CHARLOTTE - When head coach Ron Rivera reflected on the performance of the Panthers' running game in the season opener, he said the team was "very close" to clicking.
When defensive coordinator Sean McDermott described the Panthers' pass rush against the Cardinals, he said the team was "close" to enjoying a big day in terms of sacks.
It was close but no cigar for Carolina in Week 1, but if those two areas are as close as the coaches believe, the Panthers could soon light it up.
"When you put the tape on, there are a couple of plays where you go, 'Man, just another second here or a little better angle there, and two or three yards turns into eight, nine or 10,' " Rivera said of the run game. "There's promise, but it's not quite good enough yet. That's the case everywhere."
The Panthers amassed 477 yards of total offense in their 28-21 loss at Arizona – the third-highest total in team history – though just 74 yards came on the ground. Eight of DeAngelo Williams' 12 rushes went for two yards or less, as did four of Jonathan Stewart's seven.
The offensive line featured four of the five linemen most responsible for helping Williams and Stewart both top 1,100 rushing yards in 2009, as well as right guard Geoff Hangartner, a key cog when the Panthers went 12-4 in 2008.
On the other hand, Hangartner had just rejoined the team six days prior to the game after spending two seasons with the Buffalo Bills, and right tackle Jeff Otah was playing in his first regular season game in nearly two years.
"We have a lot of the same core guys that have had success in the running game, but there are new parts to it and a new scheme," center Ryan Kalil said. "We're still trying to get the schemes down. We have sifted through it, and we've laid out what we think we're good at and what we want to get done.
"It will get better as time goes on. It's rhythm and timing."
On the defensive front, where defensive end Charles Johnson is beginning his fifth NFL season and the other three starters have one season of experience combined, the Panthers put some serious pressure on Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb but sacked him only twice.
"There were a lot of sacks there for the taking, but I was encouraged, most definitely," said defensive end Greg Hardy, who recorded one of the sacks. "I'd much rather have sacks, but it was a big deal to get pressure like that in the first game."
McDermott, the architect of many of the blitz packages that (almost) got to Kolb, said there's a learning curve when it comes to finishing off quarterbacks.
"There's a way to sack a quarterback, believe it or not," McDermott said. "You have to come under control, especially a mobile quarterback. We need to take advantage of those opportunities and make them count. It's one thing to be there, but it's another thing to make the play.
"I was happy, though. As an overall defense, we showed to be disruptive at times. A couple of plays got away from us, but I was pleased with the pressure from the front."
McDermott said quarterback Aaron Rodgers will present much the same challenge when the Green Bay Packers visit Bank of America Stadium on Sunday, but on the whole, the reigning Super Bowl champions should present an even bigger challenge than Arizona.
So if "close" wasn't good enough against the Cardinals, linebacker Thomas Davis doesn't think it will be good enough against the Packers.
"We went out and we fully expected to win that game, just like we'll go out this weekend fully expecting to win," Davis said. "You can't go into a game thinking, 'We don't really have a chance' or thinking, 'We're close. This is the NFL, and any given Sunday, you can win."
HELP ON THE WAY: Both lines hope they can get even closer to their destination with Tuesday's additions to the roster.
Defensive tackle Ronald Fields and offensive lineman Reggie Wells practiced for the first time Wednesday.
"I'm happy to be here," said Fields, a six-year NFL veteran who joins a trio of tackles who totaled one year of pro experience entering 2011. "I know they've got some youngsters, so I'm just coming in here trying to help the team."
Wells, an eight-year veteran, was in the Phoenix area Sunday when the Panthers visited the Cardinals. Wells played for the Cardinals from 2003-09 and watched the game from the house he still owns there.
"I got the call pretty quickly after the game, and I was excited," said Wells, who hopes to make an impact as soon as possible. "You can't come in and label yourself a backup because then you're not ready when your time does come. I'm ready to go."
