1:00 PM ET, December 7, 2014
Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Top Performers
Passing: D. Brees (NO) - 235 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INTRushing: J. Stewart (CAR) - 20 CAR, 155 YDS, 1 TD
Receiving: G. Olsen (CAR) - 10 REC, 72 YDS, 1 TD
Associated Press
Brawl Erupts As Panthers Crush Saints
The quarterback's dynamic performance also helped preserved the Carolina Panthers' playoff hopes.
Newton passed for three touchdowns, appeared to incite a scuffle with frustrated New Orleans after he went over the pile for another score, and Carolina ended a six-game skid with a 41-10 rout of the Saints on Sunday.
More from ESPN.com
The
Panthers didn't look like a team that hadn't won in two months. They
looked like a group that can make a playoff run, David Newton writes. Story
The
worst loss in the Sean Payton-Drew Brees era also appeared to be the
most eye-opening for the Saints' two mainstays, Mike Triplett writes. StoryJonathan Stewart added a 69-yard touchdown run as the Panthers (4-8-1) pulled closer to NFC South leader Atlanta (5-7), which plays at Green Bay on Monday night.
Newton's jawing and "Superman" celebration after his 2-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter drew a shove from linebacker Curtis Lofton, igniting a scrum that burst through a closed gate behind the goal post and into a tunnel.
Newton chalked up the extracurricular roughness to nothing more than "a lot of testosterone on that field at one time."
Panthers tight end Brandon Williams was ejected for punching defensive end Cam Jordan. Lofton received a personal foul penalty for his role, but stayed in the game. He said he had no regrets and would respond to Newton's actions the same way "100 times out of 100."
"It was taunting," Lofton said. "I saw it as straight disrespect and I did what I thought I had to do."
Williams expected to be flagged but not ejected.
"I feel like I was defending myself. Guys were swinging at me and pushing me and I was trying to help my guy out," Williams said. "I'm just glad that we got the win. Me being ejected didn't have anything to do with that, but it feels great to give ourselves another opportunity to still be in" the NFC South race.
Newton's scoring passes went for 9 yards to Kelvin Benjamin, 16 yards to tight end Greg Olsen and 26 yards running back Fozzy Whitaker.
New Orleans (5-8) lost its fourth straight home game and dropped a half-game behind Atlanta.
Saints coach Sean Payton called the loss "embarrassing," and emphasized that he'll be eager to review the coaches' film of the game.
"We've got to look closely at everything -- preparation, who we're asking to do it," Payton said. "We're not that good. That's painfully obvious."
The Saints turned the ball over on two of their first three offensive plays. Mark Ingram's fumble on the New Orleans 25 -- forced by Josh Norman and recovered by Colin Cole -- led to a field goal. Bene Benwikere's interception of Drew Brees led to Newton's rushing TD.
The Panthers, who entered the game with a league-low 30 first-quarter points all season, scored 17 points inside the first nine minutes.
"We talked about starting fast. It has been a point of emphasis," Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. "Cam had a real good handle and a good feel of what we were doing, the guys that were around him."
Brees was 29 of 49 for 235 yards and one late TD to tight end Ben Watson. Afterward, Brees said the Saints haven't responded well to adversity well this season.
"We need to be more professional," Brees said. "Certainly, a loss like that is embarrassing. That's not what we're about."
Newton was 21 of 33 for 226 yards, was not sacked and was not intercepted. Newton also rushed for 83 yards, but downplayed the part he played in those gains, saying the Saints left him wide open rushing lanes.
"I feel as if anybody could have run it," Newton said. "There were no moves I made. I wasn't touched until I got in the secondary."
Stewart finished with 155 yards rushing as the Panthers piled up 271 yards on the ground.
The Panthers' point total was their highest of the season, surpassing the 37 they scored in an overtime tie at Cincinnati.
Carolina's 497 total yards also were easily a season high, albeit against a Saints defense that entered the game ranked second-to-last in the NFL.
Carolina scored on its opening possession for only the second time all season, driving 80 yards on seven plays, capped by Benjamin's touchdown.
Olsen's TD gave the Panthers a 24-3 lead that stood at halftime. Boos rained down on the Saints as they trotted to the locker room, and again when they began the second half by punting after three plays.
When Whittaker turned a screen pass into a touchdown to make it 38-3 with a little more than five minutes left in the third quarter, much of the Superdome emptied out.
Game notes
Saints left tackle Terron Armstead left with a neck injury in the first half and outside linebacker Junior Galette limped off the field favoring his right leg in the second quarter. Saints center Jonathan Goodwin was helped off the field with an apparent leg injury late in the fourth quarter. ... Stewart had his most yards rushing since he gained 206 against the New York Giants in 2009.
Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press
Photo Wire
NEW ORLEANS, LA - DECEMBER 07: Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints warms up before the game against the...
(Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
(Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Team Stat Comparison
CAR
|
NO
| |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Downs | 24 | 18 |
Passing 1st downs
| 11 | 11 |
Rushing 1st downs
| 11 | 7 |
1st downs from penalties
| 2 | 0 |
3rd down efficiency
| 7-15 | 5-14 |
4th down efficiency
| 0-0 | 1-2 |
| Total Plays | 73 | 68 |
| Total Yards | 497 | 310 |
| Yards per play | 6.8 | 4.6 |
| Total Drives | 12 | 12 |
| Passing | 226 | 218 |
Comp-Att
| 21-33 | 29-49 |
Yards per pass
| 6.8 | 4.3 |
Interceptions thrown
| 0 | 1 |
Sacks-Yards Lost
| 0-0 | 2-17 |
| Rushing | 271 | 92 |
Rushing Attempts
| 40 | 17 |
Yards per rush
| 6.8 | 5.4 |
| Red Zone (Made-Att) | 3-5 | 1-3 |
| Penalties | 6-55 | 4-30 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 2 |
Fumbles lost
| 0 | 1 |
Interceptions thrown
| 0 | 1 |
| Defensive / Special Teams TDs | 0 | 0 |
| Possession | 36:00 | 24:00 |
Scoring Summary
| FIRST QUARTER | CAR | NO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | TD | 11:42 | Kelvin Benjamin 9 Yd pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano Kick)
Drive info: 7 plays, 80 yds, 3:18
| 7 | 0 |
| FG | 9:57 | Graham Gano 37 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 4 plays, 6 yds, 1:02
| 10 | 0 |
| TD | 6:41 | Cam Newton 2 Yd Run (Graham Gano Kick)
Drive info: 6 plays, 60 yds, 3:11
| 17 | 0 |
| SECOND QUARTER | CAR | NO | |||
 | FG | 13:19 | Shayne Graham 37 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 7 plays, 34 yds, 3:28
| 17 | 3 |
| TD | 2:14 | Greg Olsen 16 Yd pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano Kick)
Drive info: 12 plays, 68 yds, 4:46
| 24 | 3 |
| THIRD QUARTER | CAR | NO | |||
| TD | 13:59 | Jonathan Stewart 69 Yd Run (Graham Gano Kick)
Drive info: 1 plays, 69 yds, 0:11
| 31 | 3 |
| TD | 5:13 | Fozzy Whittaker 26 Yd pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano Kick)
Drive info: 9 plays, 86 yds, 5:49
| 38 | 3 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | CAR | NO | |||
| FG | 14:10 | Graham Gano 41 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 11 plays, 38 yds, 5:05
| 41 | 3 |
| TD | 5:29 | Benjamin Watson 7 Yd pass from Drew Brees (Shayne Graham Kick)
Drive info: 12 plays, 83 yds, 3:31
| 41 | 10 |
Research Notes
Jimmy Graham
was targeted 10 times Sunday, but he had just as many receptions (3) as
drops (3) on those targets. Graham's 1st reception of the game didn't
even come until 2:03 of the 2nd quarter when the Saints were already
down 24-3.
- The 3 receptions on 10 targets equates to a 30.0 reception percentage,
which is the 2nd worst of Graham's career (min. 5 targets). He was held
without a catch on 6 targets last season against the Patriots.
- The 3 drops for Graham are the most in his career for a single game.
Graham had dropped 2 passes on 88 targets this season entering Sunday.
|
Drew Brees
went just 1-of-8 on passes thrown at least 15 yards downfield Sunday,
his worst performance on such throws this season. Brees had 5 of his 8
attempts either defended or intercepted Sunday.
[+] |
Cam Newton
had 10 designed rushes for 72 yards and a TD Sunday against the Saints.
The only game Newton had more designed rushing yards in was the tie to
the Bengals, which featured an extra 15 minutes of overtime.
As a team the Panthers ran the ball 40 times for 271 yards Sunday. The
Panthers gained 200 of those rushing yards before initial contact (5.0
yards per rush before contact). It was the Panthers highest rushing
totals before contact since Week 17 of the 2012, also against the Saints
(205, 5.3 per rush).
|
Cam Newton
posted a season-high 90.0 Total QBR Sunday, the highest he's ever
posted in a game against the Saints. His 3 Pass TD today were more than
his 1st 3 road games against the Saints combined (2).
|
For the 2nd time this season, the Saints had 2 turnovers in the 1st quarter. Both times, it's come against the Panthers.
|
The Panthers lead the Saints 24-3 at halftime...
The Panthers scored 25 first-half points in their previous 6 games COMBINED (they lost all 6 games)
|
Cam Newton
ranks 30th out of 34 qualified passers this season in completion
percentage (57.9%), largely because of a tendency to overthrow
receivers.
[+] |
The
Saints have lost 3 straight at home, something they hadn't done in a
single season since 2005, the last season before bringing in Drew Brees and Sean Payton. The Saints lost 5 straight home games in 2005.
[+] |
The Saints are down 21 points in the 1st half at home for the first time since 2006 Week 8 against the Ravens
|
Following his rush TD in the 1st quarter, Cam Newton
had 46 rush yards, all of which were on designed rushes. The 46 yards
are already Newton's 3rd most in a single game this season.
|
The Panthers 24 points are their most in the 1st half of a game since Week 15 of 2012 at SD (24)
|
The 9-yard TD pass to Kelvin Benjamin was only Cam Newton's
2nd pass TD in the 1st quarter this season... The Panthers entered
Sunday tied for the fewest 1st quarter pass TDs in the league (1).
|
Jonathan Stewart's
69-yard TD run was the longest rush of his career. Stewart hadn't had a
30-yard rush since Week 16 of 2011, and his previous long was 67 yards
in Week 17 of 2009.
Today is Stewart's 1st 100-yard rushing game since Week 15 of the 2010
season.
|
Brees
is just 252 pass yards shy of 4,000 yards on the season. Brees threw
for 4,000 yards in each of his 1st 8 seasons with the Saints, which is
an NFL record.
[+] |
The
Panthers are 1 of 2 teams this season that have not recorded a snap
from an offensive lineman drafted in the 1st round (Raiders).
The Panthers started 3 undrafted offensive linemen in Week 13, including
both of their tackles.
The Panthers most common grouping of offensive linemen has played 22% of
the team's overall snaps (Bell, Silatolu, Kalil, Turner, Chandler).
Only the Dolphins (19%) have a lower percentage of snaps from their most
common offensive line unit.
[+] |
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