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This is a little bit of a cheat listing Ekwonu as both. But the child really did have minutes of radiance and catastrophe throughout his veryfirst start.
It was a little lofty to anticipate the novice left takeon to take on one of, if not the finest edge protector in the NFL. Because no matter who you are, you’re not going to fend off Myles Garrett for long.
Ekwonu was beat early and frequently by Garrett’s blinding speed off the edge. The All-Pro protector rapidly acknowledged the novice’s lackofexperience and shortages to spring on him—particularly whenever Ekwonu overset or kicked inside rapidly to change. This eventually led to Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield being sacked twotimes by his previous colleague.
The great news is that there was a clear enhancement and versatility on Ekwonu’s part as the videogame advanced. Part of the offense’s spike in production throughout the 4th quarter was a appealing indication that Ekwonu is going to rapidly establish into a efficient takeon for Carolina.
AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman
This offseason, the Panthers re-signed tight end Ian Thomas to a rather inspected agreement extension. There were concerns about his worth as a receiver, a rather irregular blocker and what he brought to the table for that cash.
This Sunday revealed a great flash of simply what Thomas can accomplish with more development.
His most noteworthy play of the videogame was a fast run up the appear for a 50-yard catch and run that assisted jumpstart the Panthers offense late in the 2nd half. He looked fast, athletic and like he might be a genuine weapon for this system.
His stopping was likewise significantly enhanced. He was utilized in a number of positions to develop a lane for ball providers and ended up bulldozing a coupleof protectors, especially on a couple of brings from running back Christian McCaffrey.
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There hasactually been a lot of blowback on the choice to start Pat Elflein over brand-new free-agent signee Bradley Bozeman at . And regrettably, this loss did not assistance ease those ideas.
Elflein had concerns with pass stopping as well as protecting snaps with Mayfield, which resulted in 4 fumbles. Elflein will requirement to enormously enhance his play at the position or will requirement to be rapidly changed, as these errors will co