When DeAngelo Williams & Jonathan Stewart went down to injury the Panthers thought they were in dire straits.  They turned to 23-year old Mike Goodson and he has responded well the last three weeks.  In the last three games, Goodson has carried the ball 59 times for 275 yards (4.7 ypc) with 1 TD run and he has also caught 16 passes for 125 yards (7.8 avg).  Goodson has now played in 11 games for the Panthers this year and he has carried the ball 75 times for 325 yards (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He has also caught 33 passes for 265 yards (8.0 avg) so far this year.  Goodson has returned 30 kickoffs for 686 (22.9 avg) but the Panthers would be smart to have him forget about special teams and concentrate on playing offense.  Jonathan Stewart is back in action which will likely reduce Goodson’s role a bit but he has shown that he can be a asset to the Panthers’ offense.

David Gettis and Brandon LaFell have been stepping up this season for the Panthers.  Gettis was a sixth round pick out of Baylor last April.  He has played in 10 games for the Panthers already this year and he caught 25 passes for 400 yards (16.0 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Gettis also returned 7 kickoffs for 117 yards (16.7 avg) so far this year.  Brandon LaFell was a 3rd round pick out of LSU last April.  LaFell has played in 9 games for the Panthers this year and he has caught 22 passes for 301 yards (13.7 avg) with a TD grab.  LaFell made a great catch against the Browns last week to set up John Kasay for a 42-yard field goal which he missed.  Gettis & LaFell have shown enough so far this year to think they might have bright futures with the Panthers.

The Panthers put up one hell of a fight against the Browns yesterday in Cleveland.  Jimmy Clausen hit Brandon LaFell with a pass at the Browns’ 25-yard line with 5 seconds left to play setting up a John Kasay 42-yard field goal attempt.  The ball hit the left upright as time expired giving the Panthers a heartbreaking loss.  Jimmy Clausen was decent in this game as he completed 16 of 28 passes for 195 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  Johnathan Stewart was back with a vengeance for the Browns in this game as he carried the ball 12 times for 98 yards (8.2 ypc).  Mike Goodson had another good game for the Panthers yesterday as he carried the ball 14 times for 55 yards (3.9 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 8 passes for 81 yards (10.1 avg).  WR Brandon LaFell (2 rec, 37 yards) and TE Dante Rosario (3 rec, 33 yards) also pitched in for the Panthers on offense.  The Panthers finished up with 151 yards rushing on 27 carries (5.6 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 28 passes for 175 yards in this game.

The defense wasn’t too good yesterday against the running game but they were solid against Jake Delhomme in the passing game.  LB James Anderson and safety Sherrod Martin each had 10 tackles apiece in this game.  LB Jason Williams finished up with 7 tackles, 1 pass defensed and a fumble recovery in his first NFL start.  CB Captain Munnerlyn had 6 tackles, 1 pass defensed and he intercepted a Jake Delhomme pass which he took 37 yards for a TD.  LB Jon Beason pitched in with a interception too.  The Browns finished up with 152 yards rushing on 32 carries (4.8 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 36 passes for 227 yards.  The Panthers are now 1-10 on the year.

The Panthers have lost four games in a row by a combined score of 122-42!  The Browns have lost two games in a row (to the Jets & Jaguars) despite playing decent ball in defeat as they were outscored 50-40 in those games.  In the previous two games though the Browns beat the Saints & Patriots by a combined score of 64-31.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Panthers have the ball:  It looks as if Jimmy Clausen will be back to start this game at QB for the Panthers.  If the O-Line doesn’t give Clausen time to throw the ball (Panthers’ QBs have been sacked 30 times already this year) he isn’t going to be able to do anything through the air.  The Panthers are more likely to try to keep the ball on the ground with Mike Goodson and Jonathan Stewart against a Browns’ D that is allowing 116.4 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.

When the Browns have the ball:  Jake Delhomme will be making the start at QB for the Browns in the place of a injured Colt McCoy.  I don’t see that making a huge difference in this game because I see the Browns feeding the rock to Peyton Hillis.   It won’t be easy for the Panthers to deal with Hillis as they are allowing 128.4 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.  If Jake Delhomme has time to throw the ball, I think he’s going to be effective in this game.

PREDICTION:  BROWNS 27, PANTHERS 10

The Panthers have signed 26-year old safety Gerald Alexander.  Alexander played in 3 games earlier this season for the Jaguars and he had 16 tackles and 3 passes defensed.  In his first four years in the NFL, Alexander has played in 39 games in which he has made 159 tackles, defensed 14 passes, has 2 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 4 interceptions.  I like this signing for the Panthers as Alexander should be able to help out in both the secondary and on special teams.

The Panthers have lost 24-year old WR Devin Thomas on waivers to the Giants.  Thomas played in 1 game for the Panthers and he didn’t catch any passes.  I wold be shocked if Thomas turns into something with the Giants even with Eli Manning at QB because everywhere he has went, he has failed.  When the Panthers cut a WR it really says something about his talent level.

When QB Brian St. Pierre hit rookie WR David Gettis with a 88-yard TD bomb with 14:44 left in this game he pulled the Panthers to within 7 points of the Ravens at 20-13.  The Ravens added another field goal before returning two interceptions (Ed Reed intercepted the pass and lateraled it to Dawan Landry for 1 TD and Ray Lewis had the other one) for TDs on consecutive plays to end the scoring in this game.  Brian St. Pierre completed 13 of 28 passes for 173 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs (both returned for TDs).  Mike Goodson led the way on the ground for the Panthers in this game with 120 yards rushing on 22 carries (5.5 ypc).  Goodson also caught 5 passes for 31 yards (6.2 avg) in this game.  The Panthers were led in the passing game by David Gettis (2 rec, 92 yards, TD) and Steve Smith (4 rec, 46 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Panthers.  The Panthers finished up with 120 yards rushing on 22 carries (5.5 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 28 passes for 150 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 25:27.

The Panthers gave up a lot of yards but only 23 of the points the Ravens got.  The Ravens finished up with 100 yards rushing on 31 carries (3.2 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 33 passes for 278 yards.  The Panthers are now 1-9 on the year.

The Panthers are going to start Brian St. Pierre at QB this weekend against the Ravens.  That is a scary proposition.  The Panthers have not been good at home this year where they are 1-4 (they have been outscored 117-46 at home).  The Ravens are going to be fired up after losing right at the end of the game last Thursday Night.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Panthers have the ball:  The Panthers might be smart to try to throw the ball against the Ravens who are allowing 216.7 yards passing per game so far this year.  To do that the Panthers are going to have to protect Brian St. Pierre who is going to be making his first NFL start.  The Panthers need to get the ball to Steve Smith who is without a doubt the best player on their offense, period.  Mike Goodson will get another start at RB and he will take on a Ravens’ D that is allowing 99.8 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.

When the Ravens have the ball:  The Panthers are going to have to stop the passing game of the Ravens first as Joe Flacco has been solid.  It’s not going to be easy as Anquan Boldin, T.J. Houshmanzadeh, Donte’ Stallworth, Derrick Mason and Todd Heap give him a lot of solid targets.  That doesn’t even include Ray Rice and Willis McGahee out of the backfield.  Rice & McGahee will take aim on the ground at the Panthers’ run D which is allowing 131.6 yards rushing per game and 4.1 yards per carry so far this year.

PREDICTION:  RAVENS 37, PANTHERS 0

Personally, I think that 55-year old Panthers’ head coach John Fox is damn good at his job.  But, he might still lose his job after this year.  Unless he’s the one picking all of the players on the Panthers this season is not his fault.  The Panthers are 1-8 on the year as they are only averaging 11.6 points per game and 250.6 yards on offense.  Somehow though the defense hasn’t been awful this year as they are allowing 326.8 yards per game despite being on the field an average of 32:59 per contest.  Fox now has a 72-65 record (52.6%) during the regular season for the Panthers over 9 years.  If the Panthers do wind up firing John Fox he will get hired right away by another team that’s trying to win.

27-year old linebacker James Anderson has really found himself this year.  Anderson has played in all 9 games for the Panthers this year and he has 84 tackles, 8 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks, 5 passes defensed, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble and 3 fumble recoveries.  He has taken full advantage of his first real shot in the starting lineup.  In his first four years with the Panthers, Anderson played in 50 games in which he had 125 tackles, 3 passes defensed, 3 sacks and 3 forced fumbles.