Published: Thursday, Nov. 05, 2009 / Updated: Thursday, Nov. 05, 2009 06:47 AM

Delhomme comfortable with Panthers' offense

CHARLOTTE -- The chest is fine. His head is clear. But most importantly for Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme, his eyes are wide open.

Delhomme said Wednesday he's sore but no more than normal after being taken to the hospital for a hard hit in last Sunday's win at Arizona. And that win was likely part of his medicine.

Because even though he was far from eye-popping (7-of-14 for 90 yards and a touchdown), he knows that getting through last week's game mistake-free and even hitting a few plays downfield was part of the cure for the Panthers' passing game.

He knows he doesn't have to be flashy, he just has to be careful not to make big plays the other way.

“We did some decent things, especially that first drive,” he said of the Arizona game. “We were able to get a couple and got into somewhat of a rhythm. I think the second half was very different in how it was played for us.

“I thought we did all right. We did some decent things. It was a start.”

Delhomme always has been acutely aware of his place in the world, and he knows that taking small steps in the passing game may be all he needs. The numbers back that up.

In fact, Delhomme putting up big numbers in the passing game is nearly a lead-pipe cinch that the Panthers are losing or will lose.

In his 96 NFL starts, Delhomme is a solid 58-38 (.608 winning percentage).

But he's a stunning 45-8 (.849) when he throws fewer than 30 passes in a game. Let him get to or over that magic number of attempts, and he's 13-30 (.302).

“That's how you win in the NFL,” he said, nodding, when informed of the number. “Or should I say, that's how you win in this offense.

“I know what I need to do.”

There's a bit of a chicken-egg argument at work, as most teams that end up throwing it all over the yard are doing so for a reason. Teams that run more are generally ahead, and run more often when they get that way.

But mostly, Delhomme accepted early on his role with the Panthers and has never been one of those quarterbacks who envied the systems of others.

Delhomme respects what they're doing in New Orleans — leading the league with 39.0 points and 428.7 yards per game — but knows he's not that breed of quarterback.

He laughed when he recalled that during his 2003 free agency tour, his other trip was to Dallas, where current Saints coach Sean Payton was running the offense for Bill Parcells. So does he ever allow his mind to wander, to wonder if he could be a Drew Brees kind of a fantasy football star?

Not even close.

“Nah,” he said with a laugh. “No, no, no. What they do is awesome. And it's fun to watch, there's no doubt. On some Mondays, you pull up film from around the league, and I'll pull up some Saints film and just watch what they're doing. I think it's awesome to watch sometimes.”

But he knows that's not what he's doing here, and he's never been the kind of quarterback to long for one of those pass-happy systems.

“I know how we're built, what we're built to do and what works for us,” Delhomme said. “And that's not our system. That's not what we do. Ours is controlled passing game, run and take the shots (downfield off play-action).

“But to say it's frustrating? No. I'm not that guy. I can't stand the guy that sits back and says, ‘Oh if I played on that team, I could do that.' I hate that person, I can't stand that. That's never something I do. Over the course of my time, I've seen it and heard it (from other players). OK, whatever. Just do what you have to do.”

And for Delhomme, that means handing off, early and often.

The perfect Panthers plan would be to run games like last week's in Arizona. They ran 44 times for 270 yards, and threw just 14 times. They didn't complete a pass in the second half, partly because they didn't need to, up 28-7 at the break. Delhomme converted a few mince third-down passes on the 15-play opening march, and they didn't look back.

“We're going to have to have the same recipe we had last week,” tight end Jeff King said. “We have to run it, kind of play keep-away a little bit, chew up some yards, chew up some time, and keep their offense off the field, and hopefully score a lot of touchdowns. That 15-play drive last week (to open the game) kind of set the tone, and hopefully we can duplicate that.”

The Panthers struggled mightily getting the passing element fixed the first week of the season, as Delhomme threw 13 picks in the first six games. But even though he wasn't dynamic, he did enough last week, with his 50-yard touchdown to Steve Smith the kind of play that hadn't been there previously. And he knows and they know, that's the role that has to be filled, just a little at a time.

To be disciplined enough to stick with that plan's going to be tough. Because of the Saints' offense, opponents have to play catch-up the whole night.

And that's caused them to have to throw 38.1 passes per game, a number the Panthers hope to not approach.

“It's designed to be a balanced offense,” center Ryan Kalil said. “There are certain aspects that are there. It's like how the run game was slow to start the beginning of the season, it's the same deal with the passing game. All these things, run or pass, are such precise operations. Even the smallest things. A lot has to happen, a lot of people have to do what they're supposed to do to be successful.

“You have to be a balanced offense to be successful in this league, and that's something we're striving to be and I think it's something we're real close to having. Especially as run becomes more successful, and they start to put more guys in the box, it's going to have to open up. I think any time you have that, it's helpful to all of us. You hit that throw to Steve, now they can't crowd the box every time and it helps us in the run game. It's coming together. It's real close.”