24-year old Brandon LaFell turned in a solid rookie year for the Panthers in 2010.  He played in 14 games for the Panthers last year and he caught 38 passes for 468 yards (12.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  LaFell has played in both of the games for the Panthers so far this year and he has caught 8 passes for 119 yards (14.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He is going to face single coverage the whole year as teams will be trying to double Steve Smith, so LaFell should continue to put up solid numbers in 2011.

22-year old rookie QB Cam Newton has really burst onto the scene for the Panthers so far.  In his first two games, Newton has completed 52 of 83 passes (62.7%) for 854 yards with 3 TD passes and 4 INTs (89.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 18 times for 71 yards (3.9 ypc) so far this year with 2 TD runs.  I will be the first one to admit I was wrong so far about Newton.  But, he will need to cut down on his interceptions if he wants to be considered an elite QB in the NFL down the road.  The Panthers are looking light years better than they were last year despite and 0-2 start, and Newton is the biggest reason for that.

32-year old WR Steve Smith had a down year in 2010, due to lousy QB play.  He played in 14 games last year for the Panthers and he caught only 46 passes for 554 yards (12.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Smith wanted to get traded but the Panthers decided to keep him around instead and that decision is paying off already in 2011.  Steve Smith caught 8 passes for 178 yards (22.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs for the Panthers last week against the Cardinals.  He is going to be Cam Newton’s favorite receiver and he has the ability to have a few games like this in 2011.  Smith’s play last week was a sight for sore Panthers’ fans eyes.

23-year old RB Jonathan Stewart was banged up early this year for the Panthers.  In his first 8 games of his season,  Stewart carried the ball 69 times for 208 yards (3.0 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 5 passes for 85 yards (17.0 avg) with a TD reception.  Stewart then got a couple of weeks of rest and relaxation to heal his wounds.  He has been on fire ever since he has returned.  In his last four games, Stewart has carried the ball 78 times for 460 yards (5.9 ypc) with a TD run.  Stewart also has caught 2 passes for 9 yards in his last four games.  The amazing thing about Stewart’s success is that no one is scared of Jimmy Clausen, so he’s doing a lot of damage against 8 man fronts making this current streak of his even more amazing.

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.

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.

Opposing teams are rushing for 106.5 yards per game against the Panthers this year but they are only averaging 3.0 ypc so far this year.  That is because the linebackers of the Panthers have played very well so far this year.  James Anderson (20 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception), Jon Beason (19 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 pass defensed) and Dan Connor (19 tackles, 1 sack and 3 tackles for a loss) have been a wrecking crew for the Panthers.  The Panthers will need to have this trio to keep playing at a high level if the defense is going to play well.

26-year old DeAngelo Williams and 22-year old Jonathan Stewart give the Panthers the best tandem at RB in the NFL.  Williams played in 13 games for the Panthers last season and he carried the ball 216 times for 1,117 yards (5.2 ypc) with 7 TD runs.  He also caught 29 passes for 252 yards (8.7 avg) last season.  He would have put up monster numbers if he didn’t have to miss the last three games of the season due to injury.  Williams has now played in 58 games in his four years with the Panthers and he has carried the ball 754 times for 3,850 yards (5.1 ypc) with 30 TD runs.  He has also caught 107 passes for 861 yards (8.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs in his time with the Panthers.  Williams is a tad older than Stewart is but he still is the faster back.

Jonathan Stewart is a masher in the running game at 5’10″, 235 pounds and he does his best work between the tackles.  Stewart played in all 16 games for the Panthers last season and he carried the ball 221 times for 1,133 yards (5.1 ypc) with 10 TD carries.  He also caught 18 passes for 139 yards (7.7 avg) with 1 TD grab last season.  Stewart would be the main man on about 25 other teams in the NFL but he has to share time with DeAngelo Williams in Carolina.  Stewart has now played in 32 games for the Panthers (2 years) and he has carried the ball 405 times for 1,969 yards (4.9 ypc) with 20 TD runs.  He has also caught 26 passes for 186 yards (7.7 avg) with 1 TD grab in his career so far. 

36-year old WR Mushin Muhammad might be playing his last game for the Carolina Panthers this weekend.  If it is true then in his last game he will be the team’s #1 WR due to Steve Smith’s injury.  Muhammad has played in 13 games this season for the Panthers and he has caught 46 passes for 496 yards (10.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 201 games in his NFL career and he has caught 853 passes for 11,353 yards (13.3 avg) with 62 TD grabs.  Even if Muhammad is playing his last game for the Panthers I do think some team will give him a job in 2010 if he wants to continue playing.