Patriots 20, Panthers 10

The Carolina Panthers lost 20-10 to the New England Patriots on Sunday. I thought this game was pretty close even though we loss by two scores. We had a pretty good defensive showing, with a pick and shutting down Randy Moss to one catch; even though part of this could be due to Tom Brady's injuries. Also, Matt Moore had a good showing, posting nearly identical numbers to Tom Brady except for the interception. WR Steve Smith had another rare TD for the season and Williams and DeAngelo had decent showings with 29 and 82 yards rushing respectively. Even though our players had relatively decent games, it wasn't enough to overcome the Patriots, even in an off season for them.

While this season has been a disappointment for the Panthers who entered this season with high expectations, I have still enjoyed watching them. Even if we are not going to the Playoffs, the remaining 3 weeks will still be fun to watch. All I can say is good luck to them.



-Gray

Preview: Panthers at Patriots

The Carolina Panthers (5-7) travel to the New England Patriots (7-5) this Sunday. Once again Matt Moore will start for the injured Jake Delhomme as quarterback. Even though the Patriots have lost two games in a row and star quarterback Tom Brady is fighting several injuries and is questionable for the game, this will be a hard away game. We will have to rely heavily on our running game and hopefully DeAngelo Williams returns and is able to contribute. Jonathon Stewart had a great game last week against Tampa Bay and Matt Moore did what he was suppose to do in his first game starting this season, not loose it. Moore should be fine against this defense since they are ranked 28th in the league in pass rush with only 20 sacks all season, so he will have plenty of time to throw the ball. While the Patriots are not the superior 16-0 team of 2007, they are still a good team but we do have a chance of winning this game. I think we have a shot because our defense is still pretty good, especially our defensive backs who have had a lot of interceptions this season, and if Tom Brady doesn't play then we'll be in much better shape.

Panthers beat the Bucs 16-6

The Carolina Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday 16-6 at home. Second string QB Matt Moore had his first start since the 2007 and played decent enough for a win. But it was really the defense that won the game for us. We had 5 interceptions against Bucs QB Josh Freeman and several of them came in the end zone or near the goal line. Without those turnovers, the Bucs likely would have scored on several occasions. While Matt Moore had decent numbers (14/20, 161 yards, 1 interception, 0 TD) I am not sure he would of been able to lead us on long TD drives. Also, DeAngelo Williams didn't play in the game, but Jonathon Stewart had his first start and racked up 120 yards and 1 TD. Think how damaging our running game could have been if Williams was also in the game? Since Jake Delhomme's finger will likely still be hurt on this Sunday, Moore will start against the New England Patriots. Hopefully this win gave him some confidence, which he will need when we play against a team much better than the Bucs.

Also, Kicker John Kasay, my favorite Carolina Panther and the only player remaining from the original team, became only the 7th kicker to have at least 400 career field goals.



-Gray

Tampa Bay @ Carolina Preview

The Tampa Bay Bucs (1-10) visit the Carolina Panthers (4-7) Sunday in a NFC South division rivalry game. Both teams have had disappointed seasons so far with Tampa Bay definitely not going to the playoffs and Carolina most likely no going. So at this point in the season, these teams and players are fighting and playing for pride and dignity points; at least I would be. If Jake Delhomme was playing in this game, I would pick the Panthers to win. But Matt Moore is playing for the injured Delhomme, so it is hard to tell how well or poorly Moore will play. Strong games by DeAngelo Williams and Jonathon Stewart would go a long way for helping Moore out. Who knows, Moore could have a stellar performance and be a great, new quarterback. Even though I find it hard to predict the winner, I think the Panthers will win by a score.

-Gray

QB Matt Moore to Start Sunday

Back-up quarterback Matt Moore will be the starting QB against Tampa Bay on Sunday. Starter Jake Delhomme is not playing because he suffered a broken finger in the Panthers' loss to the Jets this previous Sunday. Even after Jake's bad performance on Sunday, I think he would have started against the Bucs if he was not injured because Coach John Fox has seemed like he will stick with Jake all season. But Jake is hurt so Fox has no choice but to start Matt Moore. I am not sure how well Moore will play, but thankfully this game is against a pretty bad team. I do not know if we will win or lose this game, especially since how well Moore will play is unknown. Hopefully Moore plays well and takes pressure off of Jake to return early while still injured.

-Gray

NY Jets 17, Carolina Panthers 6

The Carolina Panthers lost a game on Sunday that was all too similar to the beginning of the season. Losing to the Jets 17 to 6 most likely put them out of playoff contention, which would of been hard to do anyway with the way the Panthers played Sunday. Unfortunately our offense struggled to get a TD and Jake Delhomme threw 4 interceptions. The defense did a nice job, only allowing 10 points from the Jets' offense. While we didn't play that well, we also had some bad luck such as the ball that hit Steve Smith's foot and ricocheted into the arms of a Jets defender, leading to a pick 6. Even though we have had more than our fair share of mishaps, injuries, bad luck, etc., the Panthers are just not a team that can be a contender this season. I was surprised by this game though. I truly thought the Panthers were going to win this game without too much trouble, but that was not the case.



-Gray