The importance of Stewart

[SwagAces9030]

Jonathan Stewart is a tone-setter, he brings power to our run game and gives our offense stability and an identity. His value has never been more obvious then with this loss versus the Falcons. I understand CAP, and Fozzy put up decent averages, but our O was missing that power and explosion you get with Stewart. Stewart batters a defense and wears them down as the game goes on and he opens up the entire offense for Cam. I'm a firm believer that not having him is the reason the Giants came back, and the reason we lost to Atlanta. (We need to be looking for another downhill runner in the upcoming draft, but thats for talk after February 7th) It's a simple fix guys he needs to be held out versus the Bucs, and 100% healthy for our playoff game for us to have a chance of advancing come playoff time. The offense I saw yesterday and for 28 minutes versus the Giants will not win us a Championship let alone a NFCC. Get healthy J Stew!!!!!

[caatfan]

We need him back, but he doesn't cover receivers or tackle RB's and therefore his healthy presence doesn't cover all the bases.

[Ace_Aladdin]

5 minutes ago, SwagAces9030 said:

Jonathan Stewart is a tone-setter, he brings power to our run game and gives our offense stability and an identity. His value has never been more obvious then with this loss versus the Falcons. I understand CAP, and Fozzy put up decent averages, but our O was missing that power and explosion you get with Stewart. Stewart batters a defense and wears them down as the game goes on and he opens up the entire offense for Cam. I'm a firm believer that not having him is the reason the Giants came back, and the reason we lost to Atlanta. (We need to be looking for another downhill runner in the upcoming draft, but thats for talk after February 7th) It's a simple fix guys he needs to be held out versus the Bucs, and 100% healthy for our playoff game for us to have a chance of advancing come playoff time. The offense I saw yesterday and for 28 minutes versus the Giants will not win us a Championship let alone a NFCC. Get healthy J Stew!!!!!

Well said , I believe he was also # 1 back in Pass Protection. We dont need  a downhill runner, we need a feature back that can do everyting and that requires a 1st or 2nd round investment. I think its worth especially the way Panthers are built. 

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1678023-breaking-down-every-nfl-running-back-prototype

[SwagAces9030]

13 minutes ago, caatfan said:

We need him back, but he doesn't cover receivers or tackle RB's and therefore his healthy presence doesn't cover all the bases.

He helps to keep the defense off of the field... So yea rest for your defense probably allows them to cover, and tackle better one would assume. 

[Fox007]

The offense abandoned the run game...if we'd stick with it we'd be fine...2nd and 1 and we take 16 yard sack losses....yea deserve to lose when you play that damn stupid....yes the play calling right down to the decision to fugin go back and lack situational awareness.

[KB_fan]

I was just about to create a thread with a similar title when I saw this one.  There's a gpod analysis by James Dator at C-S-R today (yes, "an inferior site" but sometimes there is good stuff...) about the importance of Stew.  I found it particularly interesting to consider the possibility that we significantly changed our offensive gameplan with him out...  Certainly it seemed that we were lacking some offensive spark or anything that seriously challenged the Atlanta defense.

http://www.catscratchreader.com/2015/12/28/10671330/monday-morning-optimist-panthers-falcons

 

Quote

 

It's tempting to say the offensive problems started with the line on Sunday, but in reality the running back position is where the Panthers had the most trouble. I'm very excited about Cameron Artis-Payne from a big picture, he can be the future perspective -- but he's just not ready to be a full time back yet. This has nothing to do with how he runs the football and everything to do with what he adds when the ball isn't going to him.

Some of Jonathan Stewart's least-appreciated talents are those that have nothing to do with carrying the football. He's a wonderful blocker in the backfield and his familiarity with Newton in the read option is a huge aspect to what makes the Panthers offense tick. I've seen a lot of people criticize Mike Shula's playcalling or wonder why Artis-Payne can't run the read option this quickly given his experience at Auburn, but the truth is that it's a very complex scheme to run in the NFL, one that can go very poorly in an instant. It's actually a good thing they're not putting too much on him too quickly.

For the read option to work in the NFL it requires an innate understanding between the running back and the quarterback. The two need to intimately understand how each other operate and pick up on the small things that allow the ball to be cleanly pulled back to the QB or handed to the runner. These aspects aren't learned overnight, and even with years together we still occasionally see screwups with the system. The college game moves slowly enough that these guys can adjust, but in the NFL there's no margin for error. Fear of Artis-Payne being unable to handle it (as he showed against the Giants) caused the Panthers to go back to a standard, no-nonsense offensive game plan -- which is fine, but it puts more pressure on the offensive line and receivers. That's where things broke down.

This has been the secret to the Panthers season: There has been nothing remarkable about the offensive line or the receiving corps. At times we've all fallen prey to believing this isn't the case, but there has been a ton of work done on the back end to mask the deficiencies at both positions. This isn't a knock on the players, but rather a credit to the coaching that has made everything tick. It would be foolish to run a traditional offense when you have a mobile quarterback like Newton, or a running back who can execute the read option as well as Jonathan Stewart. Especially when doing so takes pressure off your weaker positions.

That fell apart and the Falcons attacked it. Carolina was predictable offensively and all it took was blanketing Greg Olsen for the entire passing game to fall apart. Ted Ginn has improved a ton this season, but don't confuse that with an ability to put the entire receiving corps on his back when things are falling apart. He's not that kind of player. The Panthers won't have that kind of player until Kelvin Benjamin returns.

 

 

[JohnnyDollar]

This can't be said enough.  We are the only NFL team that runs more than passes.  It only makes sense that when our starting RB is out, we lose efficiency. 

[IMissChrisWeinke]

how many times did we run the ball? And how many yards per carry did we have?

[IMissChrisWeinke]

Answer: between CAP and Fozzy, ten carries and eighty one yards total. Tolbert carried it twice for twelve yards. Our backs aren't the problem. Not trusting them is. 

[SwagAces9030]

7 minutes ago, IMissChrisWeinke said:

Answer: between CAP and Fozzy, ten carries and eighty one yards total. Tolbert carried it twice for twelve yards. Our backs aren't the problem. Not trusting them is. 

CAP and Fozzy put up nice numbers, but they don't physically wear out a defense like Stewart does.

[top dawg]

Look, I have ALWAYS been a stalwart Stewart supporter, and I still am, but the loss was less about Stewart, and more about abandoning Cap and uninspired play calling inasmuch as those two things contributed to our defeat (because there were several other reasons why we lost as well).

[Pox 08]

Didn't want to risk CAP getting injured,  imo.      In the playoffs,   we gonna need Stewart AND CAP.

[Chaos]

Going away from the run yesterday was foolish.  Especially in those 2nd and 1 or 2 situations.

[CRA]

CAP had one carry in the second half and is our best rusher.......

Shula flat out dropped the ball.  You forget who you are and you lose.