Key Additions: S Trenton Robinson, C Gino Gradkowski, DT Paul Soliai,
Key Subtractions: CB Josh Norman, C Fernando Velasco, DT Dwan Edwards, CB Charles Tillman, S Roman Harper
Strengths
Cam Newton and company flirted with an undefeated season in 2015, made the playoffs, won the NFC title before an anticlimactic and embarrassing loss to Denver at Super Bowl 50. But regardless of what happened in Santa Clara, the Panthers are expected to contend for another Super Bowl title this season. Priced at +1,000 to win it all, the Panthers will look to continue what went right last season.
Cam Newton ran the offense beautifully, maneuvering the team into a league-best average of 32.2 points per game. He’ll have a deeper receiving corps this year with the anticipated return of Kelvin Benjamin to the field after missing all of last season to injury. Benjamin re-joins a receiving corps that includes the likes of Greg Olsen and Ted Ginn, who combined for 1,483 receiving yards 17 receiving touchdowns.
Over on the other side of the ball: the Panthers may have lost Josh Norman in the offseason, but the stop unit remains nothing to scoff at with Luke Kuechly, Thomas Davis, and Kawann Short anchoring a defense that racked up 44 sacks and 24 interceptions—the most in the NFL.
Weaknesses
While we mentioned that the Panthers’ defense would remain stout, the departure of Norman has definitely left a big void in the secondary. And that void will be covered mostly by rookie cornerbacks; the Panthers spent three of their first four picks in the draft on cornerbacks.
Key Player – Cam Newton
Newton was a polarizing figure on and off the field last season, but that shouldn’t change the fact that he’s the most important player on the team. Newton passed for 3,837 yards and 35 touchdowns while also rushing for 636 yards and reaching the end zone 10 times. With Benjamin back, Newton will have to find a way to feed a larger receiving crew, which is a good problem for the quarterback.
Key Game – at Denver (September 8)
Cam Newton walking out of the post-Super Bowl press conference was the last vivid image we have of the Panthers of last season. They’ll resurface at Denver for the NFL’s season opener looking to prove that they’ve definitely moved on from that Super Bowl loss. This game has the potential to dictate how the Panthers will fare the rest of the way.
2015 Team Stats
Category
Stat (Rank)
Points per game
32.2 (#1)
Passing yards per game
225.8 (#24)
Rushing yards per game
143.2 (#2)
Scoring defense
19.3 (#6)
Writer’s Prediction
The Panthers, who are -250 to win their division, finish the season on top of the NFC South with a 12-4 record.
