CHARLOTTE—When the Panthers offense watched tape last week, preparing for the Buccaneers, Ikem Ekwonu said they noticed something about Tampa Bay’s pressure. Leading up to that point of the season, the game in which the Bucs had pressured and blitzed the quarterback the most was their first matchup against the Panthers.
“They had shown that tendency really when they played us the first time we played them; it was like one of their higher games when it comes to the blitz and pressure percentage,” Ekwonu shared Monday. “So, we kind of have that in our heads that we’re most likely going to get that same type of pressure again.”
Todd Bowles and company doubled down on Sunday. Bryce Young was pressured on 68.6 percent of his drop-backs (24 times), the highest pressure rate faced by any quarterback in a game this season, according to Next Gen Stats. Young was sacked five times.
“I think they did a good job of just putting pressure on us, bringing pressure from different places, and just making us be on top of our game,” offensive guard Robert Hunt explained. “I thought everywhere wasn’t, it wasn’t our best, wasn’t really that clean. So, you’re going to pay the price with that.”
The five sacks were a high number, but they still didn’t match his most in a game. He was sacked six times against Dallas. As a rookie, when tying the franchise record for most sacks in a season (62), there were four games where such a mark was met, with two games hitting six sacks and one hitting seven.
The Panthers invested heavily in the offensive line this season, which has paid off more often than not. Additionally, Carolina has seen Young learn to handle the pressure more so that when facing the most pressure he or any passer has all season, there is still a chance for plays to be made.
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