Panthers' Defense
In the Carolina Panthers' defense, defensive tackle Derrick Brown and cornerback Jaycee Horn set the tone. Brown suffered a serious knee injury in 2024 one game into the season that sidelined him. He is now back to peak form, overwhelming offensive linemen. Brown leads the Panthers with 4.0 sacks and has a lethal first step off the line. He is a menace at the point of attack and quickly sheds blocks. He has a powerful bull rush and effective closing speed. After missing time with a groin injury last season and a concussion, Horn leads the Panthers in 2025 with five interceptions (tied for second in the NFL). He has the coveted size/length combination for an NFL corner and can play in a variety of coverages with ease. Horn plays with superb eye discipline in zone coverage and he forces receivers off-balance on their releases in press man. He can mirror routes and attacks the catch point.
"They [are] much improved, I would say, from where we saw them last year," said Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard on the Panthers' defense. "They've done a really good job in terms of free agency [and] adding some younger guys. [It is a] similar scheme [to] what they had last year. This is a scheme that we've faced a multitude of times this season, really coming from that Vic Fangio tree, so something we're pretty familiar with when it comes to that. What they've been able to do, especially a couple times we've played them -- one time Horn didn't play, and Brown wasn't out there, so these guys are playing really hard. The scheme is very good, very sound, try to keep the top on the defense, try to limit explosive [plays] and they're playing at a high level right now."
Evolution of Offensive Trends
As defenses have become adept at disguising coverages pre-snap, offenses have been forced to evolve from coverage reads to pure progressions, adding less stress for the quarterback. On coverage reads, quarterbacks pick a side and take the eligibles down to the checkdown. The signal-caller looks for tells either single high or shell coverage and pressure. Quarters? Man? Zone? Now, with defenses muddying the coverage to bait offenses, the simplification switch was made to pure progressions by going from 1,2,3,4 and 5. The field is no longer cut in half but it places less weight on the quarterback's shoulders pre-snap. Buccaneers' Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard discussed the recent topic that has monopolized headlines.
"Yeah, I definitely think you've seen a change, and it'll definitely be a conversation for if we could sit around here for a couple of hours," stated Grizzard. "It's one where you definitely see more of it in terms of just this is how you're starting on the progression, you're going one, two, three, you're going across the board, versus if it's middle-field open we're going here, if it's middle-field closed, we're going there, if it's man coverage, we're going here, if it's zone coverage we're going here. I would say as much as anything, it's more pure progression on how we view things. I know a lot of that [Kyle] Shanahan system comes from that. You see the evolution of that through a lot of the head coaches, whether it was under Shanahan or under Coach [Sean] McVay that are now head coaches, so you see that more and more. We could definitely talk about that for a few hours."
Gang Back Together
In Week 15 against the Falcons, both Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan returned to action and moved the chains, joining Chris Godwin Jr. and Emeka Egbuka. Evans immediately returned to peak form, registering six receptions for 132 yards. He baited defensive backs with subtle fakes and high-pointed the football with his trademark physicality. McMillan only had two catches but he helped shift the momentum by producing yards after catch. With Evans back on the field, defenses have to pick their poison on rolling the safety over, creating advantageous one-on-one opportunities for other receivers when 13 is double-teamed. The group showcased synergy and timing with Baker Mayfield, elevating the aerial attack.
"You never want to take things for granted when you have a guy like Mike that has been injured, wants to come back, wants to help his team out and you feel that competitive nature from him -- that fire -- it just demands everybody to raise their standards," noted Mayfield. "We love that Mike is vocal about it. He obviously expects greatness out of himself and expects people to rise to the occasion as well, so yeah, need him to keep doing that… Nothing against the guys we had playing, but it's guys that I've had a lot of reps with. [It's] that I really know their body language coming in and out of routes like the back of my hand and so, it's a good feeling to have. Now, we just need to go do it."
