ESPN: Panthers have "worst group of D-tackles in the league"...

[Mr. Scot]

What we have at this point is definitely the most unknown, and quite probably the least experienced, set of DTs in the league.

Does that make them the worst? In preseason rankings, sure.

The reality is that until they hit the field, we won't really know how bad or good they might be.

[scpanther22]

Tank Tyler playing the 3tech DT.Has never had a sack before.

We need some pass rush on the inside.

[SorthNarolina]

Kemo wasn't signed to "take up space" to just free up linebackers. That's just a myth that slowly became fact the more it was repeated. It was a myth often used in defense of him after critiscism frim fans. His contract was too large if that was his only job. He was signed after Fox was very impressed after watching him play against LeCharles Bentley for the Saints. He didn't look like that much durinng his time here.

[Woodie]

Kemo wasn't signed to "take up space" to just free up linebackers. That's just a myth that slowly became fact the more it was repeated. It was a myth often used in defense of him after critiscism frim fans. His contract was too large if that was his only job. He was signed after Fox was very impressed after watching him play against LeCharles Bentley for the Saints. He didn't look like that much durinng his time here.

Yeah, he was. That's his game, and it's always been his game. He never has shown much playmaking or pass rush abilities, even while with the Ravens. He was brought in to play a similar role to that big fat guy (can't think of his name right now) that played for Green Bay and was their designated run stuffer. That's not a knock on Kemo, just the reality of what they wanted from him. And he was decent at it, not as good as the GB guy, which is what I think they were hoping for, but still decent.

[Baschski]

Was our DT group the worst in the league last year?

We lost Lewis, a good veteran presence but easily replaceable, and Thomas who was nothing special either. There's no reason to think that Leonard and Tyler can't be every bit as good as Lewis and Thomas, so if we have the worst DT's in the league right now then we probably had some of the worst last year as well. The reality, though, is that they hit their stride eventually and did a solid job. If we can get that kind of performance from the interior line then I don't really care if there are 31 better DT cores, just as long as our defense continues to play well overall.

[CarolinaKat]

Maybe not the worst, But top 5 easy

[jarhead]

Tank Tyler playing the 3tech DT.Has never had a sack before.

We need some pass rush on the inside.

I agree.We were having trouble stopping the run last year and I think our talent has been degraded.As far as the pass rush.....like him or not Peppers was someone our opponets had to account for and double team.I do not think we have the push from our tackles or a DE that can apply pressure from the outside.If we have a top 10 defense Meeks should be imediatly inducted into the hall of fame.

[monstercat]

I'll say it again...as much rushing yardage that the Panthers defense gave up last year, they were still the 9th best scoring defense in the NFL. Considering how often they had to get right back out there, after very little rest, and defend a short field, that's pretty darn good. Take away some of those 3 and outs and INT's, and they could easily have been in the top 5.

Obviously, Peppers was a big loss, but Kemo and Lewis shouldn't be that hard to replace. Louis Leonard will probably be filling Kemo's spot, and he actually does have a sack or two in his short career, so he has a chance to even be an upgrade as far as the interior pass rush goes.

I'll say this again too...I really really like our defensive coaching staff.

[monstercat]

Here you go. In Leonard's last 4 NFL games, he had 17 tackles and a sack, and the sack came as a Panther. Those are not terrible numbers at all.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/8690

He just needs to keep working hard and, hopefully, stay healthy, and he will be fine.

For the sake of comparison, here are Kemo's stats for his last 4 games...

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/6163

I know stats aren't everything, but if you're gonna claim that Leonard will be the worst in the league, you should have something to back it up other than the fact that he's not as famous as the guy he is replacing. Kemo wasn't a starter until about 3 years into his career either, and I doubt there were many here who even knew who he was before he became a Panther.

[panthers55]

Our defense will revolve around the nose tackle spot again this year. If Louis can come in and do a solid job of stuffing things up and allowing the DEs to come around the edge instead of pinching toward the middle to avoid big runs up the gut, then we will actually be improved at the DT over last year. We were very vulnerable to outside runs last year as it seems the emphasis of the defense was to stop big runs up the middle rather than contain the edges and route things back to the middle. It meant that the ends didn't hold the edge and teams could run around the tackles with little problem. Problem was that we did neither very well.

Truth is that 32nd is close to where we were last year against the run. Football outsiders ranks us 27th last year. Our high adjusted yards average and lower open field ranking (13th) indicates that runners broke through the line but our linebackers and secondary were pretty good at catching them and saving touchdowns. We were middle of the pack (14th) in power running (third or fourth and less than 2) but near the bottom 27th in stuffs(zero or negative plays) and 28th in second level success which is stopping runners between 5 and 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. THis suggests that our linebackers either weren't good in shutting off runs or they were more likely inconsistent plugging holes fairly well but when they had bad fits it would lead to the opponent running for 5 or 10 yards.

The line pass rush was ranked 13th last year.

How will we be this year? I predict no worse in run defense than last year, likely better. Honestly we got nowhere to go but up. But I expect our pass rush to be less effective. On the other hand I do think we will go to a mix of cover 2 zone and cover 1 zone/man under (please more man under) which could give more time for the defensive guys to get there and actually result in some coverage sacks. It has been a long tims since we saw that routinely here. It is very interestingly to me that for years our mantra was that a safety could be found anywhere in the draft and you didn't use a high pick on one. Now we find that we have drafted both Godfrey and Martin pretty high and are stacking our team with corners and safeties with ball skills.

This team may actually resemble some of the Tampa Bay Bucs defensive teams. Not a bunch of defensive line stars, good linebackers and secondary who work better as a team than their individual skills would suggest. At least that is what I hope for. Because the alternative is ugly indeed.

[monstercat]

I honestly don't even worry that much about stopping the run anymore. Stop the pass, keep the points down, and stop the run when it really matters, such as 3rd or 4th and short, or when you are behind late in the game, and you should be OK nowadays. The 09 Panthers are living proof that an offense can't succeed anymore with the running game alone, even if they have a top 10 scoring defense.

[SorthNarolina]

Yeah, he was. That's his game, and it's always been his game. He never has shown much playmaking or pass rush abilities, even while with the Ravens. He was brought in to play a similar role to that big fat guy (can't think of his name right now) that played for Green Bay and was their designated run stuffer. That's not a knock on Kemo, just the reality of what they wanted from him. And he was decent at it, not as good as the GB guy, which is what I think they were hoping for, but still decent.

If we wanted a big fat guy we should have just signed Ted Washington. He was a better space eater than Kemo ever was even at his old age. Kemo was signed to be a disruptive NT, most people were expecting him to break out since he no longer was going to be in the 3-4. He turned out just being average.

[panthers55]

I honestly don't even worry that much about stopping the run anymore. Stop the pass, keep the points down, and stop the run when it really matters, such as 3rd or 4th and short, or when you are behind late in the game, and you should be OK nowadays. The 09 Panthers are living proof that an offense can't succeed anymore with the running game alone, even if they have a top 10 scoring defense.

Obviously your philosophy doesn't match Fox's or many defensive coordinators who believe that you beat teams stopping the run and making them pass against you. Given that most teams don't have a Peyton Manning on their roster, you come out ahead more than not. Our team used to be heavily weighted to stopping the run. Given that we want to win our division first and foremost and we have New Orleans and Atlanta who run and pass well, we have conceded more picks to shore up the secondary. Still the philosophy will continue to be stop the run, limit big plays and give your offense a chance to win in the fourth quarter. if you personally aren't worried about the run, it isn't shared by the coaches and players.

[monstercat]

Obviously your philosophy doesn't match Fox's or many defensive coordinators who believe that you beat teams stopping the run and making them pass against you. Given that most teams don't have a Peyton Manning on their roster, you come out ahead more than not. Our team used to be heavily weighted to stopping the run. Given that we want to win our division first and foremost and we have New Orleans and Atlanta who run and pass well, we have conceded more picks to shore up the secondary. Still the philosophy will continue to be stop the run, limit big plays and give your offense a chance to win in the fourth quarter. if you personally aren't worried about the run, it isn't shared by the coaches and players.

I'm not saying that we should ignore the run. I'm just saying that rushing yardage alone is not how you judge a defense these days. If you don't give up many points, then it really doesn't hurt you very much to give up some yardage, so long as you have a pretty good pass defense and a decent offense.

Even John Fox is emphasizing the passing game more this year, and it's not just because he has young WR's. He knows damn well that the Panthers passing attack wasn't anywhere near good enough last year, and he has said over and over that he believes you get what you emphasize in practice.

And FTR, I don't believe Louis Leonard racked up 17 tackles (14 solo) in his last 4 games by sucking against the run, and I don't think John Fox does either. That is actually a very good number for a DT in a 4 game stretch, and I doubt that Kemo or Lewis has ever done any better. This guy has only played in 18 NFL games, so it's fairly safe to assume that his best football is probably still ahead of him.