The Carolina Panthers couldn’t get anything going on offense against a terrible Redskins defense in a game they should have won.

Jake Delhomme was off all afternoon as he hit 23 of 38 passes for 168 yards with 1 TD and 2 INT.  DeAngelo Williams carried the ball 17 times for 63 yards (3.7 ypc) and caught 3 passes for 23 yards.  Keyshawn Johnson caught 6 passes for 38 yards and Steve Smith added 5 receptions for 34 yards and a TD.

The Panthers had trouble with the Skins running game as the Skins carried the ball 37 times for 143 yards (3.9 ypc).  The Panthers played pretty well on pass defense as the Skins only completed 11 of 23 passes for 110 net yards passing.

This loss could hurt the Panthers who are now one game behind the New Orleans Saints at 6-5 on the season.

The Carolina Panthers look like a new team after they had a bye week to regroup.  The Panthers have won their last two games by a combined score of 39-10.  The Redskins are going the other way having lost their last two games and 5 of their last 6.

It looks as if rookie DeAngelo Williams will get the start this week for the Panthers at running back and the Panthers will use him often against a Redskins defense that allows 121.2 yards rushing per game and 3.9 yards per carry.  Don’t think for a minute that Jake Delhomme (2,161 yards passing) won’t throw the ball alot against the Redskins secondary which is one of the worst in the NFL.  The Redskins allow 237.6 net yards passing per game and have allowed 20 TD passes while only picking-off 3 passes the whole season.  No way that the Skins secondary can stop Steve Smith (57 rec, 870 yards) and Keyshawn Johnson (47 rec, 571 yards).

The Redskins will probably try to run the ball with LeDell Betts (384 yards rushing) and TJ Duckett to try to keep their defense on the sideline and control the clock.  Jason Campbell did a good job in his first start, but Carolina’s Defense is much better than Tampa’s.  The Redskins must be able to slow Julius Peppers (11 sacks) down or Campbell will be running for his like in the backfield.  To combat that, the Skins will probably keep the passes short and utilize TE Chris Cooley alot.

I just don’t see how this can be a competitive football game.  I think the Panthers win this game by a large margin!

The Panthers out-gained the Rams 411-111 and sacked the Rams QB 7 times.  The Panthers were ball hogs on offense as they held onto the ball for 38:43 of the game.

Jake Delhomme completed 13 of 25 passes for 191 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT.  DeAngelo Williams had a good game with 114 yards on 20 carries (5.7 ypc) and 2 catches for 24 yards.  DeShaun Foster added 9 carries for 63 yards (7.0 ypc).  Steve Smith had a good game with 4 catches for 90 yards and a TD.   Keyshawn Johnson added 4 receptions for 55 yards.

LB Thomas Davis led the way with 10 tackles and 1.5 sacks.  Chris Draft (5 tackles, 1/2 sack) and DL Mike Rucker (2 tackles, 2 sacks, safety) were big contributors to the defense too.  The Panthers held the Rams to 31 yards rushing on 8 carries (3.9 ypc).  The Rams completed 19 of 34 passes for 80 net yards thru the air.

The defense absloutely was dominating as the Panthers have moved into a first-place tie with the Saints.

The Rams are in a complete free-fall as they have lost 4 games in a row.  The Panthers are looking to build on their victory last Monday Night over the Bucs.

The Rams will likely air it out to their best players, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce as long as they can keep the Panthers off of Marc Bulger.  That could be easier said than done with Orlando Pace out for the season.  If the Rams get the passing game going, then look for them to pound Steven Jackson at the interior of the Panthers defense.

Look for the Panthers to try to run the ball alot more than usual this week because the Rams can’t stop the run.  The Rams allow 143.3 yards rushing and 5.1 yards per carry so far this season.  As soon as the Panthers establish the running game, look for Jake Delhomme to run alot of play-action passes.  Steve Smith should be able to get open deep against the Rams, with Keyshawn Johnson handling the short stuff.

The Panthers should win this football game, as the Rams have been reeling this season after a strong start.

The Panthers looked like they were sleepwalking in the first half as they trailed the Bucs 7-0 going into the locker room.  The Panthers came out of the locker-room breathing fire and out-scored the Bucs 24-3 in the second half. 

Jake Delhomme completed 22 of 34 passes for 240 yards with 2 TDs and 1 INT.  The Panthers could never get their running game going against the Bucs and they tried everyone.  DeShaun Foster carried the ball 13 times for 48 yards (3.7 ypc).  DeAngelo Williams got his first action in over a month and carried the ball 7 times for 19 yards (2.7 ypc).  Brad Hoover carried the ball 5 times for 14 yards (2.8 ypc) and a TD.  He also caught 3 passes for 18 yards.  Steve Smith was on fire last night as he caught 8 passes for 149 yards and a TD.  Keyshawn Johnson also had a solid game with 6 receptions for 37 yards and a TD, but he also lost a fumble.

The Panthers played a great game on defense, led by Julius Peppers.  Peppers had 4 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 fumble recovery and he even defensed a pass!  The Bucs never could get their running game going against the Panthers, as they had 22 carries for 69 yards (3.1 ypc).  The Bucs completed 17 of 32 passes for 153 net yards passing.

This was a big win to start the second half for the Panthers.

Jordan Karstens is expected to be placed on IR with an injured lung.  Damione Lewis will see more playing time as a result of this injury.

ESPN can’t be happy with this match-up on Monday Night Football.  Maybe they will be surprised and these two teams will play like they did the first time they played each other this year (26-24 Carolina win).  The Bucs are 2-3 with Gradkowski at QB, but only 2-6 overall.  The Panthers are coming off of their bye week sitting at 4-4 which has been disappointing to them. 

Look for the Bucs to try to get Cadillac Williams (453 rushing yards) going.  Williams has been a little bit of a disappointment, as has the whole offense of the Bucs.  But Williams could have a good game against a Panthers defense that allows 119.8 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.  If the Bucs get the ground game going, look for Gradkowski to take some shots down the field to his favorite receiver Joey Galloway (29 rec, 475 yards).

The Panthers would like to run the ball more and the Bucs will probably let them as they allow 133.9 yards rushing per game and 4.3 yards per carry.  DeShaun Foster (540 yards rushing) will probably get most of the carries, but DeAngelo Williams will be back on Monday and should get some carries.  Jake Delhomme (1,730 yards passing) should have time to throw the ball and Steve Smith (45 rec, 631 yards) + Keyshawn Johnson (37 rec, 479 yards) should have good games if they catch the darn ball.

The Panthers just have too much fire-power for the Bucs to keep up with.

Jake Delhomme has to share in some of the responsibility for the offense’s problems.  The receivers have dropped alot of passes this season, but alot of them are not perfect spirals.  Delhomme had completed 59.3% of his passes this season for 1,730 yards with 8 TDs and 5 INTs.  Delhomme has a QB rating of 80.3 this season.  The team needs Delhomme to take charge of the offense and get the ball to the playmakers on time and in the right spot.  If Delhomme plays the second half of the year the same way that he played the first half, the Panthers will be watching the playoffs on TV this year.

So much more was expected out of the Carolina Panthers football team than the 4-4 team that has been on the field.  The Panthers are lucky to be 4-4 when you realize that they’ve been outscored (17.1 per game- 20.4 per game), outrushed (94.1 per game – 119.8 per game) and outpassed (198.8 yards per game – 213.0 yards per game) this season.  On offense the Panthers need to run the football better and the receivers have to catch the football when it hits them in the hands.  On defense, the team needs everyone to give the effort that Julius Peppers does on every play.  The talent is there for a playoff run, but the players have to get it done on the field and play better in all phases of the football game.