Giants vs. Panthers 2013: Cam Newton, Carolina defense light up Eli Manning and Giants

While the Panthers’ offense delivered, Edgar Salmingo Jr. of Cat Scratch Reader believes the defense should be getting a majority of the praise for the win:

Ed Valentine of Big Blue View is not very optimistic about the Giants after this most recent loss:

The Giants are by no means dead in the water, but “desperate” is definitely the right way to describe this team.

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Manning passed for just 119 yards in the loss, unable to find receivers despite playing against a lackluster Panthers’ secondary. He was sacked a total of seven times and was pressured almost every passing down, which resulted in an offense that couldn’t make any plays. The loss was the worst of head coach Tom Coughlin’s career with the Giants.

The Panthers appeared to learn from their early-season mistakes. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula allowed Cam Newton to succeed and fail on the strength of his athletic ability, rather than ask asking him to be a perfect intermediate passer. As a result, Newton completed just over 55 percent of his passes. tossed three touchdowns and added a fourth on the ground.

The Panthers are known for stepping off the gas and losing late in games, but with a 31-point lead, it seems unlikely.

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Smith was running a deep route on a Cam Newton pass when he fell hard on his left hip as he attempted to catch the pass. He remained down on the field for several minutes surrounded by trainers and Newton. Smith limped to the sideline and missed a series before re-entering the game.

Smith will continue to play in Sunday’s game, but his status will be something to watch as the game continues.

The Panthers’ identity on defense is to mask their ailing secondary with an overwhelming pass rush. This hasn’t had a lot of success early in the season, but it’s working against Manning today. The Giants’ quarterback has just 24 yards passing.

Carolina currently leads 10-0. There have been opportunities for the Giants to get back in the game, but they have been unable to capitalize on two bad mistakes by the Panthers, including a punt mix up and a bad Cam Newton interception.

Giants Inactives

Carolina Inactives

At 0-2, another loss this week could spell doom for either team. For Carolina, Ron Rivera is a coach on the hot seat with the expectations this season to make the playoffs. Should the Panthers lose this game, the seat will only gettoastier.

The Giants, meanwhile, enter this game following losses to the Dallas Cowboys and the Denver Broncos. The team could use a spark from its running game, which is currently ranked last in the league with 73 rushing yards. With Andre Brown out with a broken leg for a few more weeks and the recently-signed Brandon Jacobs showing his age at 31, David Wilson needs to step up. Will Sunday be the day that happens?