CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -A blocked punt, another returned for a touchdown, fewer touchbacks on kickoffs and damaging starting field position for the opposition.
While Jake Delhomme’s Week 1 turnover festival and Julius Peppers’ 2-tackle performance a week later are popular targets in the Carolina Panthers’ 0-2 start, don’t forget the woeful special teams.
Carolina ranks last in the NFL in punt coverage and second-to-last in defending kickoffs. Punter Jason Baker has the worst net average in the NFL. Kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd is well off his 2008 league-best touchback pace. Newcomers on the return teams have struggled to block and close gaps.
It’s no surprise special teams coach Danny Crossman spent extra time at the end of Friday’s practice with key members of his units.
ecial teams tackles. “Once we get the young guys to turn their minds around and just realize, ‘Hey, this is my job. I enjoy this. I want to go out and make a play,’ I think we’re going to turn everything around.”
There’s a lot of fixing to do.
In the opener against Philadelphia, DeSean Jackson returned a second-quarter punt 85 yards for a touchdown. While the Panthers complained that officials missed an illegal block in the back, Jackson wasn’t touched as the Eagles took a 17-7 lead en route to a dominating victory.
On Sunday in Atlanta, Baker took too long adjusting the ball to face nose down for a rugby-style kick. Gary Barnidge, a newcomer on special teams, missed a block and Brian Williams smothered Baker’s punt. The Falcons scored their first touchdown three plays later and won 28-20.
“We were a little slow getting rid of the ball and we didn’t protect very well,” coach John Fox said. “Their guy beat our guy.”
Kickoffs haven’t been much better. Opponents are averaging 29.4 yards per return. Atlanta’s Jerious Norwood returned the opening kickoff 39 yards on Sunday. Eric Weems later had a 41-yard return.
“It’s a combination of things – the kick, the coverage – and we didn’t execute as well as they did,” Fox said.
K-Ball in 1999, designed to produce more returns.
Lloyd has only three touchbacks on eight kickoffs this season, even as he claimed Friday he’s kicking the ball just as well. Lloyd, whose sole duty is to kick off, said teams are lining up deeper in the end zone and returning kicks they downed in 2008.
“Last year I think I caught a lot of people off guard with my directions and obviously the depth I was putting the ball,” he said. “Now instead of it being 3 or 4 (yards) deep I have to go 6 or 7 (yards) deep in order for them to put a knee on it.”
And that’s been bad news for Carolina’s revamped coverage units. While the loss of Nick Goings, Donte Curry and Nate Salley from last year’s team don’t appear to be a big deal on the surface, they were key contributors on special teams. The salary cap-strapped Panthers also didn’t re-sign veteran long-snapper Jason Kyle, replacing him with the inexperienced J.J. Jansen.
Rookies and younger players like Barnidge have struggled in their new roles.
“You come out of college and you’re a starting cornerback or your a starting safety or D-end or whatever it may be,” said Wesley who broke in with old Carolina special teams aces Karl Hankton and Jarrod Cooper. “But when you come here you’ve got guys already in front of you and you’ve got to pay your dues (on special teams).”
ng a 50-yarder. Rookie Captain Munnerlyn ranks seventh in the NFL with a 12.5-yard punt return average.
But the coverage problems are causing the Panthers fits. Consider Baker ranks No. 1 in the NFL with a gross punting average of 54.8 yards, yet is by far last in the league with a 21.3 net average.
“We need to do a better job on our punt coverage,” Wesley said. “I need to do a better job in talking to the guys and working harder to eliminate some of the big plays.”
“This week we really need to step up.”
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