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| | Tuesday, August 15 Panthers: Getting defensive | |||||||||||||||
| By Tom Oates Special to ESPN.com George Seifert revitalized the offense in his first year as coach. Whether the Carolina Panthers can improve on their 8-8 record will depend on his ability to upgrade the defense. The Panthers scored more than 30 points eight times last year after doing it only six times in their first four seasons combined. Quarterback Steve Beuerlein had a breakthrough year at age 34 and the lanky group of deep threats at wide receiver ranked among the league's best. Seifert hopes end Chuck Smith, stolen from division rival Atlanta in free agency, will inspire a defense that ranked 26th last year. If the defense improves and the offense remains productive, the playoffs are in the Panthers' future.
Smith, who is as good in the locker room as he is on the field, is expected to energize a defense that gave up far too many big plays. The Panthers hope Smith can light a fire under tackle Sean Gilbert, protect the pedestrian linebackers and provide a pass rush that will help out the cornerbacks, who often were left in tatters last season. Key position battle When he's healthy, Tshimanga Biakabutuka is one of the more spectacular running backs in the league. The problem is he's entering his fifth year and he's never been healthy for an entire season. That's why the Panthers signed free agent Natrone Means, a bit shopworn at 28 but still a powerful runner. Means might not start, but he'll play. Biggest adjustment Since the franchise's inception, the strength of the defense has always been the linebacking corps. Now sackmeister Kevin Greene has retired and productive Mike Barrow was cut in a salary-cap move. Lee Woodall, who started for Seifert when he coached the 49ers, will take one outside spot. Donta Jones, the best blitzer on the team, will probably win the other one. Until the team upgrades this unit, however, the defense will never be dominant. Rookie report First-round pick Rashard Anderson and second-round pick Deon Grant will compete for a starting position at safety. Anderson was a cornerback in college, so he could also get into the mix there, although Eric Davis is set on one side and shell-shocked Doug Evans will compete with free agent Jimmy Hitchcock on the other.
| ALSO SEE Falcons: Lots of ifs in Atlanta Saints: Big Easy turnaround Rams: What next for the champs? 49ers: Time to move on Operation Beuerlein AUDIO/VIDEO   ESPN's Kevin Greene sees a lot of unanswered questions for the Carolina Panthers squad.avi: 3290 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Mike Golic breaks down the impact of Patrick Jeffers' injury.RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1   George Seifert hopes to have Eric Swann back on the field in the next week.wav: 91 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Eric Swann talks about his health.wav: 135 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Seifert dismisses reports that Steve Beuerlein won't play because of opposing team's blitzing.wav: 136 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Fear of the blitz? Panthers' Steve Beuerlein comments on rumors of his benching.wav: 128 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Patrick Jeffers talks about his injury.wav: 170 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 | |||||||||||||||
