Superbowl 46 Betting Online – 2011 Panthers Season Preview
Carolina’s slide to a 2-14 record in 2010 was fast and steep after tying for the best record in the NFC in 2008 at 12-4.
NFL 2011 Team Preview and Odds – Carolina Panthers
Odds to win the NFC South +2000
Odds to win the NFC 75/1
Odds to win the Super Bowl 125/1
Win Total 4.5
This slide paved the way for Ron Rivera to take the reins from John Fox as head coach and also created the opportunity to grab Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton with the first overall pick in this year’s draft. 
The Panthers had hoped they solved their problems at quarterback when they selected Jimmy Clausen in the second round last year, but his performance as a rookie obviously did not instill enough confidence to take a pass on Newton.
Rivera’s first big task will be to decide which of these signal-callers will line up behind center when his team takes the field against Arizona on opening day. Unfortunately, this issue is just the tip of the iceberg for a Carolina team that set records for futility on offense last year. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
It was ranked dead-last in the NFL in total yards per game (258.4) and only managed to score 12.2 points a game.
The one bright spot was the Panthers ability to re-sign running back DeAngelo Williams.
He missed much of 2010 due to injury, but is hoping to return to the form that accounted for 2,632 yards rushing in the previous two seasons. He will once again be paired with Jonathan Stewart to form the core strength of this offense.
Carolina also has a bona fide No.1 receiver in Steve Smith, but the recent loss of David Gettis with a torn ACL is just another blow to a passing offense that managed just 143.1 yards a game last year.
Carolina used four of its other seven draft choices on defense to try and address this side of the ball, but more importantly it was able to re-sign a couple of key veterans such as linebackers Jon Beason and Thomas Davis as well as defensive end Charles Johnson.
The Panthers were a respectable 18th in total yards allowed, but were ranked near the bottom of the league in points allowed; giving up an average of 25.5 points a game.
There is little doubt that Rivera has a major rebuilding process on his hands as the team he inherited is just a mere shell of its former self, but Newton can definitely add some excitement and there is enough talent for the Panthers to at least double its win total from last season.
2011 Prediction: 5-11 and fourth in the NFC South
With NFL Training camps already starting Cappers Picks NFL Football handicappers have been hard at work putting out the team by team Football Predictions and NFL Season Previews for those of us who can’t wait.
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