The Carolina Panthers have quietly inched their way near the top of the NFL’s sacks chart.
Quietly seems like the operative word because they’ve done it without having anyone among the top 20 individuals in the league in sacks, and because they no longer have a face-painting defensive end with a sea creature alter-ego leading the charge.
Heading into Sunday’s game at New Orleans the Panthers are third in the league with 33 sacks, trailing Denver (37) and New England (35).
While they’re off the pace of the team-record 60 sacks they piled up in 2013, the Panthers have proven they can still rattle opposing passers without the presence of Greg Hardy and his game-day Kraken persona.