Tag: Carolina Panthers

Saints win 34-31, push past Panthers on last-second Wil Lutz field goal

The New Orleans Saints let the Carolina Panthers play too close for comfort, but were able to trust kicker Wil Lutz to win in the end.

The New Orleans Saints won a nail-biter over the Carolina Panthers, with kicker Wil Lutz pushing a 33-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired. It followed a successful drive downfield that began when Panthers kicker Joey Slye missed his own would-be game-winner from 28 yards out.

It would be nice if the final score of 34-31 didn’t indicate how closely the Saints played this game, but that’s not the case. New Orleans backed themselves into a corner with 12 penalties, giving up 123 yards of field positioning. The Panthers took advantage of many of those opportunities, though inconsistent kicking from Slye (who went 1-for-3 on extra point tries, and 2-for-3 on field goal attempts) ended up costing them.

Good news for the Saints surrounds the increased involvement of tight end Jared Cook, who caught 6 of 8 targets for 99 yards and a touchdown score. Cook consistently made plays after the catch and down the seam, giving the Saints a viable option downfield opposite Michael Thomas (who turned in a typical 10-for-11, 110-yard showing).

It’s been a quiet few weeks for second-year defensive end Marcus Davenport, but something has to be said for his performance in clutch time. Davenport set up Carolina’s botched final field goal with a huge sack on third down and followed it up by leaping over the Panthers’ blockers, spooking Slye into an off-target chip shot. He made big plays in the game’s biggest moments.

So New Orleans improved to 9-2 on the year so far, while Carolina fell to 5-6. All eyes now are on the Sunday Night Football matchup between the projected top two playoff seeds: the 9-1 San Francisco 49ers and 8-2 Green Bay Packers. If the 49ers win, the Saints will have a shot at controlling their own destiny when San Francisco visits on Dec. 8. If the Packers win, New Orleans has to hope Green Bay drops a loss down the stretch, or the NFC’s top playoff seed could be out of reach.

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6 takeaways from the Panthers’ close Week 12 loss to the Saints

Panthers vs. Saints: 6 takeaways from a close Week 12 loss.

The Carolina Panthers almost rallied from a huge deficit against the New Orleans Saints, but they came up just short, losing 34-31 on a late field goal.

Here are a few takeaways from the loss.

Christian McCaffrey continued his phenomenal season

Christian McCaffrey
(Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

The Saints came into this week having not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 36 consecutive games. McCaffrey was unbothered. While they were mostly able to contain him on the ground, McCaffrey torched the Saints as a receiver. He caught all nine of his targets, totaling 133 yards from scrimmage and scoring two touchdowns. This is one of the greatest seasons any NFL running back has ever had. Carolina fans should be enjoying that if nothing else about this year.

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In cruelest irony, referees enforce DPI against Saints after challenge

The Saints were victims of a rule coach Sean Payton spent the offseason advocating, when referees sided with a pass interference challenge.

The NFL can be cruel. New Orleans Saints fans knew that already, but they were given an ugly reminder late in their Week 12 game against the Carolina Panthers, when Panthers coach Ron Rivera challenged a non-call for defensive pass interference against Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

And he got it. The officials huddled over the instant replay review station and gave Carolina the nod: the Panthers were given a fresh set of downs from the New Orleans 3-yard line. It didn’t matter because the Saints defense buckled down and forced the Panthers into an unsuccessful field goal try, but the fact that this was the one instance in which the officials overturned a call on the field — against a team that was so publicly victimized in similar circumstances in last year’s conference championship game — is such cruel irony. Saints coach Sean Payton spearheaded the effort to make pass-interference (called or not) reviewable, and his team ended up catching the brunt of it.

According to ESPN Stats and Info, NFL coaches went into Week 12 having overturned 3 of 74 (4%) such challenges. League officiating established a precedent that required overwhelming evidence to overturn the result as called on the field, and in this one situation, it ended up biting New Orleans.

Fortunately, it didn’t matter. The Saints followed up that field goal miss with their own drive down the field, capping it off with a Wil Lutz game-winner from 33 yards out. Hopefully this bizarre use of the replay review rules doesn’t hurt them again.

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Panthers Highlights: Tre Boston picks off Drew Brees at midfield

Watch safety Tre Boston pick off a pass by Drew Brees at midfield. 

It’s hard to overstate just how important it is for the Panthers to create takeaways. Their win/loss record when they win the turnover battle is a testament to that. That’s why it’s so good to see this. Watch safety Tre Boston pick off a pass by Drew Brees at midfield.

Curtis Samuel drew a huge penalty in the end zone soon after, setting up a short touchdown pass from Kyle Allen to D.J. Moore.

Joey Slye made the extra point attempt this time. The score is now tied 31-31.

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Panthers Highlights: Christian McCaffrey makes Vonn Bell miss, scores again

He’s up to 16 on the season, now.

Tackling Christian McCaffrey is easier said than done. Watch Saints safety Vonn Bell do his best and come up with nothing but air before McCaffrey scores his second touchdown of the game. He’s up to 16 on the season, now.

The Panthers still trail the Saints 31-24 going into the fourth quarter.

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Watch: Saints special teams unit recovers Panthers’ muffed punt

New Orleans Saints special teams ace J.T. Gray teamed up with Justin Hardee for a big play on special teams, this time against the Panthers.

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The New Orleans Saints have hurt themselves with some ugly penalties and poor execution, but they caught a big break early against the Carolina Panthers. A Thomas Morstead punt deflected off of Panthers wide receiver D.J. Moore, and the Saints recovered the live ball to keep their offense alive.

It was a huge opportunity, and they didn’t waste it. Drew Brees struck wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith for a touchdown catch a few plays later. It was all kicked off when Saints special teams ace Justin Hardee blocked his Panthers counterpart, Rashaan Gaulden, into Moore. Saints safety J.T. Gray was in the right spot at the right time to recover the loose ball.

Gray has made a few game-changing plays for the Saints on special teams this year, including a blocked punt that turned into a safety against the Chicago Bears back in Week 7. If the Saints are going to go the distance and win another Super Bowl, they’ll need more plays from unexpected sources — like Gray throwing a block to create this turnover.

Check it out in the video embedded below, or at this link:

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Panthers Highlights: Christian McCaffrey closes first half with critical touchdown

The two-point attempt failed, so at halftime the Saints lead 17-15.

What a turnaround in the second quarter for the Panthers. After falling behind 14-0, it looked like this one might be another blowout. Carolina rallied in a big way though, beginning with a 51-yard bomb of a touchdown from Kyle Allen to D.J. Moore.

The Panthers closed the first half out with a 17-play drive, capped off by this touchdown pass to McCaffrey on a nice design by Norv Turner.

The two-point attempt failed, so at halftime the Saints lead 17-15.

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Watch: Tre’Quan Smith extends the lead with wide-open TD catch

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith benefited from the perfect play call to catch a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers.

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Running back Latavius Murray put the New Orleans Saints on the board early against the Carolina Panthers with a 26-yard touchdown run, and wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith stepped up with his own scoring play to extend that lead on a 13-yard touchdown catch. The Saints dialed up a great play in scoring position that asked quarterback Drew Brees to drop back after faking the initial hand-off.

That play-action fooled the entire Panthers defense which bit on what looked like a run play, allowing Smith to jog untouched into the end zone. Brees lobbed the ball his way for one of the Saints’ easiest scoring plays this year. Panthers safety Eric Reid and linebacker Shaq Thompson tried to recover and chase Smith down, but there just wasn’t enough field left for them to cover before he trotted into the end zone.

It was the perfect play in that situation for what Carolina’s defense was showing the Saints, likely the result of tedious film study by Saints coach Sean Payton and his staff. We’ll be sure to double back and see which tendencies they picked up on to get this favorable of a look. In the meantime, check out the scoring play for yourself:

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Panthers injury updates: DT Dontari Poe carted off the field vs. Saints

Panthers injury updates: DT Dontari Poe helped off field by his teammates against the Saints.

One of our keys for today’s game was the Panthers getting interior pressure on Saints quarterback Drew Brees. This isn’t going to help.

Defensive tackle Dontari Poe just had to be helped off the field by his teammates. He was seen limping badly and not putting much weight at all on his left leg.

Poe was eventually carted off to the locker room by the training staff.

The Saints have also been bit by the injury bug in this matchup. Left tackle Terron Armstead is questionable to return with an ankle issue.

The Saints lead 17-6 early in the second quarter.

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Terron Armstead injured, questionable to return vs. Panthers

New Orleans Saints left tackle Terron Armstead injured his ankle and is questionable to return to play versus the Carolina Panthers.

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The New Orleans Saints offensive line took another hit early against the Carolina Panthers, with left tackle Terron Armstead injured his ankle during the first quarter. Armstead walked off the field slowly under his own power before riding a medical staff cart into the locker room. An announcement from the team updated his status as questionable to return to the game.

In his place, the Saints called up veteran  backup Patrick Omameh, who has spent most of his time in the NFL at left or right guard. The Saints were already starting a backup next to Armstead in Nick Easton, who was filling in for injured starter Andrus Peat. Ironically, Peat is normally the go-to option to replace Armstead, but he’s going to be out about four more weeks after breaking his arm against the Atlanta Falcons.

This injury to Armstead has been one of the few problem areas on offense for the Saints against Carolina. They have otherwise avoided mistakes and converted on tough downs, ending two of their first three drives with touchdown scores (including a 26-yard run by Latavius Murray and a 13-yard pass to Tre’Quan Smith). That third drive ended with a punt, which the Saints were fortunate to recover.

Armstead’s status is officially questionable to return, so he hasn’t been ruled out entirely. Stay tuned for an update to his situation.

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