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The Carolina Panthers fired their longtime G.M. on Monday. Their record is 1-5. They have two high-dollar running backs who don’t get the ball enough. Their franchise quarterback appears to have taken a second-year step back.

Offensively, though, the Panthers’ problems should be fixable. There is no shortage of talent. The players need to perform better, and the coaches do, too.

On tonight’s Monday Night Countdown, ESPN game-tape guru Ron Jaworski broke down Cam Newton and proposed a solution for Carolina’s offense.

“In the offseason, I went back and studied 517 passing attempts from Cam Newton,” said Jaws. “There were a lot of flaws in his games that were not exposed last season. This is not a ‘sophomore slump,’ as we like to say now. It’s a growing period. An embryonic development that all young quarterbacks go through.

“That being said, what I believe the Carolina Panthers must do is help him. A young quarterback’s best friend is a running game. Forget about all these college runs they’re trying to put in. Get back to some base, fundamental, NFL-style runs. That will set up the ability — like the Redskins are doing with Robert Griffin III — to allow him to get on the edge and use a play-action passing game.”

Jaworski’s suggestion actually isn’t all that different from resident Panthers guru Darin Gantt.

Bang it here for Darin’s ideas.