My Steve Smith NFL Blog

The Carolina Panthers weren't able to build on their 12-4 NFC South title season of 2008. They won just eight games last season as quarterback Jake Delhomme held the offense back with his turnover problems. The Panthers said goodbye to their long time quarterback this offseason, and now they will turn to fourth-year signal caller Matt Moore, who led the Panthers to four wins in five games in last year's stretch run. More than anything else, the Panthers need Moore to make smart decisions with the football as running backs Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams carry the offensive load.

The Panthers typically play good defense, and their performance in 2009 was no exception, but now they are about to experience life without stud pass rusher Julius Peppers.

Offense: Bookend tackles Jordan Gross and Jeff Otah, and Ryan Kalil (center) and Travelle Wharton (left guard), are all key pieces to one of the NFL's best run-blocking units. These guys do the heavy lifting while Stewart and Williams get all the glory. Thanks in part to the boys up front, this dynamic running back duo is perhaps the best in the NFL. Last season, Stewart and Williams combined for 2,250 yards and 17 scores, and both players averaged over five yards per tote. As a result, Carolina boasted the third-best running attack in the entire league.

The running game is certainly Carolina's bread and butter, but the Panthers will have to throw the football more effectively in 2010 if they hope to improve on last year's record. The Panthers finished No. 27 in the league in passing offense in 2009, averaging just 174.9 yards per game. Delhomme was throwing interceptions at such a high rate that the coaching staff completely lost faith in the passing game.

The Panthers are hoping that Moore can pick up where he left off last season. They don't need him to be great, just good. The Panthers will certainly take his 2009 performance when he completed 62 percent of his throw for 1,053 yards and eight touchdowns with two interceptions in limited action.

When the Panthers do take to the air, Moore will be looking to hook up with No. 1 wideout Steve Smith. In a down year, Smith still hauled in 65 passes for 982 yards and seven scores.

Defense: Carolina was one of 11 teams to give up less than 20 points per game in 2009. Of those teams, only two failed to make the playoffs. Had the offense been better, Carolina would have had a great opportunity to punch its playoff ticket for a second straight season.

The Panthers were one of the better defensive teams on the all-important third down. They ranked No. 7 in the NFL in third down defense, only giving up the first down 35.5 percent of the time.

This Panthers could slip on third now that Peppers is in the Windy City. His pass rushing ability was crucial on that down last season. Peppers is the Panthers' all-time sacks leader. They're really going to miss a guy that recorded double-digit sacks year in and year out, especially since no one else on the roster had more than five last season.

While I'm not sure who is going to step up to provide some heat on the quarterback (maybe Tyler Brayton), I am sure that the Panthers will need even more leadership and stellar play out of Jon Beason, Thomas Davis and Chris Gamble to help make up for such a huge loss.

Prediction: 3rd NFC South - The Saints, Falcons and Panthers will all contend for the division title in what is becoming one of the NFL's toughest divisions. Any of these three teams can win it, but right now the Panthers look to be a little behind the other two. The NFL is a quarterback's league, and the Falcons and the Saints both have Pro Bowl-caliber signal callers. Be sure to check out my 2010 NFL predictions to see which team I have winning the division.