For all the talk about how dangerous and versatile quarterback Cam Newton can be, the Panthers have run a fairly traditional, conservative offense in their first two games under new coordinator Mike Shula.
In this aerial age of NFL offenses, the Panthers rank 27th in pass attempts, with just three fewer rushing attempts than passes this season.
Giants linebacker Spencer Paysinger, who is making the defensive calls for the first time this season, said the equal distribution is a rare challenge in today’s game.
“It presents kind of a unique balance,” Paysinger said. “They have so many different people coming on and off the field, you just have to put four to five defenses in for everything. It makes you want to study that much more because they have such a plethora of plays.”
With Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart on the PUP list with an ankle injury, DeAngelo Williams finally has the backfield to himself after splitting carries with the younger Stewart for the past five seasons.
In Stewart’s absence, Williams ranks fifth in the league with 171 rushing yards, running on 30-year-old legs still spry after receiving just 415 carries over the past three seasons.
Williams — a former Pro Bowler who ran for 1,515 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2008, including a four-TD night in Week 16 at Giants Stadium — has a 4.9 career yards-per-carry average, which ranks fourth among active NFL running backs, trailing Jamaal Charles, C.J. Spiller and Adrian Peterson.
“I believe he’s a very efficient runner,” Paysinger said. “Just because his numbers haven’t been as big, it isn’t a testament to who he is. He’s going to get the ball 20 to 25 times a game, so if he gets in space, he’s dangerous whenever he has the ball. There’s much respect to him because he’s a good player.”
Though Williams can now take advantage of the opportunity to develop a rhythm from series to series, Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said he is glad he knows who to plan for.
With Newton also mixed into the rushing attack, and the Giants ranked 16th in the league against the run despite facing two pass-heavy teams, there already is plenty for Fewell to prepare.
“I’d rather just see DeAngelo than both guys,” Fewell said with a laugh. “DeAngelo’s a good football player, [but] when they had both DeAngelo and Stewart, that’s a tough, tough chore. We’ll be focused in on him and we have to do a good job of stopping the run as well as stopping Cam, because Cam will run the football often.”