The Carolina Panthers did not have the results they were hoping for last week against the Denver Broncos, and there were a lot of factors that went into the final result of that game. It was the third straight loss for this team, but one side of the ball offered some optimism moving forward.

In the first game under interim defensive coordinator Todd Wash, Carolina’s defense showed some life against the Broncos. The unit allowed 82 rushing yards (a big area of emphasis since making the coordinator change) and made the Broncos fight for every yard they gained on Sunday.

Again though, the results weren’t ideal. But, it was still a step forward for this unit while still showing there’s more areas to continue improving going into the next game.

“For us, we just want to see daily improvement,” Wash told reporters on Thursday. “We did some tweaks to some other things but some of the stuff is the same. We just have to be able to execute better. If we go out and we show that we’re executing better and better each day, that’s what getting better looks like. I don’t know if there’s necessarily a timeline, but we have to see improvement.”

Todd Wash reflects on first game back in the defensive coordinator role

First and foremost, Sunday’s game was Wash’s first regular season game as a defensive coordinator since 2020. Naturally, it took a little bit of a learning curve for him to knock off the rust and get comfortable back in that position again.

“The first series with the change of personnel – about midway through the first drive I was like ‘Okay, I remember this’ – but initially it was… I can’t really say what it was like. But, it wasn’t good,” Wash explained. “I didn’t feel comfortable. It was my fault that I got caught with 12 out on the grass, I changed personnel late and (expletive) I know better than that. It took that first series to get it back and then I felt more comfortable.”

On that opening drive, Wash’s unit did tighten up and held Denver to a field goal. Where things fell apart was during the fourth quarter after allowing two touchdowns that allowed the Broncos to take back, and extend, the lead late.

Executing for all 60 minutes was a big point of emphasis for Wash moving forward, but there was still a lot of good that came from that tape last week.

“I was encouraged from what we saw on Sunday, it wasn’t good enough because we didn’t win the (expletive) game because that’s the only thing that matters,” Wash said. “But we are getting better and they are feeling more and more comfortable. The results will come through the hard work they’re putting in.”

Panthers defensive line dealt with the biggest change, and Wash wants to get one player more involved

The biggest change under Wash was the play-style he wanted to see up-front. He wanted a more attacking-mindset from the defensive line and less of the read-and-react the position group played with under Ejiro Evero. Again, there was a positive turnaround there, but it wasn’t present for all 60 minutes of Sunday’s game.

“You could really see the philosophy change with us getting up-front and knocking people back,” Wash explained. “The longer that we got into the game, you see some of the muscle memory habits that we developed over the last three years. They kicked back in. Early on, I thought we saw some really good stuff with the attack technique.”

One player Wash is hoping to get more involved after Week 9 is rookie defensive tackle Lee Hunter, who had two pressures and two stops on just 13 defensive snaps.

“It is a major, major point of emphasis to make sure he gets more. I’ll take that,” Wash said of Hunter. “He has to play more. He’s a good football player, and it is as simple as getting him in the game, and he will be in the game more.”

Hunter is the kind of player that brings that attacking style Wash is looking for. So it’d make sense to see him continue to get more involved this weekend against the New Orleans Saints, and moving forward.

“That’s the style that we’re trying to get to and play with. So it just matches what he does,” Wash added. “So, the more and more that we get him out there, the more and more he’s going to make plays in the backfield, or just make plays in general. With his athleticism, his explosiveness, let’s get him on an edge, and his production should go up, and I think it will.”

More help is on the way for the defense

Along with that, the Panthers are expected to get even more help in the next two weeks. Outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips, cornerback Mike Jackson, and cornerback Will Lee III were all back on the field on Wednesday as full participants (although it was a walk-through practice). That’s still a major sign that Wash will have three starters back on defense, hopefully as soon as this weekend.

“I’m just so encouraged that they’re out on the grass,” Wash said. “They’re able to work, they’re able to get reps that they need to get better in our system. When they play, I think we’re going to see some good players out on the grass and we’re excited as coaches when they get out there.”

Phillips has been out of action since Week 6 with a hamstring injury, Jackson has missed five games with a groin injury, and Lee was forced to miss Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury as well. We’ll see how those three continue to look throughout the week and if any are able to be back out there in New Orleans.