Carolina offense vs. Cleveland defense

	PANTHERS OFFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	Run	17
	Pass	7
	Tot. Yds.	6
	Scoring	11
	Int's allowed	12
	Sacks allowed	34
	BROWNS DEFENSE
	Ranking in the NFL:
	vs. Run	31
	vs. Pass	15
	Total yds. allowed	30
	# of Ints.	7
	# of Sacks	18
	Turnover differential	-13

Carolina, after struggling up front against the Rams a week ago, will get back on track against a Cleveland front seven that is getting beat up each and every week. The return of Tim Biakabutuka is going to revive a running game that has is averaging under 100-yards in total rushing since his injury.

The team will revert to the original plan of splitting time between Biakabutuka and Fred Lane to keep their backs healthy and fresh. That plan should work out to be a profitable one for head coach George Seifert. Biakabutuka is more explosive, but Lane is a better inside runner and is more suited to taking a pounding and staying on the field.

This is a good week to test out the dynamics of this system against a Cleveland defense that is allowing 172.4-yards per game on the ground. Cleveland's predicament is that they are undersized and lacking depth up front, but because of such a depleted and vulnerable secondary, they get little help in run-support from their safeties. The Browns looked steady last week against the Steelers, but that was an offense that poses little threat to throw the ball down field.

The Panthers love this matchup, because it gives them a chance to create more balance offensively. Expect to see the Panthers run a lot more four receiver sets to open up the offense and force teams to back off the pressure. They are looking to do so for a couple reasons. First, QB Steve Beuerlein is a much more efficient passer when he has time to sit back in the pocket and make reads. He is a veteran that makes good decisions with the ball, but he has had trouble beating the blitz. The other reason for opening up the offense is to create bigger running lanes between the tackles.

The Browns are undersized and usually are forced to turn to a heavy blitz package in order to create a pass rush. Against the Eagles two weeks ago, another team that likes to blitz a lot, Carolina frequently caught them out of position and were able to get some big-plays out of the passing game.

The team is finally taking advantage of the size and speed of WR Mushin Mahammad. The 6-2, 220 pound receiver does an excellent job of getting his body in position versus man-to-man coverage and he is an excellent neutralizer to the blitz. Beuerlein will be able to use his size as an advantage Sunday when he is matched up with CB Daylon McCutcheon on a lot of fade and "9-routes" that will eventually force Cleveland to back off the pressure and play more conservative.

To counter the spread formation, Carolina is going to force Cleveland to throw the ball on 1st and 2nd downs by walking up SS Brent Alexander and playing more eight-men in the box sets. The Panthers, who are allowing 128.9-yards per game, are going to need the extra man to clog up the cut back lanes that RB Karim Abdul-Jabbar has been taking advantage of in the past couple of weeks. Jabbar is more suited to be the premier back in this system because he has some flair as a runner and can create some room on his own.

A major problem for Cleveland's running game has been the play of FB Marc Edwards as the isolation blocker in this scheme. When reviewing the last couple of Browns games, it becomes obvious that Edwards is having a lot of trouble finding his man when he gets to the line of scrimmage. He is taking poor angles and shows very little pop at the point of attack. If Edwards does not do a better job of making the iso-block, Cleveland's running game is going to do very little to sustain drives or set up the passing attack.

The biggest key to the Browns' passing game is the time that Tim Couch has to operate. The matchup to watch on passing downs is RT Orlando Brown versus LDE Antonio Edwards. Brown has been getting killed off the ball by quicker and more athletic defensive ends.

The Browns have been so concerned about the situation that they have had to keep the tight end in on a lot of passing downs to protect Couch's frontside. It is at the point where the Browns are better off getting Couch out of the pocket off of play fakes or on rollouts that allow Couch to get to the outside.

The Browns have been doing a much better job of creating matchups. They have been running a lot of high/low reads to one side that features Kevin Johnson and Leslie Shepherd split to one side. They are using a lot of crossing routes where Shepherd is working the underneath zone while Johnson is getting vertical.

To defend against this new set the Panthers will use "triangle coverage" to the heavy side, where two corners will lock up on Johnson and Shepherd and FS Mike Minter will play in the deep zone. The Panthers will be able to create a pass rush with just five and six men in the box because of Cleveland's troubles up front in pass protection.