PFF grades for week 2

[SZ James (banned)]

Carolina Panthers

– The Panthers were missing a couple of their top defenders in this game, but DT Kawann Short (+5.9) did everything in his power to mitigate the loss of Star Lotulelei with a two-hit, four-hurry performance against a Houston offensive line that was grossly overmatched throughout much of this contest. There are still question marks in the Carolina secondary, but if their pass rushers continually get after the quarterback as they did against Houston, the back-end of the defense will have an easier time holding up in coverage.

– While not the guy with the biggest reputation in this secondary, CB Josh Norman (+3.1) had a terrific day in coverage, despite being tested early and often. Thrown at 12 times (mostly while covering DeAndre Hopkins), Norman surrendered six catches for a measly 40 yards, none of which converted a first down. With a defensive holding penalty being the only blot in his copybook, Norman’s second grade over +1.0 in as many weeks has seen him shoot to the top of our cornerback grades this season.

– Carolina was criticized at the time for drafting LB Shaq Thompson at arguably the strongest position on their roster, and the first round rookie saw his first extended playing time with Luke Kuechly out for the week with a concussion. Playing just under half of the team’s defensive snaps, Thompson (+1.5) showed a bit of Kuechly’s penchant for closing on ball carriers, recording three defensive stops, with a fourth nullified by a late hit penalty in the first quarter.

Top Performers:

DT Kawann Short (+5.9)
FS Kurt Coleman (+4.4)
LG Andrew Norwell (+3.9)
CB Josh Norman (+3.1)
DT Kyle Love (+2.6)

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2015/09/21/hou-car-grades-jadeveon-clowney-making-impact-felt/

[Jeremy Igo]

I will be posting the full team grades tomorrow. 

[Bartin]

Nice to see Coleman bounce back from a poor week 1 performance.

[pepaw]

I <3 KK

[Marguide]

Exited to see Shaq contributing this early. 

[nctarheel0619]

Good to see Love doing well.  

[Nate Dogg]

I definitely noticed Coleman's nice performance from the stands yesterday. Seemed like he was destroying their run game at the line of scrimmage.

[Mol3m4n]

Shaq doesn't do well early in the game, but I was glad to see him get into a small groove. 

[KB_fan]

Nice to see Coleman bounce back from a poor week 1 performance.

And he did that with a broken nose.  The dude defines TOUGH.

Also, I believe J-No is still the top rated CB in the league.  Sweet.  #paytheman

[Captain Morgan]

Shaq!!!

[Diehardpanther02]

Good performances by backups filling in.  Love and Shaq are prime examples.  I wasnt to happy with the shaq pick in the draft but it shows once again how good Gettleman is at his job.  That linebacking corps would look alot different without shaq if luke had been knocked out before he were drafted. 

[Servant of Cthululelei]

Nice to see Coleman bounce back from a poor week 1 performance.

I agree, though I am still a bit worried about his tendency to take bad angles.  On that really long pass play (can't remember when it happened) where the Houston receiver fell down while running to save the touchdown, Coleman once again took a bad angle when the ball was in the air, which is the only reason that play had a chance to be a touchdown to begin with.

[Donald LaFell]

It's great to see Shaq playing instinctively. 

[frash.exe]

josh norman tryin to get that F*CK MONEY