Carolina Panthers

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Panthers Rout Falcons

2006-01-01T21:18:00.000-05:00

The Carolina Panthers pounced into the playoffs in style today. DeShaun Foster charged 70 yards for the longest touchdown run in the eleven year history of Carolina and finished with 165 in total - to rout Atlanta 44-11.

Carolina have now taken one of the two NFC playoff spots still available going into Week 17, settling for a wild card as the Bucs won the South Division title with a win over New Orleans.

Carolina made it look easy against Atlanta, who collapsed in the second half and extended a poor streak with only two wins in their final eight games, They have now missed the playoffs but also opened the door to the possibility that the franchise might post back to back losing seasons for the first time in their forty year history.

Panthers Key Up For Bucs

2005-12-10T15:41:00.001-05:00

A few of the Panthers' regulars should be available for Sunday's key game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers - after injury. Dan Morgan and Julius Peppers returned to practice on Thursday. Morgan looked good on the practice field and should be ready. Tutan Reyes was back to work Thursday, along with special teams man Karl Hankton. But they are still without Mike Rucker and Michael Gaines. Rucker remains questionable after hurting his ankle.

Rucker was a key factor in Carolina's 34-14 win over Atlanta, with two sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery to be nomonated NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Al Wallace would get the start if Rucker can not play on Sunday.

In the meantime, DeShaun Foster has become the Panthers' spotlight back, rushing for 131 yards on 24 carries last week and picking up over 180 all-purpose yards - scoring twice in a 24-6 win over the Falcons. Carolina are looking for more offense from Foster when they host the Buccaneers.

The Panthers, on their own turf, are 6 point favorites on the spreads at -6.

2005-12-10T15:41:00.000-05:00

Small Man, Big Heart

2005-11-11T10:21:00.000-05:00

So half way through the season who is the current MVP? You have Peyton Manning, LaDainian Tomlinson, Carson Palmer, Shaun Alexander amongst others to consider. Maybe we should look at Steve Smith.

Smith has made an great comeback from the broken leg that sidelined him for most of last season - incidentally he is probably the leading choice for Comeback Player of the Year as well. Smith is the ultimate 'go-to guy' for QB Delhomme and the reason that the Panthers are one of the top teams in the league.

At 5-foot-9 and 189 pounds, Smith isn't the biggest receiver around. Yet he excels at a number of 'tricks' that give hime the edge over other players. He appears to bounce off defenders by using his hands cleverly, is strong enough to stop cornerbacks from disrupting his routes, he has the speed to burst into the open before the pressure really gets to him and once he's gone, he's really gone - being almost impossible to take down from behind.

The numbers alone make his case for him: 55 catches, over 900 yards, with nine touchdown catches. His team are 6-2, and are tied for first place in the NFC South.

Panthers Dismantle Buccaneers

2005-11-07T11:13:00.000-05:00

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Chris Simms was sacked five times in this game, intercepted twice, flushed repeatedly and hammered at least ten other times by a Carolina Panthers defense played with a hunger that was a little unnerving at times.

The Panthers (6-2) dismantled the Buccaneers to maintain a share of the NFC South lead. Led by the massive Julius Peppers, who had a massive performance the domination was only partly reflected by the two sacks and five tackles on the statistics sheet.

When Peppers 'took a break', it was Mike Rucker, who did the damage, causing jitters in the Bucs ranks.

Rucker recovered a Williams fumble at the Tampa thirty-two in the first quarter that set up Davis to score and a gave them a 10-0 gift of a start. In the third quarter, Rucker sacked Simms and forced another turnover, recovered by Buckner at the Bucs 19, which resulted in Kasay's second field goal - this after Panthers cornerback Chris Gamble took advantage of an interception and charged 61 yards for a touchdown.

Panthers Stalking Super Bowl

2005-11-04T16:45:00.000-05:00

Some say Carolina Panthers are starting to look like Super Bowl contenders, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the other hand are hoping to get back following a disappointing loss. The Panthers and Bucs meet on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium.

The Panthers reeled off four straight wins and appear to have rediscovered their form after a 1-2 start. Led by rookie Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and their defence, the Bucs got off to a surprising 5-1 start. But Williams has been slowed by a foot injury and starting quarterback Brian Griese is out for the season with torn knee ligaments. The loss of Griese was all too apparent last week as Chris Simms was intercepted twice in a 15-10 defeat by San Francisco.

Gruden will want Williams at his best. After rushing for a rookie-record 434 yards in his first three games, Williams has gained just 33 yards on 24 attempts in his last two contests.

Tampa defensive end Simeon Rice (deactivated for last week's game and sent home for missing a team meeting) is expected to start. Rice leads the Buccaneers with five sacks.

Panthers Make Meal of Vikings

2005-10-31T16:01:00.000-05:00

Smith humiliated Smoot and the Minnesota defense in Sunday's game for a franchise-record and a touchdown in Carolina's 38-13 destruction of Minnesota.

All this after Minnesota's Smoot had tried to take Smith out in the pregame with trash talking. It back-fired.

In the victory, Stephen Davis ran for two touchdowns and Delhomme threw for 341 yards and three scores - to put Carolina on a 4 game winning streak.

To add to Minnesota's woes, Daunte Culpepper left the field with a sprained right knee on the final play of the first quarter. He could well be out for the season.