26-year old Dan Connor has not been much of a playmaker for the Panthers this year.  He has played in 11 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has 56 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss.  Connor has now played in 38 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has 137 tackles, 1 sack, 9 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  Connor needs to get more aggressive, because he’s not helping the team much right now.

22-year old QB Cam Newton looked really good early this year for the Panthers, but he has looked like the rookie he is in his last couple games.  In Newton’s last two games, he has completed 45 of 78 passes (57.7%) for 492 yards with 1 TD pass and 5 INTs.  Overall this year, Newton’s numbers still look solid.  He has played in 10 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has completed 219 of 365 passes (60%) for 2,885 yards with 12 TD passes and 14 INTs (80.0 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 77 times for 411 yards (5.3 ypc) with 9 TD runs so far this year.  Newton’s 9 TD runs have already broke Vince Young’s NFL record (8 rushing TDs), and he still has six games to go.

49-year old head coach Ron Rivera came to Carolina with the reputation of being a really good defensive coach.  You wouldn’t know that from watching the high flying Panthers.  The Panthers are averaging 415.1 yards offensive so far this year, but the defense has been letting them down in games.  The Panthers are giving up 133.3 yards rushing (4.6 ypc) and 225.5 yards passing per game so far this year.  Rivera will likely need some time to really improve the defense, and he will likely get that.  The Panthers are now 2-6 on the season but bright days are in the near future.

The Panthers aren’t getting much production out of the return game this year.  RB Mike Goodson (11 returns, 250 yards, 22.7 avg) and rookie WR Kealoha Pilares (10 returns, 200 yards, 20.0 avg) are the guys who have done most of the work on the kickoffs, but they need to do better.  Jordan Pugh (2 returns, 51 yards) and Armanti Edwards (1 return for 4 yards) have also got a little work on kickoffs.  The Panthers have returned 24 kickoffs for 505 yards (21.0 avg) so far this year for the Panthers.  WR Armanti Edwards has returned all 17 of the Panthers’ punts this year, good for only 93 yards (5.5 avg).  That is awful.  The Panthers really need more juice out of the return game to give the offense better starting position.

The Carolina Panthers need 25-year old middle linebacker Dan Connor to step up with Jon Beason lost for the season.  Connor is capable of doing a solid job if he can stay healthy, which has been a problem so far in his NFL career.  Connor had 6 tackles against the Cardinals last Sunday.  Connor has now played in 28 games in his first four years with the Panthers and he has 87 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.

The Carolina Panthers have an utter lack of talent at QB and it will need to be addressed before the 2011 season begins.  23-year old rookie QB Jimmy Clausen was forced into action early last season due to an injury to Matt Moore and he looked like a deer in headlights.  Clausen played in 13 games for the Panthers last season and he completed 157 of 299 passes (52.5%) for 1,558 yards with 3 TD passes and 9 INTs (58.4 QB Rating).  Clausen also carried the ball 23 times for 57 yards (2.5 ypc) last season.  The Panthers will be in big trouble in 2011 if Clausen is the starting QB on opening day.

26-year old Matt Moore was handed the keys to the car after finished the 2009 season strongly.  But, he got banged up and he was pretty awful even when he was healthy.  Moore played in 6 games for the Panthers last season and he completed 79 of 143 passes (55.2%) for 857 yards with 5 TD passes and 10 INTs (55.6 QB Rating).  Moore also carried the ball 5 times for 25 yards (5.0 ypc) last season.  Moore has now played in 22 games in his NFL career and he has completed 227 of 392 passes (57.9%) for 2,640 yards with 16 TD passes and 17 INTs (73.9 QB Rating).  Moore also has carried the ball 20 times for 27 yards (1.4 ypc) so far in his career.  Moore wants to come back for 2011 but I think the Panthers would be smart to let him walk.

31-year old Brian St. Pierre started a game against the Ravens last season but then a sore arm derailed his big chance the rest of the year.  St. Pierre played in 1 game for the Panthers last season and he completed 13 of 28 passes (46.4%) for 173 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs (48.7 QB Rating).  St. Pierre has now played in 3 games in his NFL career and he has completed 15 of 33 passes (45.5%) for 185 yards with 2 TD passes and 3 INTs (45.6 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 5 times for -1 yard (-0.2 ypc) in his NFL career.

24-year old rookie Tony Pike played in 1 game for the Panthers last season and he completed 6 of 12 passes (50%) for 47 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (60.1 QB Rating).  Pike was passes over for Brian St. Pierre for a start last season so John Fox didn’t think too much of him.

VERDICT:  The Panthers will likely release every QB except Clausen that was on the roster last year.  I expect them to make a deal for a starting QB or for them to sign one in free agency.  Remember the name Billy Volek as he was out in San Diego with Ron Rivera.

31-year old WR Steve Smith still has it, but the Panthers’ had the worst QB situation in the NFL this season without a doubt.  They were playing musical chairs with a untalented bunch of throwers and the offense and the passing game in particular….never got into a groove.  Panthers’ QBs have completed only 46 of 102 (45.1%) of their passes to Steve Smith so far this year.  Smith has played in 14 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has caught 46 passes for 554 yards (12.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Those are terrible numbers especially when you consider that Smith played in 74 games the previous five years in which he caught 416 passes for 6,134 yards (14.8 avg) with 40 TD grabs!  Smith has now played in 135 games in his first 10 years with the Panthers and he has caught 620 passes for 8,884 yards (14.3 avg) with 52 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 48 times for 304 yards (6.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his career to date.  I firmly believe that Smith has a lot left in the gas tank and if the Panthers’ get improved play out of the QBs in 2011, I look for Smith to return to the very productive player he has been in the past.

23-year old rookie QB Jimmy Clausen is running out of time to prove himself.  He has played in 9 games for the Panthers so far this year and he has completed 101 of 200 passes (50.5%) for 1,056 yards with 1 TD pass and 6 INTs (55.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 18 times for 43 yards (2.4 ypc) so far this year.  With the Panthers at 1-11 on the season it’s quite possible that they could wind up with the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft next April.  If that happens, the Panthers very well could pick the best QB available.  To prevent that from happening Clausen needs to either lead the Panthers to some wins the rest of the way or he needs to play great himself regardless of the outcome of the games.

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.

Rookie QB Tony Pike and 30-year old veteran Brian St. Pierre are likely going to be the active QBs for the Panthers this weekend against the Ravens.  Pike will likely draw the start.  He has played in 1 game (0 starts) for the Panthers so far this year and he is 6 of 12 (50%) for 47 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (60.1 QB Rating).  With a good game Pike could steal the starting job away from Jimmy Clausen who has been less than stellar so far in his NFL career.  Brian St. Pierre has played in 2 games in his NFL career and he has completed 2 of 5 passes (40%) for 12 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT (47.9 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 5 times for -1 yard (-0.2 ypc) in his NFL career.  If the Panthers have to play St. Pierre in the game this Sunday against the Ravens they are in big, big trouble.

UPDATE:  (11/18/2010) – The Panthers have decided to start Brian St. Pierre at QB this Sunday against the Ravens.