According to head coach Frank Reich, the Carolina Panthers didn’t tip much of their hand during Saturday’s preseason opener against the New York Jets. But did their snap counts from the 27-0 loss tell us anything?
Let’s poke for some takeaways . . .
The Hog Molly Shuffle
While expectations may be relatively high for the Panthers in 2023, we must remember that many parts to this machine are new. So, head coach Frank Reich and his staff are still trying to figure things out.
That was evident along their offensive line, which saw quite an amount of different combinations throughout the afternoon. Five hog mollies each played snaps from multiple spots on Saturday. Here’s the quick breakdown:
- Justin McCray: LG (4), C (11), RG (11)
- Cade Mays: C (12), RG (8), RT (8)
- Larnel Coleman: LT (7), RT (14)
- Cameron Erving: LT (16), RT (7)
- Michael Jordan: LG (3), RG (15), RT (8)
Plus, judging from the unit’s disappointing performance, there’s still a lot to figure out in terms of depth.
Kobe!
With projected starters Brian Burns and Justin Houston sitting this one out, the Panthers were more than prepared to give their other edge defenders some chances. And of the entire group, it was Kobe Jones who got the most of them.
The 25-year-old registered a team-leading 41 defensive snaps, eight more than the next closest amount. He did, however, fail to bring the pass-rushing presence—recording zero pressures, per Pro Football Focus.
Second-year backer Amaré Barno, instead, led the defense with a pair of pressures over 11 pass-rushing opportunities.
On the Chinn
Back to the “figuring things out” theme, defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero is trying to find an effective position for fourth-year Swiss Army knife Jeremy Chinn—and maybe we got a taste of it.
Carolina’s first-team defense was on the field for one drive, which amounted to 13 snaps. Of those 13 snaps, Chinn was present for eight of them—with six coming from the slot alignment and two from the box.
As hinted in the initial depth chart, Chinn played more of a nickel corner role in his preseason debut.
