ESPN NFL

The Super Bowl hopes of the Carolina Panthers may very well rest on their running game. The Panthers averaged a meager 3.4 yards per rushing attempt last season, tied for 31st in the league. The number was surprisingly low given that Carolina's offensive linemen had zero missed starts.

So why did the Panthers rushing attack struggle last year? A closer look at the metrics shows that Stephen Davis was actually the primary culprit for the lack of productivity.

Davis started the 2005 season as the lead runner after recovering from microfracture leg surgery. The Panthers didn't ask him to carry the load by himself, as DeShaun Foster spelled him for eight to 10 carries a game. As the season wore on, Davis started to be slowed by injuries. Foster kept getting more and more carries until Davis finally had to be put on IR. Davis and Foster ended the year with a similar number of carries (Davis 180, Foster 205), but Foster gained 330 more yards.

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