Despite Jeremy Chinn’s record-setting defensive touchdowns, poor late-game management caused the Carolina Panthers fall to 4-8 on the season in a 27-28 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Here are our winners and losers from today’s game.
Winner: DB Jeremy Chinn
Chinn has been making a solid case for Defensive Rookie of the Year this season and today was no exception. The versatile Panthers rookie defender broke a handful of league records with back-to-back fumble return touchdowns, including becoming the first in league history to score defensive touchdowns two plays in a row. Chinn continues to emerge as a young leader on this new Carolina defensive unit, finishing with 13 tackles and a quarterback hit.
Loser: QB Teddy Bridgewater
Teddy has had his ups and downs this season, but today was clearly one of his less favorable outings. Bridgewater got off to a shaky start, throwing a red-zone interception to Eric Kendricks, then missing D.J. Moore on a walk-in touchdown in the first half. The former Vikings QB regained some footing in the second-half, evidenced by a deep connection with Robby Anderson, but he also missed a wide-open D.J. Moore in the end zone late in the fourth quarter that could have wrapped up a Carolina win. Bridgewater was injured at the end of the game, so we’ll keep you posted on his status as we learn more.
Winner: WR Robby Anderson
It’s not terribly difficult to burn a 258-pound defensive lineman in coverage, but we’ll still give Robby Anderson credit on that 41-yard touchdown catch and run. He continued to make an impact throughout the game, too, hauling in another deep reception early in the fourth quarter to set up a Joey Slye field goal that extended the Panthers’ lead.
Loser: Matt Rhule’s coaching staff
It looked like Carolina caught a massive break when Chad Beebe muffed a punt return late in the game with the Panthers leading, but poor game management in crunchtime gave Minnesota far too many chances to win. At a time when running out the clock seemed like an obvious decision to put the game to rest while the Panthers had the lead, Rhule and Brady opted for an aggressive passing attack, which Bridgewater just could not execute. Rhule acknowledged the mistakes post-game, telling reporters in-part that the coaching staff “didn’t get the job done today.”
Winner: Panthers offensive line
With Russell Okung back in the lineup for Carolina, the offensive line allowed zero sacks and three QB hits. Unfortunately, it didn’t all translate to passing success, but the unit as a whole not only created gaps for Mike Davis and company but also gave Bridgewater plenty of time to find open routes, even if he didn’t connect on them.
Loser: Carolina’s secondary
Even without Adam Thielen (COVID-19), inconsistency in the secondary led to a great game for Vikings receivers. Troy Pride and Corn Elder highlighted some great defensive plays for Carolina, but none of the defensive backs were great in coverage, allowing four Vikings receivers to post seven receptions and giving up 307 total receiving yards.
Winner: The rushing attack
The Panthers switched things up today with the rushing gam and the newly formed three-headed monster of Mike Davis, Rodney Smith and Trenton Cannon did not disappoint. The trio combined for 90 yards and posted an average of four yards per carry.
Loser: Special teams
Carolina clearly lost the special teams battle to Minnesota. Running back and return specialist Trenton Cannon struggled again in punt return coverage, picking up his second unnecessary roughness penalty in just two weeks. Then, Joey Slye had a 28-yard field goal try blocked and recovered by the Vikings. The game ended with a severely wide-left 54-yard field goal attempt by Slye, reducing his 50+ accuracy to just under 17% on the season.
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