In the game against New England,Carolina held the Patriots’ offense to only three points at the half.Middle Linebacker Luke Kuechly’s goal line stand included seven tackles and a pass deflection in the first half.The week before, the Panthers held Miami to one red zone touchdown. Since new defensive coordinator Eric Washington will plan to minimize the pressure on a erratic secondary, look for the Panthers to ride their blitz happy defense to some wins. It looks as if the Panthers will have to keep pounding the respect out of people. So, what are your thoughts about the prediction from SI? Let us know in the comments.