The Panthers won’t be a complete team on defense until they add this in the NFL draft

Before the 2020 season began, few thought the Panthers’ defense would have much success.

They lost seven starters on defense from their 2019 team, including star middle linebacker Luke Kuechly, and a young promising cornerback in James Bradberry, who has starred for the Giants this season.

The Panthers’ defense has been far from perfect, but even in Sunday’s 28-27 loss to the Vikings, they’ve been impressive.

They shutout the Lions, 20-0, in Week 11, and in Week 12, had the Vikings against the ropes after scoring two defensive touchdowns in the third quarter.

But it was clear after Sunday’s game, especially on their last defensive series, that this defense is far from complete. And one of the biggest things holding the Panthers back is a consistent pass rush.

Carolina coach Matt Rhule said the pass rush, or lack thereof, is why they failed to stop the Vikings’ seven-play, 75-yard game-winning touchdown drive. Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was 6-for-7 for 75 yards on that final drive, which lasted one minute and five seconds.

He was pressured only once, the Panthers’ only five-man pass rush on that drive; the play resulted in an incompletion.

“Again, we’ve only been good on defense when we’ve been able to get pressure on the quarterback,” Rhule said Sunday. “We don’t really stop people the other way. We stop people by getting pressure.”

Rhule is right.

One of their defensive touchdowns was the result of a pressure. Zach Kerr sacked Cousins early in the third quarter, causing him to fumble. Rookie Jeremy Chinn scooped the loose ball and took it to the end zone for a 17-yard score, putting the Panthers up 14-10.

That sack was one of only two the Panthers had Sunday. The Panthers sacked Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford five times a week earlier.

When the Panthers have gotten pressure this season, it’s mainly been because of second-year defensive end Brian Burns, who often draws double teams. He leads the Panthers with six sacks this season and three forced fumbles. And before Sunday’s game, he led all defensive ends in Pro Bowl votes.

But aside from him, the Panthers have struggled to get much production from their other defensive linemen. After Burns, defensive end Efe Obada is second on the team with 3.5 sacks. Defensive end Marquis Haynes has three sacks.

Rookie defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos is fourth with 1.5 sacks. First-round rookie defensive tackle Derrick Brown has yet to record a sack this season.

The Panthers average 1.5 sacks per game, which is ranked 26th in the NFL. By comparison, Pittsburgh, which also has the league’s best record at 10-0, is averaging 3.8 sacks per game.

The Panthers’ two best defensive teams this past decade were in 2013, when they finished 12-5, and in 2015, when they went 15-1 and went to the Super Bowl.

In both years, they were among the league’s best in generating pressure.

The Panthers averaged three sacks per game in 2015 — the year they last went to the Super Bowl — which ranked second in the league, and averaged 3.6 sacks per game in 2013, which ranked first.

They have plenty of needs that must be addressed in the 2021 draft, including linebacker, offensive tackle, cornerback and tight end. But it would be wise for the Panthers to consider using one of their first two picks on a pass rusher — whether that is a defensive end or a pass-rushing defensive tackle.

The 2021 NFL draft is loaded with talented defensive linemen who’ll be sought after in the early rounds.

Miami defensive end Greg Rousseau, Wake Forest defensive lineman Carlos Basham, Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, Alabama defensive lineman Christian Barmore and Michigan defensive lineman Kwity Paye are all projected to be available within the top-12 picks. As of Monday morning, the Panthers are projected to draft No. 6.

The Panthers would like to rely on Gross-Matos to be a constant force opposite of Burns. So far, that potential hasn’t showed up, though it’s still too early to fully evaluate him. Gross-Matos has missed four games because of injury.

The Panthers must get better pressure on opposing quarterbacks; it could have saved them Sunday.

“It’s not even about us getting a sack or any of that,” Kerr said. “It’s just getting off the field — whether it’s a sack, whether it’s an incomplete ball — it doesn’t matter how we got off the field, we just wanted to get off the field. There’s nothing more frustrating than allowing him to go 75 to win the game.”