If the Panthers’ offense does something comparable to the 2010 season, you know things aren’t going well. But that’s the type of day Carolina was having in Philadelphia, where at the half, quarterback Cam Newton had totaled 5 net passing yards.
That’s right, five.
The last time the Panthers had fewer after two quarters was when Jimmy Clausen and Co. went for negative-5 in Atlanta on Dec. 12, 2010.
So compared to the first half, Newton and the passing offense caught fire in the third quarter when they put up 44 yards.
Then came a fourth quarter for the ages.
Newton began the final 15 minutes by hitting on six of his first seven attempts. But the Panthers were still getting shut out. They needed a spark that only a touchdown could provide.
“We needed to get the ball in the end zone. No matter who got the ball in the end zone, we just needed somebody to get in the end zone to get the offense fired up a little bit,” said wide receiver Curtis Samuel, whose 14-yard end-around got the Panthers on the board.
It was a beautifully drawn-up play with Newton lined up in the shotgun next to C.J. Anderson and in front of Christian McCaffrey. After the snap, Newton faked a handoff to Anderson and then ran alongside McCaffrey, making the Eagles go to their right to defend what appeared to be an option. That’s when Newton flipped the ball to Samuel, who was heading the other way.
“I make plays happen,” Samuel said before remembering the Golden Rule of touchdown scorers. “Everybody did their job. Everybody blocked. I've got to thank everybody cause without them that play wouldn't happen.”
Actually, right tackle Taylor Moton didn’t even have to lay a block because once Samuel cut inside at the 11-yard line, he sped his way in virtually untouched.
“Even though I see the end zone, I've gotta go get it after that,” Samuel said. “We scored, the defense did their job and put us on the field and we just kept rolling.”
Yes, this felt very familiar. A 17-0 deficit. A late rally. And it looked like this one may fall short, just like last week's against Washington.
After Newton began the final drive with three straight incompletions, hope was fading with 2:06 left and the Panthers facing a fourth-and-10 from their own 31.
Then Newton did what he does.
“I haven't been around a guy like him with his ability to keep things alive and make big plays,” offensive coordinator Norv Turner said.
Newton should have been sacked, but he slipped out of the grasp of Brandon Graham. Fellow defensive end Michael Bennett then delivered a huge hit on Newton as he fluttered a pass to Smith.
“I saw his man had slipped and fell and he was uncovered wide open. I just knew I had to get the ball in his hands,” Newton said. “It wasn’t pretty, but the results were.”
Said Smith: “I was running an inside dig route, and I kind of saw Cam pulling up so I knew it wouldn’t be on time. So I stopped to kind of feel out where he was because I wasn’t going to break out while he was scrambling. He ended up getting it off, and I guess Jalen (Mills) kind of slipped behind me and Cam saw it. I honestly don’t know how he got it off - he muscled it out. Then I just got busy.”
The first down was necessary. The extra yardage was a big bonus. A 12-yard reception turned into a 35-yard gain after Smith broke a tackle before turning down the sideline.
“I knew we had the two-minute [warning] coming up, so I didn’t have to try to run out of bounds,” he explained. “I knew that if I caught it, I could fight for extra yards because it wouldn’t take extra time off. I was trying to cut upfield and get us in field goal range without having to dink it and dunk it downfield.”
CAROLINA
- The win moves Carolina to 5-7 all-time against the Eagles, including a 3-4 mark at Philadelphia.
- Carolina trailed 17-0 entering the fourth quarter. The comeback was the largest fourth quarter comeback in franchise history. Carolina had twice overcome 17-point deficits in the third quarter in 2004 (San Francisco) and 2003 (Jacksonville).
- It marked the first time since 1985 that a team on the road that was held scoreless through three quarters came back from 17 or more points to win in the fourth quarter (Minnesota at Philadelphia - Dec. 1, 1985).
- The Panthers scored 21 points in the fourth quarter. For the season, Carolina has 65 fourth-quarter points. Those points were the most scored in the fourth quarter since 10/16/16 when the Panthers scored 21 against New Orleans.
- Carolina rushed for 121 net yards, marking the fifth game this season that the Panthers have eclipsed 100 rushing yards. The Panthers are 4-1 when rushing for over 100 yards.
- The Panthers defense recorded four sacks, including stops from Mario Addison, Luke Kuechly and Julius Peppers. Carolina has tallied seven sacks in the last two games.
PHILADELPHIA
- Philadelphia rushed for 58 net yards, the fewest that the Eagles have managed this season.