The Carolina Panthers played the New Orleans Saints on Jan. 1^st in the final regular season game. The Panthers were hoping to continue their strong end of season play, while the Saints were looking to clinch a better playoff seed. The Saints came out big winners, 45-17.

Cam Newton and the Carolina offense never really got going. Newton threw for 158 yards as he completed 15 of his 25 passes with a touchdown and an interception. Jonathan Stewart had a good day running the ball as he rushed for 79 yards on nine carries, scoring a touchdown. DeAngelo Williams rushed for 53 yards on his seven carries. Steve Smith broke Mushin Muhammed’s all-time receptions record as a Panther. Smith caught six passes for 86 yards and a touchdown.

However, this game was really all about the Saints and their high-powered offense. The Saints broke records for offensive yards (7, 474), team yards passing (5, 347) and first downs (416). Drew Bress also set another individual record, breaking his own for completion percentage he set back in 2009 with a 70.6 completion percentage. He finished this season completing 71.6.

Against the Panthers, Brees threw for 389 yards with five touchdowns and an interception, completing 28 of 35 passes. Marques Colston led the Saints in receiving with seven catches for 145 yards and two touchdowns. Tight end Jimmy Graham also had a strong game catching eight balls for 97 yards. The Saints even got a great effort from the rushing game. Chris Ivory ran for 127 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

The Panthers kept the game close at half time, but the Saints pulled away after the intermission. With such a dominating offensive display by the Saints, it was always going to be tough for Carolina to pull out a victory.

However, with the loss the season can still be considered a success. The Panthers were a much better and more exciting team with Cam Newton than they were a year ago. Also, they were in mostly every game this season and with strengthening in the off-season through the draft and free agency, the Panthers should be competing for a playoff spot next year.

The future for the Panthers is certainly much brighter than it was a year ago and even after the blowout loss, I am excited to see what the Panthers can do in the 2012 season.

*All stats found on espn.com

Although living several hundred miles from Charlotte, Matthew Levine bleeds Carolina blue. He has followed the Panthers since their inaugural season in 1995 and was absolutely heart-broken over the 2003 Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

Christmas came early for the red-hot Carolina Panthers offense in Week 16.

After starting the season 2-8, the young, injury-ravaged Carolina Panthers have caught fire late in the season, winning three of their last four games as they welcomed NFC South rival Tampa Bay to Bank of America Stadium on Christmas Eve. The smoking hot Carolina offense entered the game averaging 30.2 points over the last five games and must have viewed the struggling Tampa Bay defense as an early Christmas present. Santa made an early visit to Charlotte as the Panthers destroyed the Buccaneers 48-16.

On a personal note, I attended this game with my ten-year-old son and had a memorable day with him as we witnessed history being made as Cam Newton broke the rookie passing record and Brandon LaFell scored the longest touchdown in Panthers history. You can read my more personal, less analytical account by clicking here if you are so inclined.

While the NFL post game shows cover the scoring plays, I look for the less visible but equally crucial plays that sustain drives, spring the big plays, or change momentum. Here is my analysis, as a Panthers fan, of these key plays, both good (“The Gamers”) and bad (“The Lamers”) that took place during Carolina’s Week 15 road victory against the Houston Texans.

1st Quarter

10:17, Jordan Gross, T – Gamer. Score tied 0-0, CAR ball on TB 8. On 1st-and-Goal Cam Newton lined up under center and handed off to DeAngelo Williams to the left. LT Jordan Gross got into the second level of the defense on his block, forcing LB Geno Hayes to swing wide and out of position, then Gross sealed LB Quincy Black. Gross eliminated two linebackers as DeAngelo went eight yards untouched into the end zone, giving Carolina an early 7-0 lead.

10:01, James Anderson, LB – Gamer. Panthers lead 7-0, TB ball on TB 17. On the Bucs first play from scrimmage, QB Josh Freeman and RB LeGarrette Blount had a bad handoff exchange and fumbled. LB James Anderson shot through the crowd and recovered the fumble, setting up the Panthers for a field goal and a 10-0 lead.

6:07, Greg Hardy, DE – Lamer. Panthers lead 10-0, TB ball on TB 40. Tampa Bay faced a 3rd-and-2. DE Greg Hardy tried to anticipate the snap but instead jumped offside, giving the Bucs a first down on a drive that ended with a Tampa Bay touchdown, trimming the Panthers lead to 10-7.

2nd Quarter

13:20, Jonathan Stewart, RB and Steve Smith, WR – Gamers. Panthers lead 10-7, CAR ball on CAR 9. On 2nd-and-9 Cam Newton lined up in shotgun near his own end zone with Jonathan Stewart to his left. Tampa Bay blitzed safety Sean Jones up the middle and Stewart picked up the blitz with a solid block, allowing Newton to stand in the pocket. Newton fired a deep slant to Brandon LaFell. LaFell made a great leaping catch and began sprinting toward the end zone with three Bucs defenders in pursuit – Ronde Barber, Tanard Jackson, and E.J. Biggers. Fellow WR Steve Smith became a blocker for LaFell, cutting in front of Barber and Jackson, causing them to slow down, then Smith put a block on Biggers. Brandon LaFell took the ball 91-yards to the house for the longest touchdown in Panthers history and a 17-7 Panthers lead.

6:21, Antwan Applewhite, DE – Gamer. Panthers lead 17-7, TB ball on CAR 27. Tampa Bay faced a 3rd-and-7 nearing the red zone. Josh Freeman lined up in shotgun and dropped to pass. DE Antwan Applewhite faked a rush then dropped into zone coverage in the middle. Freeman was nearly sacked but managed to flip a pass to Sammie Stroughter. Applewhite closed on Stroughter and dropped him after a three-yard gain, forcing a fourth down and a Tampa Bay field goal, trimming the Carolina lead to 17-10.

4:31, Jordan Gross, T and Steve Smith, WR – Gamers. Panthers lead 17-10, CAR ball on CAR 34. On second down Cam Newton lined up in shotgun with Jonathan Stewart to his right. Newton handed off to Stewart who went off left tackle where Jordan Gross forced DE Adrian Clayborn wide, opening a large hole. Steve Smith was lined up wide left and sustained a strong block on E.J. Biggers, eliminating him from the play as Stewart broke a tackle and rumbled 32 yards. The long play was key in setting up the Panthers for a field goal to end the half, pushing the Carolina lead to 20-10.

3rd Quarter

12:01, Brandon LaFell, WR – Gamer. Panthers lead 20-10, CAR ball on TB 22. Nearing the red zone Cam Newton lined up in a short shotgun with Jonathan Stewart to his right and DeAngelo Williams behind him. Newton faked a handoff to Stewart and ran an option right with Williams. After making a blitzing safety commit, Newton lateraled to Williams down the right sideline. Brandon LaFell was split wide right and sustained a solid block on the cornerback, creating a lane for Williams to run untouched for a 22-yard touchdown and a 27-10 Panthers lead.

7:16, Andre Neblett, DT – Gamer. Panthers lead 27-10, TB ball on TB 48. On 1st-and-10 the Bucs got tricky as Josh Freeman handed off to WR Michael Spurlock who was coming in motion from right to left. Spurlock threw the ball back to Freeman who then hit Kellen Winslow down the right sideline. Winslow leaped and hurdled safety Sherrod Martin but Winslow fumbled. The fumble was recovered 26-yards down field by a hustling DT Andre Neblett who never gave up on pursuing the play. The Panthers scored on the next drive on a screen pass to Jonathan Stewart, pushing the lead to 34-10.

1:19, Greg Hardy, DE and Andre Neblett DT. Panthers lead 34-10, TB ball on CAR 44. Facing 4th-and-1, Tampa Bay went for it. Josh Freeman lined up in shotgun. DE Greg Hardy executed a nice spin move, shedding his blocker and collapsing the pocket, forcing Freeman to his left. DT Andre Neblett swung wide and pressured Freeman, forcing an incompletion and a Tampa Bay turnover on downs.

:33, Cam Newton, QB – Gamer. Panthers lead 34-10, CAR ball on TB 49. On 2nd-and-4 Cam Newton lined up in shotgun with Jonathan Stewart to his left. Newton faked the handoff to Stewart and ran through a gaping hole off the right guard. Cam absolutely juked safety Tanard Jackson in the open field and Jackson failed to even get a hand on Newton. CB E.J. Bigger had a good angle and hit Newton at the 10-yard line, but Cam delivered a strong stiff arm and dragged Biggers into the end zone for a 49-yard touchdown and 41-10 Panthers lead.

:17, Jason Williams, LB – Gamer. Panthers lead 41-10, TB Kickoff Return. Special teamer Jason Williams flew down the field to cover a Carolina kickoff and nailed kick returner Sammie Stroughter with a hard tackle about ten yards out of the end zone. Williams forced Stroughter to fumble and the ball was recovered by Carolina deep within Tampa Bay territory, setting up a Jeremy Shockey touchdown two plays later as the Panthers pushed the lead to 48-10.

4th Quarter

11:11, Greg Hardy, DE – Gamer. Panthers lead 48-16, TB ball for Two-Point Conversion. After a Josh Freeman 1-yard touchdown lunge, Tampa Bay lined up for a two-point conversion. Freeman went shotgun, took the snap, and looked to his right. DE Greg Hardy blew past tackle Donald Penn and came from Freeman’s blindside, strip-sacking the Bucs quarterbak and preventing the two-point conversion.

4:33, Jason Shirley, DT – Gamer. Panthers lead 48-16, TB ball on CAR 36. With the game all but over, Josh Freeman dropped back to pass. DT Jason Shirley executed a nice spin move, shedding his blocker and leaving the offensive lineman on the ground. Shirley sacked Freeman and continues to make the most of his opportunity to prove himself in light of the rash of injuries to the defensive line.

The surging Carolina Panthers now stand at 6-9 and have won four of their last five, giving fans an early Christmas present. Just as children often dream about Christmas presents, Panthers fans like me are dreaming about a healthy squad next year, with visions of Jon Beason, Thomas Davis, Ron Edwards, Jeff Otah, Geoff Schwartz, and David Gettis dancing in our heads.

If the Panthers current momentum can be coupled with better health in 2012, look for the Panthers to make a become one of the surprise teams next season.

Andrew Sweat is a North Carolina resident and loyal Panthers fan. More from this author:

‘Gamers & Lamers’ – Week 15 vs. Houston

The Curse of the Carolina Panthers DT Strikes Again!

Top Five Crazy-But-True Carolina Panthers Stats

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Not much else going on in the NFL world today.

RUN OFFENSE: From the outset, the Panthers were able to run almost at will. Only backup quarterback Derek Anderson didn’t pick up positive yards – minus-1 on the game-ending kneeldown – and Steve Smith (23.0), Jonathan Stewart (12.6) and Cam Newton (10.8) averaged double-figure yards per carry. Grade: A

PASS OFFENSE: With the running game going so well and the turnovers putting the Panthers in good field position, there wasn’t much need for Newton to have to throw this time. Still, his 142.4 QB rating and the franchise-record 91-yard TD throw to Brandon LaFell were impressive. Grade: A

RUN DEFENSE: A fumble on their first play from scrimmage seemed to set the tone for the Buccaneers. And falling behind so quickly kept Tampa Bay from doing much in the way of establishing its running game. Grade: B+

PASS DEFENSE: Josh Freeman was an efficient throwing – completing 28 of 38 passes – for 274 yards, a touchdown and an interception with a respectable 91.3 rating. And against a patchwork defense, nine receivers caught at least one pass. Grade: B-

SPECIAL TEAMS: Carolina didn’t get much out of its return game – one punt return for one yard and one kickoff for 17 yards – but the rest of it was impressive. A forced fumble on a kickoff capped the blowout performance and Tampa Bay had six total returns for 110 yards. Grade: B

COACHING: Given that the team has a record 17 players on season-ending injured reserve, it would be easy for the Panthers – and their coaches – to pack it in. They’ve done anything but that and are a win away from defying all preseason expectations by avoiding a 10-loss season. Grade: A

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

There is the quick update of the day.

Turnover problems continued to plague the Buccaneers on Saturday as four more — three lost fumbles and an interception — led to 24 points and helped the Carolina Panthers rout Tampa Bay 48-16.

It was the ninth consecutive loss for the Bucs, who fell to 4-11 on the season after starting 4-2.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, who threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, wasted little time setting the NFL’s rookie passing-yards record, surpassing Peyton Manning. He drove Carolina 80 yards in nine plays for an early 7-0 lead. The running back tandem of Jonathan Stewart (22 rushing yards) and DeAngelo Williams (24 rushing yards, 8-yard reception) kept the drive moving almost unabated, with Williams covering the final 8 yards on a run up the middle.

It didn’t get any better for the Bucs.

On Tampa Bay’s first play from scrimmage, running back LeGarrette Blount’s fumble problems returned. He lost the ball before hitting the line of scrimmage, with Carolina’s James Anderson recovering at the Tampa Bay 8-yard line. The Bucs defense held, forcing the Panthers to settle for Olindo Mare’s 21-yard field goal that put Carolina ahead 10-0 before the Bucs had run their second offensive play of the game.

The Bucs benched Blount after the fumble, and backup Kregg Lumpkin sparked an impressive 15-play scoring drive. Lumpkin gained 21 rushing yards in the 80-yard march, and quarterback Josh Freeman completed passes of 13 and 8 yards to Kellen Winslow and 16 to Preston Parker, all good for first downs. Freeman finished the drive with a 4-yard scoring pass to Arrelious Benn in the left corner of the end zone.

But that momentum didn’t last long. On Carolina’s second play of its ensuing drive, Newton, under pressure, hit Brandon LaFell behind Tampa Bay’s E.J. Biggers, and the second-year receiver sprinted untouched for a 91-yard touchdown play. The score extended Carolina’s lead to 17-7 with 13:06 left in the second quarter.

Freeman looked impressive on the Bucs’ next possession, completing 7 of 7 passes for 76 yards, including a 29-yarder to Sammie Stroughter. Freeman overcame a sack early in the drive but not another offensive pass interference call against Winslow that stalled the drive at the Carolina 24. Connor Barth connected from 42 yards to pull Tampa Bay within 17-10 with 5:33 left in the half.

But again the Bucs defense couldn’t hold, allowing the Panthers to score on their fourth consecutive drive of the half. Stewart did most of the damage with runs of 32 and 24 yards, the latter to the Bucs’ 20. Newton hit Williams for 10 yards and got as close as the Bucs’ 1, but Carolina settled for Mare’s 19-yard field goal just before halftime.

Tampa Bay’s second turnover — a Freeman pass intended for Winslow that was intercepted by Carolina’s Jonathan Nelson at the Bucs’ 32 — led to more Panthers points. Three plays into the drive, Williams took a pitch to the right side and sliced through the Bucs defense for a 22-yard touchdown and a 27-10 Carolina lead.

What started as a promising razzle-dazzle play for the Bucs turned into another turnover and eventually another Carolina touchdown. Freeman handed the ball to Micheal Spurlock, who threw back to Freeman, who hit a wide-open Winslow for a 24-yard gain. But Winslow fumbled as he tried to hurdle a defender, and the Panthers recovered at their 39. Steve Smith picked up 23 yards on a reverse, Williams added a 18 on a run, and facing fourth and 1 at the Tampa Bay 11, Newton hit Stewart for the touchdown and a 34-10 advantage.

After stopping the Bucs on fourth and 1 and their 45, Carolina needed just two plays to score again. Newton completed a short pass to Jeremy Shockey, then ran 49 yards on a quarterback draw through the middle of the Bucs defense for his 14th rushing touchdown of the season and a 41-10 Panthers lead.

Stroughter fumbled on the ensuing kickoff, and again the Panthers recovered and capitalized. Starting at the Bucs’ 8, Newton found Shockey in the left flat for the touchdown and a 48-10 lead one play into the final quarter.

The Bucs put together a meaningless touchdown drive on their next possession. Freeman passes of 15 and 13 yards to Lumpkin and a 25-yard pass interference call against the Panthers aided the drive. Freeman covered the final yard on a quarterback sneak with 11:08 left in the game.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

The Carolina Panthers will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 24^th. Carolina will look to continue its strong end of season run, as the Bucs will look to end their eight-game losing streak. Here are some keys for a Panthers victory.

Attack The Buccaneers Defense

The Bucs defense ranks 26^th and 30^th in passing and rushing yards allowed. The Panthers who rank 10th and 5^th in passing and rushing should be able to have their way against Tampa’s defense. Carolina also has two players poised to break records. With 17 more passing yards Cam Newton will break Peyton Manning’s rookie record for passing yards, which he set in 1998. Also, Steve Smith is on the verge of breaking Mushin Muhammed’s record of most receptions in franchise history. Smith needs five more to do it. Carolina has also averaged 171.8 yards per game over the last four games. The combination of Newton, DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart don’t look like slowing down either. The rushing attack should be able to control the game for the Panthers and open up space down the field for Smith and the other Carolina receivers.

Contain LaGarrette Blount

The Buccaneers rushing attack hasn’t been very good all season, averaging 97.4 yards per game. However, other struggling rushers have found success against the Panthers, although the defense has been better of late. The Buccaneers will no doubt want to get Blount going early and try to set their tempo in the game. The Panthers need to get after him early and if the Panthers can get a few early scores, the Buccaneers will have to focus on their passing attack, which has struggled to eclipse 200 yards the last three games.

Don’t Commit Turnovers

For the Panthers it is a plain and simple winning formula. If they don’t turn the ball over they’ll win. Newton has 16 interceptions in losses and zero in Carolina wins. If Newton and the offense can protect the ball, they should be able to put up points against a struggling defense. However, if they fail to protect the ball, it could give Tampa Bay momentum and a short field to build a lead. Giving a struggling team opportunities is not what the Panthers will want to do and I don’t believe they will.

*All stats found on espn.com

Although living several hundred miles from Charlotte, Matthew Levine bleeds Carolina blue. He has followed the Panthers since their inaugural season in 1995 and was absolutely heart-broken over the 2003 Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Not much else going on in the NFL world today.

There is the quick update of the day.

The Carolina Panthers defensive unit continues to be, well, downright offensive as witnessed in Week 14. Carolina built a 23-7 halftime lead at home against NFC South rival Atlanta, only to watch the defense give up 24 unanswered points in the second half. And Olindo Mare shanked another big field goal. Ladies and gentlemen, your 2011 Carolina Panthers!

While the NFL post game shows cover the scoring plays, I look for the less visible but equally crucial plays that sustain drives, spring the big plays, or change momentum. Here is my analysis, as a Panthers fan, of these key plays, both good (“The Gamers”) and bad (“The Lamers”) that took place during Carolina’s Week 14 epic collapse against the Atlanta Falcons.

1st Quarter

5:35, Sean McDermott, Def. Coord. – Lamer. Score tied 0-0, ATL ball on CAR 5. The Panthers secondary failed to cover Roddy White repeatedly on Atlanta’s second possession. The Falcons faced two third downs on this 10 play, 62 yard drive and both third downs were converted on Roddy White receptions. White ended the drive with a five yard touchdown after Captain Munnerlyn got confused and left White completely uncovered in the corner of the end zone.After the play Munnerlyn and Darius Butler were pointing at one another, obviously confused by the broken coverage. In all, Roddy White had 4 receptions for 33 yards and TD on the drive and McDermott’s defensive unit did nothing to slow him down.

2:58, Cam Newton, QB – Gamer. Panthers trail 0-7, CAR ball on ATL 38. On 3rd-and-3 Cam Newton lined up in shotgun. Newton rolled right by design and finding nothing he reversed his field to the left, juking LB Mike Peterson at the line of scrimmage. Cam stretched for a four yard gain, extending a drive that ended in a touchdown.

:07, Rob Chudzinski, Off. Coord – Gamer. Panthers trail 0-7, CAR ball on ATL 6. Near the end zone Newton again lined up in shotgun. He faked a QB draw and as soon as he took his first step toward the line of scrimmage, the linebackers and safety came forward. This allowed Jeremy Shockey to slip behind the coverage as Cam Newton executed a nifty jump pass for a touchdown. The play was a beautiful design by Chudzinski, catching the Falcons spying into the backfield anticipating another QB draw.

2nd Quarter

8:46, Jason Baker, P – Gamer. Score tied 7-7, CAR punts from CAR 49. Jason Baker drops a punt that bounces at the Atlanta six yard line and is downed by Captain Munnerlyn at the four, pinning the Falcons against their own end zone. Two plays later the Panthers defense put two points on the board with a safety thanks to Baker’s perfect punt..

7:18, Antwan Applewhite, DE – Gamer. Score tied 7-7, ATL ball on ATL 8. On 3rd-and-6 Matt Ryan lined up in shotgun and dropped back into the end zone. Antwan Applewhite beat right guard Sam Baker, pushing Baker backward and slipping the block, sacking Ryan in the end zone for a safety.

7:02 Byron Bell, G & Brandon LaFell, WR – Gamers. Panthers lead 9-7, CAR ball on CAR 26. On 2nd-and-10 DeAngelo Williams lined up behind Cam Newton and took a handoff off right tackle. Guard Byron Bell pulled and sealed linebacker Mike Peterson. LaFell was lined up in the right slot and made a perfect block on safety Thomas DeCoud, ultimately putting DeCoud on the turf as Williams hit the hole. Center Ryan Kalil also pulled and led the way for Williams through the hole created by Bell and LaFell. The blocking was so good that Kalil had nobody to block and simply kept running until DeAngelo outran him on his way to an untouched 74-yard touchdown.

3:15 Byron Bell, G & Ryan Kalil, C – Gamers. Panthers lead 16-7, CAR ball on ATL 44. On 3rd-and-14 Cam Newton lined up in shotgun with Jonathan Stewart flanking him. Newton faked a screen pass to Stewart to the left, then threw a short screen to Greg Olsen in the right flat. Guard Byron Bell and center Ryan Kalil pulled with Olsen and set up a wall of blockers. Bell made a great block on a linebacker just past the line of scrimmage as Olsen cut back against James Sanders making him miss. Kalil sprinted all the way down field, making a key block on Thomas DeCoud at the 12 yard line (32 yards from the line of scrimmage) as Olsen scored on a 44-yard touchdown, pushing the Panthers lead to 23-7.

3rd Quarter

12:26 and 11:14 Darius Butler, CB – Gamer. Panthers lead 23-7, ATL ball on CAR 12. Twice on this drive Darius Butler was lined up in man coverage against Julio Jones. On a 1st-and-10 from the Panthers 30 Jones ran a streak down left sideline. Matt Ryan slightly under threw the pass and Butler broke it up in the end zone. Three plays later the Falcons ran the same play, this time from the 12. Once again, Butler broke up the pass to Jones in the end zone and the Falcons ultimately settled for a field goal, cutting the Panthers lead to 23-10.

9:34, Cam Newton, QB – Lamer. Panthers lead 23-10, CAR ball on CAR 40. On 1st-and-10 Cam Newton dropped back to pass. The pocket collapsed and DT Corey Peters had Newton in his grasp and was pulling him down for a sack when Cam inexplicably attempted a left handed flip pass to Jonathan Stewart. The decision was terrible and the pass was intercepted by Mike Peterson.

9:03, James Anderson, LB – Lamer. Panthers lead 23-10, ATL ball on CAR 31. Matt Ryan lined up under center with RB Jacquizz Rodgers behind him. Ryan play faked to Rodgers and rolled to his right. Rodgers ran a wheel route down the left sideline. James Anderson ended up in man coverage on Rodgers as the Falcons RB blew past Anderson for a touchdown reception in the back corner of the end zone, cutting Carolina’s lead to 23-17.

4th Quarter

7:28, Travelle Wharton, G – Gamer. Panthers trail 23-24, CAR ball on CAR 47. After the Falcons took their first lead of the game, the Panthers needed to sustain a drive. On 2nd-and-10 Cam Newton lined up in shotgun with DeAngelo Williams to his left. Newton ran a read option play, faked the handoff to Williams, and kept the ball on a run left. Wharton chipped a defensive lineman then pancaked LB Sean Witherspoon, opening a huge hole for Newton to run for a 12-yard gain and a first down.

5:16, Olindo Mare, K – Lamer. Panthers trail 23-24, CAR ball on ATL 18. Kicker Olindo Mare lined up for a go-ahead 36-yard field goal late in the game. The ball was lined up on the right hash. The snap and hold were good, but Mare shanked the kick, pulling it wide left. The “Boos” rained down from nearly every Panthers fan at Bank of America Stadium, and rightfully so.This play more than any other contributed to the Panthers loss.

4:28, Darius Butler, CB & Sherrod Martin, S – Lamers. Panthers trail 23-24, ATL ball on ATL 25. Two plays after the devastating Olindo Mare missed field goal, Matt Ryan lined up under center with Julio Jones split wide left. Darius Butler had Jones in man coverage and Jones ran a deep post, getting a step on Butler. Safety Sherrod Martin took a terrible angle as he broke on the pass, failing to even get a hand on Jones after the catch while Butler missed on a diving tackle. Jones took the ball 75-yards to the house, upping the Falcons lead to 31-23 and sealing the Panthers loss.

4:08, Steve Smith, WR – Gamer. Panthers trail 23-31, CAR ball on CAR 20. Facing 3rd-and-10 and needing a touchdown and 2-point conversion, Cam Newton threw a bomb down the left sideline to Steve Smith. Smith did what he does better than nearly any other player in the league as he out-leaped CB Dunta Robinson and tip-toed along the left sideline, coming down with a huge 48-yard gain, breathing life into a possible Panthers game-tying score. But the drive ultimately stalled after four consecutive incompletions, and the Panthers found a way to lose yet again.

Andrew Sweat is a North Carolina resident and loyal Panthers fan. More from this author:

Gamers and Lamers – Week 13 vs. Tampa Bay

Gamers and Lamers – Week 12 vs. Indianapolis

Gamers and Lamers – Week 11 vs. Detroit

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

What are your opinions.

The Carolina Panthers hosted the Atlanta Falcons on Dec. 11^th. The Panthers were looking for their third straight win, but after jumping out early fell to the Falcons, 31-23.

Cam Newton had a mixed game throwing for two touchdowns and 276 yards on 19 of 39 passing. However, he threw two interceptions. He also ran for 36 yards on seven carries. The interceptions Newton had, both in the second half were costly. Atlanta running back Jacquizz Rodgers scored a 31-yard receiving touchdown two plays after an interception that should have never happened. Newton tried a shovel pass to Jonathan Stewart on his way to the ground when he really should have just held on to the ball.

DeAngelo Williams had a good game with 87 yards on seven carries and a touchdown. He scored on a 74-yard run in the second quarter. However, although Williams’ numbers look nice, a bigger contribution in the second half would have went a long way for the Panthers. Steve Smith also had a nice game with six catches and 125 yards.

Defensively, the Panthers held Michael Turner who notoriously has strong games against the Panthers. Turner rushed for 76 yards on 21 carries without a touchdown. The Panthers did well against the run, but their pass defense wasn’t up to par in the second half. Matt Ryan threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns in the second half. He had 320 total on the day. The Panthers were also burned by Julio Jones, who caught two TD passes, one of them going for 75 yards.

In this game, old habits hurt Carolina. Newton went two games without an interception and both were wins. He throws two interceptions and the Panthers lose. I’m not putting the sole blame on him, but he needs to be smarter some times in his decision making and I’m sure he would take back that shovel pass attempt if he could. Also, the Panthers didn’t finish out the whole game. The loss marked the sixth game the Panthers lost being tied or having a lead in the fourth quarter. To me this comes back to mental focus in the game. Also, another negative from this game is Olindo Mare’s kicking. He again missed a very make able 36-yard field goal, which at the time would have given Carolina the lead. Coach Rivera is going to speak to Mare and try to figure out what is going wrong after missing an identical kick a few weeks ago.

The Panthers next face the Houston Texans. Although the Texans lost QB Matt Schaub, they are a playoff team and won last week against the Cincinnati Bengals on their final drive. They have rookie quarterback T.J Yates at the helm, but he had a very strong game last week. With the Texans already clinching the playoffs they may not come out full throttle. However, either way the Panthers need to play mistake free and finish the game strong to have any chance for a victory.

*All stats found on espn.com

Although living several hundred miles from Charlotte, Matthew Levine bleeds Carolina blue. He has followed the Panthers since their inaugural season in 1995 and was absolutely heart-broken over the 2003 Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

There is the quick update of the day.

When Cam Newton proved to be way better than expected, all of the Carolina Panthers fans raised their expectations. I actually thought the Panthers were on the verge of dominating the NFC South early on in the season and wrote an article stating so. The Panthers and Cam came up short of those unrealistic expectations, and I came back down to earth as a fan. Then the Panthers rung up two wins in a row, and were fairly awesome in doing so. Again, I got excited and thought they might win their last four and end up at 8-8 on the year.

This week fourteen loss reminded me all over again that the Panthers are still not there. I got the message this time around.

Cam Newton starts off on fire

For the first half of the game against Atlanta, Cam Newton was on his game and doing what he wanted. He was reading coverages and threading the needle with every pass. When you add to that the fact that the running game was playing great and the defense was fairly dominating, then you can easily see why the Panthers were up huge at halftime.

Cam was looking great, but something still felt amiss. It is almost as though you knew an Atlanta run was coming, and were powerless to stop it. As they kicked off the second half, a sense of dread welled up in my throat that I simply chalked up to past Atlanta demons. Little did I know that it was an omen of things to come.

Cam Newton loses it in the second half

When Cam Newton threw his first interception, you kind of got the feeling that more were coming. It was entirely a “bad decision” type of interception. He tried to shovel the ball wildly during a sack to Jonathan Stewart and lobbed the ball to the defense on a silver platter. From there, things just snowballed and got totally out of control.

By no means would I put this loss only on Cam Newton, but I would say he played as big a part as anyone. His entire demeanor and attitude as the second half came to a close seemed sour, and his performance in most of the second half was lacking in maturity. To put it bluntly, he looked sort of like a rookie.

That was one of the first times all season where I saw that clearly.

Every lesson is important and prepares them for next year

The Panthers are a young and exciting team that is growing with every passing week. Nobody will deny that they are headed in a much better direction now than they were in 2010. Cam Newton is going to make mistakes and his incredible performance so far has spoiled us Panthers fans. I know with me, I have been overly optimistic this season on at least two occasions.

What makes it great, however, is that I have the chance to feel that way at all. After years of mediocrity in Carolina, we are now beginning to see potential for greatness.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Thanks for reading! .

By Steve Reed
The Associated Press

CHARLOTTE – If only the NFL would shorten its games to 45 minutes instead of 60, the Carolina Panthers might just be in playoff contention.

Instead, they’re 4-9.

In what has been an all too familiar refrain this season, the Panthers blew yet another fourth-quarter lead Sunday in a 31-23 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The Panthers led by 16 at halftime and by 6 entering the final quarter, but their offense bogged down, and they were outscored 24-0 in the second half at home.

It’s the sixth time this season the Panthers have led or been tied in the fourth quarter only to lose.

“We still have a long ways to go as a football team,” coach Ron Rivera said. “We are a young team that has to understand you have to keep going and put the foot down on the accelerator, which we didn’t do.”

Cam Newton started strong, completing 9 of 14 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns in the first half as the Panthers built a 23-7 lead. But Newton was intercepted twice in the second half, one of them on a poor decision when he tried to shovel the ball ahead with his non-throwing left hand as he was falling to the ground.

“Both interceptions were my fault and you can’t do that,” Newton said. “If you expect to win in this league, you have to protect the football. I did a poor job in doing that today. Without those two picks, the team would have had a better chance of winning today.”

Matt Ryan seems to have Carolina’s number. He’s won six of his last seven starts against the Panthers.

Ryan threw for 320 yards, and his four TD passes matched a career high. He threw two of them in the fourth quarter to rookie Julio Jones to lead the Falcons (8-5) back.

The first time the teams met, the Falcons trailed by three points in the fourth quarter but rallied for a 31-17 win Oct. 16.

Jones, who finished with 104 yards receiving, was quiet for most of the game but caught a 17-yard touchdown pass to give the Falcons a 24-23 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Despite their struggles in the second half, the Panthers looked poised to regain the lead, but Newton couldn’t hook up with Greg Olsen in the back of the end zone, and the Panthers had to settle for a 36-yard field goal attempt.

Olindo Mare, just as he’d done against Minnesota, pushed a potential go-ahead kick wide left.

“You can’t do that; you really can’t,” Rivera said.

Rivera said he planned to sit down with Mare – who was given a four-year, $12 million contract this offseason – to talk about what’s wrong.

“It’s the second one he’s hooked left, pretty much from almost the same area (on the field),” Rivera said.

The Falcons seized the momentum.

Two plays later, on second-and-11, Jones caught a pass over the middle, broke a tackle and raced 75 yards to the end zone.

Ryan was particularly sharp in the second half, throwing for 232 yards and three scores.

Looking to increase the tempo, the Falcons went to a no-huddle offense quite a bit in the second half and tried to take advantage of a matchup with reserve cornerback Darius Butler on Jones

Both of Jones’ touchdown catches came against Butler.

The Panthers were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

A glum Newton called his decision to try a shovel pass to Jonathan Stewart as he was being tackled “terrible.”

“I tried to get the ball to Stew and tried to avoid the sack,” he said. “I should have just ate the ball and taken the sack.”

Earlier this week, Rivera said this was a statement game for his young team. The statement was that their youth still shows.

And the Falcons took advantage.

Falcons 31, Panthers 23

First Quarter

Atl-White 5 pass from Ryan (Bryant kick), 5:29.

Car-Shockey 6 pass from Newton (Mare kick), :03.

Second Quarter

Car-Applewhite safety, 7:12.

Car-D.Williams 74 run (Mare kick), 6:51.

Car-Olsen 44 pass from Newton (Mare kick), 3:03.

Third Quarter

Atl-FG Bryant 30, 10:55.

Atl-Rodgers 31 pass from Ryan (Bryant kick), 8:55.

Fourth Quarter

Atl-Jones 17 pass from Ryan (Bryant kick), 12:42.

Atl-Jones 75 pass from Ryan (Bryant kick), 4:17.

A-72,680.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING-Atlanta, Turner 21-76, Snelling 3-6, Rodgers 1-4, Ryan 3-0. Carolina, D.Williams 7-87, Newton 7-36, Stewart 8-29, A.Edwards 1-5.

PASSING-Atlanta, Ryan 22-38-0-320. Carolina, Newton 19-39-2-276.

RECEIVING-Atlanta, White 7-84, Gonzalez 7-82, Jones 3-104, Rodgers 2-39, Douglas 2-12, Snelling 1-(minus 1). Carolina, Smith 6-125, Stewart 4-27, Olsen 2-53, Naanee 2-29, LaFell 2-28, Shockey 2-10, D.Williams 1-4.

MISSED FIELD GOALS-Atlanta, Bryant 46 (WL). Carolina, Mare 36 (WL).

The Carolina Panthers host the Atlanta Falcons on Dec. 11^th. The Panthers are coming off back-to-back wins as the Falcons lost their last game to the Houston Texans. Here are some keys to a Carolina victory.

Keep Michael Turner Quiet

In Turner’s career he has lit up the Panthers. He has amassed 707 yards averaging 4.7 yards per carry and scoring 11 touchdowns in his past seven meetings against the Panthers . He gained 139 yards and scored twice when the teams last met in Week 6. The Panthers already have a struggling rush defense, ranking 27^th in the league allowing 132.5 yards per game. It will be even more difficult for the Panthers with a further two defensive injuries. Defensive tackles Sione Fua (hamstring) and Terrell McClain (knee) will both miss out. Turner is also one touchdown shy of Gerald Riggs’ record of 48 set in 1988, so I expect him to be ready to go in this game. The Panthers could have problems stopping Turner, but they need to do their best to slow him down.

Cam Newton Must Continue To Not Throw Interceptions

Newton has gone the last two games without throwing an interception and both games turned out to be wins. Yes, they were both against weaker opponents, but not turning the ball over is a reason for that success. If you take care of the ball good things will happen. Facing a solid Falcons offense, it is imperative Newton doesn’t throw interceptions. If he does, it will give Matt Ryan and the Atlanta offense a shorter field and more opportunities to score. Newton threw three interceptions in his last meeting with the Falcons and this certainly can not happen for Carolina to have any chance in this one.

Continue Own Strong Rushing Performances

The Panthers rushing attack ranks 5^th in the league with 137.6 yards per game. A lot of that has to do with Newton who has 518 total yards on the season and the single-season rushing touchdowns record for quarterbacks with 13. He also has six rushing touchdowns over the last three games. However, DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart have both been playing better over the last few weeks as well. The Panthers will need to continue this trend to control the game and keep the Falcons offense off the field. If they can do that and put up points of their own, they will be in a good position for the win.

*All stats found on espn.com

Although living several hundred miles from Charlotte, Matthew Levine bleeds Carolina blue. He has followed the Panthers since their inaugural season in 1995 and was absolutely heart-broken over the 2003 Super Bowl loss to the Patriots.

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By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Monday, December 5, 2011

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton flies over the Bucs defense for the first of his three rushing touchdowns. He also throws a touchdown and catches a pass.
	DANIEL WALLACE

TAMPA — After falling into the dark and dank cellar of the NFC South, it’s awfully hard for the Bucs to see any of the goals they visualized for this season.

The chance to win a division championship has vanished. Hope of reaching the playoffs has faded from view. A winning record? Disappeared.

So after the Bucs’ 38-19 loss to rookie quarterback Cam Newton and the Panthers on Sunday — their sixth straight defeat to drop to 4-8 — Bucs players said there was still something to play for:

Save the jobs of coach Raheem Morris and his staff.

“We’ve got to turn it around,” linebacker Geno Hayes said. “It’s not only our jobs. They’ve got a family to feed as well. Our play dictates their stability. We love our coaches. We’ve got to find a way to get everything back on track.”

Safety Tanard Jackson said, “This is a business. We’re in the business where if you don’t win, a lot of changes will be made.”

And center Jeff Faine, a nine-year veteran, added, “I’ve been in this business long enough where if we continue to slide, something is going to change, unfortunately. So personally, there’s a lot to play for.”

Playing without starting quarterback Josh Freeman, who was inactive due to a right shoulder injury, the Bucs traded touchdowns for field goals with Newton and the Panthers.

Newton added another record to his historic rookie season, running for three touchdowns and throwing for another. He now has 13 rushing touchdowns, the most by a quarterback in a season in NFL history, surpassing Steve Grogan’s 12 in 1976 with New England.

Bucs backup Josh Johnson, making his first start since 2009, passed for 229 yards with one touchdown and an interception and led the Bucs with 45 rushing yards. But the offense produced only four field goals by Connor Barth until Johnson hit Dezmon Briscoe for a 23-yard touchdown with 6:35 remaining in the game.

Johnson’s biggest mistake came during the first drive of the second half.

Trailing 24-12 and facing third and 8 at the Carolina 30, he attempted to call an audible. But Faine misinterpreted the signal as part of the cadence and snapped the ball before Johnson was ready. The error was compounded when Johnson tried to throw the ball under pressure.

It was tipped and intercepted by defensive end Thomas Keiser.

The Bucs drove inside the Panthers 35 seven times but came away with four field goals, one interception, one touchdown and one fourth-down failure.

“The grade is simple. It’s not good enough,” Johnson said of his performance. “As an offense, we’re disappointed. We got in the red zone … repeatedly, and we came away with field goals, field goals, field goals.”

The Panthers weren’t interested in field goals, and the Bucs defense was equally bad against the run and the pass. Jonathan Stewart (14 carries for 80 yards and a touchdown), DeAngelo Williams (11 carries for 29 yards) and Newton (14 rushes for 54 yards and three touchdowns) combined for 163 yards on the ground. Newton was 12-for-21 passing for 204 yards and even had a 27-yard catch.

The Bucs also had nine penalties for 73 yards.

It got so bad that Morris ejected defensive tackle Brian Price from the game after his personal foul penalty in the third quarter. Morris also used an expletive during his postgame news conference describing why he did it.

“Yes, I sent him to the locker room,” Morris said. “I told him go home. (Expletive) yeah. Because it’s foolish. It’s selfish to your teammates, to everybody in your organization, to your fans. That’s terrible. That’s just selfish behavior to get a 15-yard penalty in that situation when that’s all we talk about, when that’s all we discuss.

“You just can’t do that to your team.”

Why hasn’t Morris been able to get his message across?

“They’re not listening,” Morris said. “They’ve got to listen, and we’ve got to do a better job of coaching.

“The thing I need to do right now is go back and make sure we continue to build the team for the future. We’ve got a lot of young players. I don’t want things to get away from us.”

It if does, Faine said, change is the only thing the Bucs can count on.

“I love the situation (with Morris),” Faine said. “I know my teammates love the situation we’re in from an organizational standpoint, from the way our leadership is here, the way our coaching staff is here. We’ve got to finish on an incline if we want it to stay that way.”

Rick Stroud can be reached at stroud@tampabay.com.

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By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Monday, December 5, 2011

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton flies over the Bucs defense for the first of his three rushing touchdowns. He also throws a touchdown and catches a pass.
	DANIEL WALLACE

TAMPA — After falling into the dark and dank cellar of the NFC South, it’s awfully hard for the Bucs to see any of the goals they visualized for this season.

The chance to win a division championship has vanished. Hope of reaching the playoffs has faded from view. A winning record? Disappeared.

So after the Bucs’ 38-19 loss to rookie quarterback Cam Newton and the Panthers on Sunday — their sixth straight defeat to drop to 4-8 — Bucs players said there was still something to play for:

Save the jobs of coach Raheem Morris and his staff.

“We’ve got to turn it around,” linebacker Geno Hayes said. “It’s not only our jobs. They’ve got a family to feed as well. Our play dictates their stability. We love our coaches. We’ve got to find a way to get everything back on track.”

Safety Tanard Jackson said, “This is a business. We’re in the business where if you don’t win, a lot of changes will be made.”

And center Jeff Faine, a nine-year veteran, added, “I’ve been in this business long enough where if we continue to slide, something is going to change, unfortunately. So personally, there’s a lot to play for.”

Playing without starting quarterback Josh Freeman, who was inactive due to a right shoulder injury, the Bucs traded touchdowns for field goals with Newton and the Panthers.

Newton added another record to his historic rookie season, running for three touchdowns and throwing for another. He now has 13 rushing touchdowns, the most by a quarterback in a season in NFL history, surpassing Steve Grogan’s 12 in 1976 with New England.

Bucs backup Josh Johnson, making his first start since 2009, passed for 229 yards with one touchdown and an interception and led the Bucs with 45 rushing yards. But the offense produced only four field goals by Connor Barth until Johnson hit Dezmon Briscoe for a 23-yard touchdown with 6:35 remaining in the game.

Johnson’s biggest mistake came during the first drive of the second half.

Trailing 24-12 and facing third and 8 at the Carolina 30, he attempted to call an audible. But Faine misinterpreted the signal as part of the cadence and snapped the ball before Johnson was ready. The error was compounded when Johnson tried to throw the ball under pressure.

It was tipped and intercepted by defensive end Thomas Keiser.

The Bucs drove inside the Panthers 35 seven times but came away with four field goals, one interception, one touchdown and one fourth-down failure.

“The grade is simple. It’s not good enough,” Johnson said of his performance. “As an offense, we’re disappointed. We got in the red zone … repeatedly, and we came away with field goals, field goals, field goals.”

The Panthers weren’t interested in field goals, and the Bucs defense was equally bad against the run and the pass. Jonathan Stewart (14 carries for 80 yards and a touchdown), DeAngelo Williams (11 carries for 29 yards) and Newton (14 rushes for 54 yards and three touchdowns) combined for 163 yards on the ground. Newton was 12-for-21 passing for 204 yards and even had a 27-yard catch.

The Bucs also had nine penalties for 73 yards.

It got so bad that Morris ejected defensive tackle Brian Price from the game after his personal foul penalty in the third quarter. Morris also used an expletive during his postgame news conference describing why he did it.

“Yes, I sent him to the locker room,” Morris said. “I told him go home. (Expletive) yeah. Because it’s foolish. It’s selfish to your teammates, to everybody in your organization, to your fans. That’s terrible. That’s just selfish behavior to get a 15-yard penalty in that situation when that’s all we talk about, when that’s all we discuss.

“You just can’t do that to your team.”

Why hasn’t Morris been able to get his message across?

“They’re not listening,” Morris said. “They’ve got to listen, and we’ve got to do a better job of coaching.

“The thing I need to do right now is go back and make sure we continue to build the team for the future. We’ve got a lot of young players. I don’t want things to get away from us.”

It if does, Faine said, change is the only thing the Bucs can count on.

“I love the situation (with Morris),” Faine said. “I know my teammates love the situation we’re in from an organizational standpoint, from the way our leadership is here, the way our coaching staff is here. We’ve got to finish on an incline if we want it to stay that way.”

Rick Stroud can be reached at stroud@tampabay.com.

Last modified: Dec 05, 2011 07:31 AM

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TAMPA Panthers 38, Buccaneers 19

TAMPA – Cam Newton added another record to his historic rookie season.

The Carolina Panthers quarterback ran for three touchdowns – passing Steve Grogan’s record for rushing touchdowns by a signal caller held since 1976 with his 13th. Newton also passed for a score and had a 27-yard reception in the Panthers’ 38-19 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

It was the sixth straight loss for Tampa Bay (4-8), which fell into last place tie with the Panthers (4-8) in the NFC South.

The Bucs were playing without quarterback Josh Freeman, who injured his right shoulder on the final offensive play last week at Tennessee and saw his streak of 36 straight starts snapped Sunday.

Josh Johnson, who had not started a game since 2009 when he went 0-4, did some good things in the first half. He had pass completions of 38 yards to Arrelious Benn and 42 yards to Mike Williams.

Unfortunately, the Bucs’ red zone problems continued against the Panthers Sunday.

Tampa Bay was forced to settle for four field goals by Connor Barth in the first half.

Meanwhile, Newton kept steering the Panthers to the end zone.

He capped an 87-yard drive to open the game with his leaping, 1-yard touchdown, his 11th rushing score of the season.

Newton finished 11-of-20 passing for 204 yards and a score and added 56 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.

When Newton wasn’t throwing the football, or running it, he was catching it. A 27-yard throw back pass from receiver Legedu Naanee set up the Panthers’ second touchdown – a 1-yard plunge by running back Jonathan Stewart – to leave Tampa Bay trailing 14-0.

Newton’s 19-yard touchdown pass to Naanee made it 21-6 before the teams traded field goals before the end of the first half.

The Bucs, who scored only one offensive touchdown last week at Tennessee , never really threatened to score until the fourth quarter Sunday against a previously porous Carolina defense this season.

But the Panthers handled Bucs running back LeGarrette Blount, who had reached the 100-yard rushing mark in each of his two previous games. Blount never got untracked and finished with 11 carries for 19 yards before the Bucs virtually abandoned the running game in the fourth quarter.

The Bucs had a chance briefly to crawl back in the ballgame after taking the second half kickoff and driving to the Carolina 32 yard line trailing 24-12. But Johnson was pressured and hit as he threw a pass that was intercepted by Thomas Keiser.

Johnson gained a measure of respect with his 23-yard touchdown pass to Dezmon Briscoe with 6:35 remaining in the game. But by then, Newton and the Panthers decided the issue.

NOTES: Bucs QB Josh Freeman was inactive with a sore shoulder, breaking his streak of 36 consecutive starts… Bucs CB Aqib Talib aggravated a hamstring strain early in the first quarter and did not return… Bucs DT Brian Price was tossed at the end of the third quarter following a personal foul.

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