Carolina Panthers: Christian McCaffrey must be given support
The Carolina Panthers have a potential threat in Christian McCaffrey, but they need to make a move to best leverage his abilities.
Looking back to the 2017 Carolina Panthers season, there’s a lot of positive to build upon in the future. Both sides of the ball had some moments in which they struggled, but there’s also some strong points built in as well. With 2018 bearing down upon the league, there’s one player that should have a big impact on the future performance of this offense. That player is Christian McCaffrey and fans and opponents alike should expect a heavy dose of No. 22.
One year into his professional career, McCaffrey has lived up to the expectations that were placed upon him during the 2017 NFL Draft. The Stanford rookie has stepped into his role on this running team and played very well this season. In many ways, he’s tapped as one of the top weapons on this offense going forward, and why that may be a big ask in his second year, McCaffrey’s abilities do create the opportunity to use his as a bigger threat in this offense next season.
Think back to a decade ago when Carolina built one of the best rushing tandems in the duo of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. Williams and Stewart were a force when the Panthers rushed the ball. For example, in 2008 they earned a combined 2,351 yards and 28 rushing yards. The duo consistently put up big numbers that helped build one of the best rushing groups in the league. McCaffrey can be the foundation for similar success in the future.
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In 2017 he and Stewart combined for 1,115 yards and eight touchdowns. It’s true that those numbers do not leap off of the page and we also must take into account Cam Newton’s important to the running game. 2017 was also Stewart’s last year in his contract and his future with the team is up in the air. All of these factors are an impact to how well McCaffrey plays in the future season. But that doesn’t mean we’ve seen the ceiling on his production.
Coach Ron Rivera has commented that he wants McCaffrey to be a bigger part of the offense, but in 2017 they also made it a point to lighten his load later in the season. This was a key decision that helped him remain healthy at a position in which overuse has hurt many other big name prospects. If Stewart doesn’t return to the Panthers in 2018, it will be interesting to see how Carolina leverages McCaffrey’s abilities as a multiple threat option, but keep his usage to acceptable levels. The only option seems to be in finding another running back that can help carry the load.
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Is Cameron Artis-Payne the man to help? His production in three years would say no, as his numbers and overall use on the field continues to drop. With so many other needs on both sides of the ball, it’s hard to believe that Carolina would use a high draft pick to select another running back. There are options available through free agency, but again, this isn’t a position in which it would be smart to commit a lot of money to a new tailback.
Regardless of what decision is made, the Panthers do need to make a move to not only protect McCaffrey, but recreate the success the rushing unit has seen in past seasons.