Carolina Panthers must decide what to do with Brady Christensen. The film is telling

Uncertainty surrounds the Panthers’ offensive line.

Coach Matt Rhule and general manager Scott Fitterer made that clear earlier this week during their exit interviews. Both vowed to drastically improve their manpower up-front by investing major capital and valuable resources into future upgrades.

“We’re not going to be blind to the defense,” Fitterer said Monday. “We’re not going to be blind to the quarterback position. But we absolutely know we have to fix the offensive line. We can’t have all this leakage. We need to build this the right way. We need to build this up-front.”

Carolina has plenty of defensive unknowns, most notable the futures of free agents Haason Reddick (team-high 11 sacks), and cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Donte Jackson. But Fitterer is right. Establishing a powerful offensive line capable of controlling the line of scrimmage should (and will) take priority.

The Panthers started 13 different offensive line combinations this season, resulting in inconsistent and deficient play from nearly everyone. Only two players — Taylor Moton and rookie Brady Christensen — are considered starters next season. But even the known contains some uncertainty.

Is Christensen a guard or a tackle? That is a question Rhule — and whoever he hires as his new offensive line coach — must decipher. Despite Rhule repeatedly labeling Christensen a guard, the BYU product logged 320 snaps at left tackle, 71 at right tackle and only 84 at either guard spots.

According to Pro Football Focus, Christensen averaged a 73 overall pass-blocking grade during his final three starts at left tackle, facing Tampa Bay twice and New Orleans. He excelled on the outside against talented pass rushers he’ll keep facing twice a year.

His successes in pass protection are something valuable to build upon. However, regardless of position, he must improve as a run blocker by gaining lower-body mass during the offseason.

Which position is best for Christensen? Let’s break down some of his film playing tackle and compare it with some of his guard tape to identify what spot he should play next season.

Case for tackle

Watching Christensen’s tape should excite Panthers coaches and fans. His technique improved consistently each week. It was an encouraging sign of development and improved confidence.

Against Tampa Bay, he routinely bested outside linebacker Anthony Nelson. Nelson, a 6-foot-7 edge rusher, often tried beating Christensen outside by attacking his left shoulder and ripping through it.

Christensen combated Nelson’s speed rush with 45-degree sets while remaining strong upon contact. On the below play, Christensen sets and then makes contact with Nelson on his second kick. He does a fine job riding him outside until Nelson rips under.

Versus outside rush

This rep could be considered a loss. However, credit Christensen for selling out to recover by knocking Nelson off base. If a pass rusher has to loop that far outside to win then the quarterback should have enough time to throw, which Sam Darnold did.

Against the blitz

The most impressive thing about Christensen is how he understands pass-protection rules. Defenses did not confuse him with stunts, twists or games during his final three starts. In those games, Christensen allowed no quarterback hits, one sack and seven hurries. Only Moton allowed fewer totals.

The Saints used a bear front (five defensive linemen), shown by each offensive linemen having a defender lined up across from them. If all five Saints rush, then New Orleans has one-on-one matchups at each spot. This usually creates advantageous mismatches because offense lines are built to hunt for double teams.

But New Orleans dropped linebackers Kwon Alexander (5) and Demario Davis (56) into coverage toward the formation’s strength (notice Darnold immediately opened left). This instantly changed Carolina’s protection rules.

Simultaneously, two extra defenders and the defense end rush off the edge.

Christensen handled it perfectly. First, he reached inside to ensure he and left guard Micheal Jordan were covered. Once he passed the end off to Jordan, he picked up the next most dangerous blitzer.

Darnold is responsible for the free rusher. He botched the throw by not squaring his feet, throwing behind DJ Moore. Still, a great rep from Christensen.

In the run game

Christensen does not move bodies well enough as a run blocker. His leaner rookie frame didn’t provide enough power. But he impressed when pulling, which he would be asked to do a lot more as a guard.

On this play, the Panthers called a quick toss left for running back Chuba Hubbard. Carolina blocked it well aside from whiffs by center Pat Elflein and Moore at receiver. Elflein missed his cut block on linebacker Devin White. Elflein missing allowed White to scrape across the second level and undercut the edge Christensen successfully set.

Moore throwing his defender into the hole didn’t help.

Case for guard

Stonewall blocks

Christensen handles bull rushes well. His wide frame absorbs body blows while not surrendering too much depth. His tape is filled with examples of this at both tackle and guard. The Saints rushed him with speed-to-power combos often but he didn’t buckle.

Below, Christensen is at right guard against the Falcons. Donte Fowler Jr. knifed inside, bulldozing into Christensen. By placing his hands outside, Christensen caught Fowler and slowed his momentum with firing up-field feet.

Handling twists/stunts

These next two examples showcase in-game evolution. Against Miami, Christensen blew an assignment when he didn’t pick up the Dolphins’ two-man game. Instead of protecting inside, Christensen stayed on his man, who effectively picked left tackle Dennis Daley.

Cam Newton felt early pressure and rushed his throw. Later that game, Miami tried a similar twist and Christensen accurately identified it and blocked soundly.

What we learned

Despite what Rhule initially thought, Christensen can play left tackle in the NFL. And even though Rhule earned criticism for occupying “arms-too-short island,’‘ he may have been right about what is best for Christensen’s future.

It’s unlikely he develops into a Pro Bowl-caliber tackle. Combine that with the Panthers’ chances of drafting a blue-chip tackle and it’s clear deploying Christensen at guard best maximizes Carolina’s resources.

Playing Christensen beside Moton creates a stonewall right side. Pairing him with Neal or Ekwonu would do the same on the left.

Credit Christensen for quickly becoming a reliable starter under questionable circumstances. His growth speaks volumes about his potential next season.