Panthers PFF Grades - Defense

[tiger7_88]

Hardy was never expected to be here this year.  I do also believe that Alexander would have started had he stayed healthy, so you do have that point.  

Agreed.

I don't think Panther's management anticipated Alexander's weed fixation or his Achilles injury.

[PanthersBigD]

Charles Johnson didn't come on until year three. Ealy will be fine.

[Cpt slay a ho]

not giving up on ealy yet but some need to realize every de is NOT hardy or charles johnson, both hardy and johnson showed flashes in year 2,and johnson may have been ready year two but he was behind brayton on the depth chart i believe. There needs to be some concerned there, but it is early so we will see 

[Bartin]

Charles Johnson didn't come on until year three. Ealy will be fine.

Because he wasn't a starter until year 4 and was behind Julius Peppers at LDE prior to that. He had limited opportunities but made the most of them and was productive in his first 3 years. Kony is the exact opposite.

Edited September 29, 2015 by Bartin

[Carolina Cajun]

not giving up on ealy yet but some need to realize every de is NOT hardy or charles johnson, both hardy and johnson showed flashes in year 2,and johnson may have been ready year two but he was behind brayton on the depth chart i believe. There needs to be some concerned there, but it is early so we will see 

This is my point.  Everyone is right that CJ and Hardy didn't come on until year 3, but they did show flashes.  You know who didn't show flashes in year 2?  Everett Brown.  Now I'm not saying Ealy will be as bad as the man who spins, but at some point he needs to give people a reason to believe that he is developing.  I think as panthers fans we've become accustomed to DE's Developing with Peppers, CJ and Hardy, but Everett Browns are far more common in the NFL than Charles Johnsons and we as fans need to remember that.

[NJPanthers12]

this weeks Aaron Rodgers grade is the perfect example of why no one should ever put much stock into these grades.

[Cuttinedge]

this weeks Aaron Rodgers grade is the perfect example of why no one should ever put much stock into these grades.

yeah there's that and also the fact Roman Harper ain't on the bottom of this list. 

[PanthersBigD]

Because he wasn't a starter until year 4 and was behind Julius Peppers at LDE prior to that. He had limited opportunities but made the most of them and was productive in his first 3 years. Kony is the exact opposite.

You're right, Charles Johnson started in a much better situation and was eased into his role. Kony Ealy has been thrust into a role, been serviceable and still gets poo from the negative nancies. Players take time to develop. Josh Norman has been benched before as well and now everyone is offering their left nut to help re-sign him right this minute. 

[CoastalCat]

I know it's early to call him a bust, he could still pan, but man, he looks awful.  He doesn't look even like a decent second year player at the moment.  I hope he gets his poo together, we could really use another even servicable DE.

He's just starting too early IMO. Look at both CJ and Hardy's numbers their first few years. Hardy hit stride at year 3, and CJ started putting up sacks just playing 3rd downs in his 4th year. It just takes time. Ideally, he'd be rotating in for a better starter until about year 3. 

Edited September 29, 2015 by CoastalCat

[Carolina Cajun]

He's just starting too early IMO. Look at both CJ and Hardy's numbers their first few years. Hardy hit stride at year 3, and CJ started putting up sacks just playing 3rd downs in his 4th year. It just takes time. Ideally, he'd be rotating in for a better starter until about year 3. 

Neither of them managed to not record a single solo tackle through the first 3 games of their second season.  Again, I'm not saying that he will bust, he could end up producing and surprise me, but he just hasn't shown the flashes so far that CJ or Hardy did.

[JJman Returns]

I'll admit I was thrilled when we drafted Ealy. In the 2nd round none the less. But at this point he is looking real bad. Maybe Allen can teach him a thing or two. But if not, and Ealy continues struggling this season, his job will be on the line next preseason.

[Adb6368]

Hardy was never expected to be here this year.  I do also believe that Alexander would have started had he stayed healthy, so you do have that point.  That said, All the DE's we've had that have developed showed some signs of life that just aren't really there with Ealy right now.  Again, I hope he turns it around and I'm scarfing down crow like it's a mcdonalds cheeseburger and I'm a fat kid, but I'm not seeing the signs of progress or flashes of good things to come from him.

I don't know if saying there have been no signs is accurate. Sacks aren't the only benchmark for a DE. Ron Rivera has even gone as far as to praise his dirty work this year. And although he had a horrible pass rush rating, he was actually positive on run defense. I think there are positive signs there but we need to temper our expectations. One of my biggest complaints are his stupid penalties and I would hope that is an easy fix. He very well could be a bust but I'm not going to judge him until next year. Maybe having CJ out and being on the sideline to mentor him while bringing in a veteran stud like Allen can help him learn the little things that can push him to the next level.

[Wundrbread33]

So far Ealy really hasn't looked that bad against the run, but he really is having trouble getting free on a pass rush, and when he finally does, there seems to be a second blocker there to clean him up.

Slow start to the year for him but hopefully he can pick it up because we need him. If Addison wasn't such a liability against the run, Ealy's development wouldn't be an issue, but we need him to round out his pass rushing skills to take that next step.

[hepcat]

Wonder if age has finally caught up to Dwan Edwards.  He is 34 afterall.  Glad to see Kyle Love playing well, because the Panthers face a lot of question marks on the D-Line this offseason.