Plays to Love, Plays to Hate (aka “P2L, P2H”) looks at the most significant plays in swinging momentum and impacting the eventual outcome of the game. There is always plenty to hate about NFL officiating, so we will only focus on the plays on the field, not the refs.
Three plays to love
4th Quarter 2:32 – Panthers 14, Eagles 17. Eagles ball 3rd-and-10 at PHI 25
The Situation: With just over 2:30 remaining in the game, the Panthers offense was rolling after having scored back-to-back touchdowns to narrow Philly’s lead to just three points. But if Carolina’s offense was going to get one last chance to win the game, the defense was going to need to force a big stop.
The Play: James Bradberry was in man coverage on Alshon Jeffery. Bradberry slipped coming out of his stance but closed the gap quickly enough to break up what would have been a first down catch. If the Eagles converted this first down they would have forced the Panthers to burn their two remaining timeouts or even salted away the win with another first down.
4th Quarter 2:06 – Panthers 14, Eagles 17. Panthers ball 4th-and-10 at PHI 25
The Situation: Carolina went incomplete, incomplete, incomplete and now faced 4th-and-10. Failure to convert would likely mean “game over” for the Panthers.
The Play: Cam Newton pulled off an amazing play. He stepped through one defender who was on the ground grabbing at his ankles, saw Torrey Smith open, then jumped and twisted in the air to generate the torque needed to muscle the throw to Smith. Cam was airborn, mid-pass, as Michael Bennett hit him, but Newton still threw an accurate pass. Smith caught the ball, broke to the sideline, then sprinted 35 yards to extend the drive that produced the game-winning touchdown.
4th Quarter 0:31 – Panthers 21, Eagles 17. Eagles ball 4th-and-2 at CAR 14
The Situation: After the Panthers took a 21-17 lead with just 1:26 left, the Eagles immediately drew a 48-yard pass interference then marched to the Carolina 14. Philly was now facing 4th-and-2 with the game on the line.
The Play: Carson Wentz dropped to pass and the defensive line immediately collapsed the pocket. As the Panthers defensive line enveloped Wentz, the ball suddenly squirted free. Julius Peppers strip-sacked Wentz and the fumble was recovered by Kyle Love to seal the incredible comeback victory.
Three plays to hate
2nd Quarter 2:55 – Panthers 0, Eagles 10. Panthers ball attempting 39-yard FG
The Situation: Carolina’s putrid offense was scoreless with the second quarter winding down. The field goal unit lined up for a makeable 39-yard field goal to cut the Eagles lead to 10-3.
The Play: Graham Gano booted a beautiful kick straight through the uprights, but Trai Turner was called for a false start negating the field goal. Now lining up for a 44-yard field goal, Efe Obada was whistled for a false start. Carolina now faced 4th-and-15 from the Philadelphia 31 and was forced to punt on a windy, blustery day. Turner’s penalty literally took three points off the board.
4th Quarter 1:17 – Panthers 21, Eagles 17. Eagles ball 1st-and-10 at PHI 30
The Situation: Carolina had just scored to go up 21-17. The Eagles took possession with just over a minute left and dialed up a home run play.
The Play: James Bradberry had Alshon Jeffery in man coverage with both Eric Reid and Mike Adams providing safety help. Alshon had shredded the Panthers the entire game, yet somehow he was able to get behind Bradberry and both safeties - Reid and Adams - and drew a 48-yard pass interference call against Bradberry all the way down to the Carolina 22. While it’s Bradberry who got the flag, I still can’t believe neither Reid nor Adams were in position to help. Safeties ABSOLUTELY CANNOT let the opposing team’s No. 1 receiver get behind them in this situation when it was obvious Philly was going to have to go deep.
4th Quarter 1:11 – Panthers 21, Eagles 17. Eagles ball 1st-and-10 at CAR 22
The Situation: Carolina’s defense could end the game by forcing a Philly turnover here.
The Play: On first down Carson Wentz badly overthrew his receiver over the middle and the ball went directly at Eric Reid’s feet. Reid dove for the interception but let the ball get through his arms and bounce around a bit, but he seemed to make the catch The play was originally ruled an interception then (controversially) reversed after a replay review.
It would have been a good catch on Reid’s part, but it’s a play he has to make. Then, two plays later, Wentz forced a pass into double coverage and the ball hit a sprinting Mike Adams right in the chest. Adams dropped the potential game-clinching interception. Despite two dropped interceptions, the Panthers defense held firm and sealed the win.
Closing it out and summing it up
Watching your team overcome a 17-0 fourth quarter deficit to beat the defending Super Bowl champs on the road is both thrilling and frustrating. Thrilling because the odds of it happening are so miniscule. Frustrating because the Panthers never should’ve been held scoreless for three full quarters to force Cam Newton to pull this rabbit out of his hat yet again.
Cam was incredible, Torrey Smith had his second straight solid game, and Devin Funchess continues to be reliably productive despite some drops in this one. Defensively, Luke was great with 14 total tackles and a huge fourth quarter sack.
As far as concerns go, coaching across the board continues to be baffling at times. After a strong start, the offensive line is now regressing by struggling to open rushing lanes and allowing Cam to be pressured. The secondary continues to be shaky. Special teams had another implosion with a missed extra point and the negated field goal.
The 2018 Panthers are both talented and flawed. They have the potential to be really good (like they were in the fourth quarter) and really bad (like they were last week against Washington and for the first three quarters this week.) And yet, here they sit at 4-2. Let’s hope the “good Panthers” show up next week against the Baltimore Ravens.
Plays to love season leaders
3 - James Bradberry
2 - Cam Newton, D.J. Moore, Efe Obada, Torrey Smith,
1 - Christian McCaffrey, Colin Jones, Devin Funchess, Donte Jackson, Graham Gano, Julius Peppers, Kawann Short, Kyle Love, Mario Addison, Norv Turner, Wes Horton
Plays to hate season leaders
4 - Mike Adams
2 - Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, Eric Reid
1 - Amini Silatolu, C.J. Anderson, Captain Munnerlyn, Colin Jones, Devin Funchess, Dontari Poe, Donte Jackson, Eric Washington, Ian Thomas, Trai Turner
Poll
Which play to love had the biggest impact on the Panthers win?
This poll is closed
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10%
4th Q - James Bradberry breaks up 3rd-and-10 pass to force a punt
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78%
4th Q - Cam Newton and Torrey Smith hook up on 4th-and-10
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11%
4th Q - Julius Peppers strip-sacks Carson Wentz to seal the victory