Indianapolis Colts at Carolina Panthers: Panthers fall apart at home, drop to 1-7
If you want to point to the lowest point of the Carolina Panthers’ season, at least so far, then Sunday would be good choice.
The Panthers were coming off their feel-good first win of the season, and were hosting an Indianapolis Colts team suffering through a three-game losing streak, and playing with a turnover-prone backup quarterback.
In its previous three games, Indianapolis had allowed nearly 40 points per game.
But instead of producing the first win streak for new coach Frank Reich and for new quarterback Bryce Young, the Panthers lost 27-13, struggling mightily on offense and consistently extending Colts drives with defensive penalties. Also starting linebacker Brian Burns and starting defensive back CJ Henderson left the game with concussions.
“I just think we got off to a slow start,” Panthers coach Frank Reich said. “We were backed up a few tmes. I thought their rush early was good. They pressured us early and we just never really seemed to get a rhythm.”
The Panthers were down 20-3 at halftime after Young threw the first of two pick-6 interceptions — a 49-yarder with 30 seconds left. That play punctuated a first half where Carolina’s penalty yardage (51) was pretty close to its offensive yardage (62).
And it got worse in the second half.
Young, who threw three picks Sunday, started strong, leading a 75-yard drive to get Carolina within 10 points. After a defensive stop, he hit a 48-yard pass to tight end Hayden Hurst and Panthers fans at Bank of America began to stand up as the team got into the scoring zone. Could Carolina produce a rally?
Unfortunately, not.
While trying to hit running back Miles Sanders on a screen, with defenders in his face, Young threw his second pick-6 of the game, and Kenny Moore became the first Colts player to have two interception returns for touchdowns in the same game. The Colts extended the lead to 27-10 as that second pick-6 decided the game.
Young finished 24-of-39 for 173 yards and a touchdown, plus those three picks.
“I’ve got to look at the film to see why,” Reich said of Young’s performance. “The one thing you don’t do as a coach, this isn’t about finger pointing. But you do try to find reasons. It all starts with me as the head coach. We have to get ready to play and we have to play at a higher level.”
Reich said he has not thought about replacing Young and playing Andy Dalton. He thinks Young will be ready to play in the next game.
“Listen,” Reich said, “I’ve seen this happen to the best quarterbacks in the history of the game. They all have games like this. Sure it’s easy to put it on the quarterback, but you bounce back. That’s what makes the great ones. I’ve said this many times: the quarterback journey, developing into the franchise quarterback, it’s a long road. So I, slash, we believe very strongly in Bryce...We went out and laid an egg today offensively.”
Now, Carolina falls to 1-7, the second-worst record in football, with a Thursday night game at Chicago coming up. If the Panthers, which were the last team in the league to get a win this season, end up with the worst record at the end of the season, Chicago will get the No. 1 pick — after the Panthers traded with the Bears last spring to move up to draft Young.
Think Chicago might have any incentive to win on national TV this week?
STAT STUFFERS
Carolina run game: 28 carries for 138 yards was strong. Chuba Hubbard (16 carries, 58 yards) lef the team, but Miles Sanders had some moments. He ran six times for 39 yards with a long of 11. He caught three passes for 22 yards.
Hayden Hurst: tight end caught two passes for 54 yards, including a big 48-yard catch and run in the second half. The high-proflle off-season addition hadn’t produced much this season, but had arguably his best day.
Frankie Luvu: this is getting to be an every week thing with the linebacker. He led the Panthers with 11 tackles, eight of them solos. Alex Cook had seven with one tackle for a loss.
QUICK HITS
▪ Young again faced heavy pressure most of the game and was sacked four times.
▪ Carolina had about 60 yards offense in the first half but finished with 275 total. The Colts had 198 total. The Panthers defense allowed 120 yards passing.
▪ Carolina had 10 penalties for 81 yards compared to five for 25 for the Colts.
(Scroll down for photos, game highlights and more)
FOURTH-QUARTER UPDATES
6:52 p.m.: Bryce Young, who hadn’t thrown an interception in his previous two games, threw his third one Sunday. Indianapolis got the ball with under five minutes left, up 17. In his first six starts Young threw four interceptions.
6:50 p.m.: Panthers linebacker Chandler Wooten, who was playing through a hamstring issue, is hurt and on the ground. He was injured on a punt. Wooten was helped to his feet and appeared to be walking gingerly as he left the field.
6:45 p.m.: Panthers star defensive player Brian Burns is on his back on the field being tended to. There are six minutes left to play. Brian burns walked off the field on his own with no help. He went into the blue medical tent and looked a little gimpy.
He has a concussion and will not return.
COLTS 27, PANTHERS 13: Long field goal trims lead
6:38 p.m.: A 49-yard field goal from Eddy Piñeiro cut the Colts lead to two scores after a good drive. A Young fourth down scramble extended the drive early.
COLTS 27, PANTHERS 10: Young’s second pick 6 ruins drive
6:24 p.m.: With the Panthers driving, Colts defensive back Kenny Moore intercepted Bryce Young was who trying to hit Miles Sanders with a screen pass. Moore returned 66 yards for a touchdown.
Carolina had a chance to get within one score, but instead Moore got his second pick-6 of the game and extended the Colts lead to 17.
NFL Scoreboard
THIRD-QUARTER UPDATES
COLTS 20, PANTHERS 10: Panthers finish big drive
6:05 p.m.: After a defensive stop, Carolina drove 75 yards on 15 plays — more than the 62 yards the Panthers had in the first half — finishing with a 5-yard pass from Bryce Young to DJ Chark.
Earlier in the drive, on fourth and 1, Bryce Young hit Tommy Tremble for a first down at the Colts’ 10. It was the Panthers’ first third quarter touchdown of the season.
SECOND-QUARTER UPDATES
COLTS 10, PANTHERS 0: Another penalty leads to Colts points
4:58: The Colts got another first down after Xavier Woods was hit with a personal foul after he broke up a third down pass intended for Colts receiver Michael Pittman Jr. It was the Panthers’ fifth penalty of the game. Instead of being forced to attempt a field goal, Indianapolis got a first down at the Panthers’ 13.
Woods, shaken up on the play, left the field and was treated on the sideline.
Two plays later, Gardner Minshew hit Jonathan Taylor with a shovel pass that turned into a 10-yard score.
4:49 p.m.: Panthers starting cornerback CJ Henderson went down with an injury. He was attended to and appeared to walk off under his own power.
4:44 p.m.: Carolina going to punt again. In four possessions, the Colts have allowed Carolina 10 total yards in 14 plays. Coming into the game, Indianapolis had allowed nearly 40 points per game in its last three.
COLTS 3, PANTHERS 0: After extending drive, Panthers come up with stop
4:38 p.m.: The Colts got to the doorstep and ran two plays and went back a yard. On third and goal, a penalty pushed them back to the 7. On third down, QB Gardner Minshew appeared to slip while trying to scramble to his right while being chased by Panthers linebacker Brian Burns.
It all meant that the Panthers defense got their first red zone stop in 13 tries. Teams had scored touchdowns the previous 12 times. Indianapolis kicker Matt Gay made a 26-yard attempt with 13:55 left to give the Colts a 3-0 lead.
A penalty on a punt kept the drive alive and the Colts did manage to get points.
FIRST-QUARTER UPDATES
▪ 4:28 p.m.: Carolina was penalized for lining up offsides as the Colts were about to punt. Instead of the Panthers getting another drive, the Colts kept the ball and got near midfield two plays later. Later, on third and 7, Colts QB Gardner MInshew scrambled and Caroiina’s Troy Hill was penalized for a late hit in Minshew’s slide.
Indianapolis had a first down at the Panthers’ 30. The quarter ended after the Colts advanced to the Panthers. Carolina had allowed touchdowns the last 12 times an opponent got into the red zone.
▪ 4:22 p.m.: Following the turnover, Carolina had two incompletions and Bryce Young was sacked on third down by the Colts’ DeForest Buckner, who beat a combo block up the middle, as the Panthers offensive line continued to have all sorts of issues stopping the Indianapolis pass rush. So far Bryce Young is 2-for-4 for 4 yards and has been harassed on nearly every pass attempt.
▪ 4:18 p.m.: Another 3-and-out for the Panthers, who punted from their end zone. The Colts’ Isaiah McKenzie bobbled the catch and Carolina’s Chandler Wooten caught it on the fly. Carolina got possession at the 48.
▪ 4:13 p.m.: The Colts go three-and-out and punt. Carolina about to start its second drive of the game. It’s 0-0 early first.
▪ Carolina goes 3-and-out on the first drive. QB Bryce Young tried to scramble on third and 6. Young lowered his shoulder to try to push through contact, but was stopped short.
Panthers actives-inactives update
The Panthers will have starting wide receiver DJ Chark in the lineup Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts at Bank of America Stadium.
Chark (elbow) wasn’t listed among the team’s inactives ahead of the Week 9 matchup. The receiver suffered an elbow injury in the 15-13 win against the Houston Texans last week, and he practiced in a red non-contract jersey throughout the week of practice.
Safety Vonn Bell (quadriceps) will miss his third consecutive game after being listed as doubtful heading into the weekend. Bell will be replaced by rookie Alex Cook, making his NFL debut, in the starting lineup opposite Xavier Woods. The team also has Matthias Farley, Sam Franklin and rookie Jammie Robinson at the position.
The Panthers placed veteran pass rusher Justin Houston (hamstring) on injured reserve on Saturday. He is expected to be replaced — opposite Brian Burns — with a rotation of rookie DJ Johnson, special teams ace Amare Barno, new arrival Luiji Vilain and practice-squad call-up Eku Leota. That quartet has yet to register a sack as a group this season.
Cornerback Donte Jackson (quadriceps) was a last-minute addition to the injury report Friday. He is active despite being listed as questionable.
The Colts will be without starting linebacker Zaire Franklin (knee), who was listed as doubtful ahead of the game. Right tackle Braden Smith (hip/wrist) and starting cornerback Julius Brents (quadriceps) were ruled out earlier in the week. Wideout Josh Downs, a UNC alum, will play despite being listed as questionable with a knee injury.
Below are the inactive lists for both teams:
Panthers
S Vonn Bell (quadriceps)
WR/RB Laviska Shenault (ankle)
OT Ricky Lee
G Brett Toth
G Nash Jensen
CB David Long Jr.
Colts
CB Julius Brents (quadriceps)
OT Braden Smith (hip/wrist)
LB Zaire Franklin (knee)
G Jack Anderson
TE Will Mallory
CB Ameer Speed
Panthers look to create first two-game winning streak
The Panthers will look to produce their first winning streak of the Frank Reich era Sunday when they host the Indianapolis Colts at Bank of America Stadium.
Reich, who served as the head coach of the Colts from 2018 to 2022, will look to one-up his old squad after producing a 15-13 home win over the Houston Texans in Week 8. Reich handed over play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Thomas Brown during the bye week, and the results, at least partially, led to the first win of the season.
Now, Carolina will clash with the Colts, who own the worst scoring defense in the NFL. Indianapolis is also without its fourth overall pick, rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson, who was placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury last month.
Gardner Minshew will get the start at quarterback for Indianapolis as he has throughout the Colts’ current three-game losing streak. Minshew has thrown a total of five interceptions in his past three starts.
Charlotte Observer predictions for Panthers-Colts
Keeping accountable, Scott Fowler leads the pack with a 6-1 record. Mike Kaye, Langston Wertz Jr. and Alex Zietlow are all 4-3.
Scott Fowler: Colts 24, Panthers 23. By now, I am sure Panthers fans are asking me what “The Office” boss Michael Scott once asked Toby: “Why are you the way that you are?”
Here I am, picking against the Panthers again, for the eighth straight time this season, even though they won last week and had a big-time fourth-quarter drive to do so.
Let’s just say I’ve been burned too often over the past five years thinking the Panthers are “hot,” that they are “about to start stacking wins,” that “it’s all coming together now” and so on. Let’s see Carolina win two in a row first. If they do, I promise I’ll pick Carolina to win at Chicago Nov. 9th.
Mike Kaye: Panthers 31, Colts 27. The Panthers have some momentum after last week’s win over the Texans. The building feels a bit more at ease this week, and the Colts are allowing 28 points per game on defense and have lost three consecutive games. Reich is very familiar with both Colts head coach Shane Steichen and defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, as well as most of the Indianapolis roster. But having said all of that, this one is on Bryce Young, who is due for a monster game at some point. This is the game for Young, as he will eclipse 300 yards for the first time in his career and toss at least two touchdowns.
Langston Wertz Jr.: Panthers 31, Colts 21. The Colts have allowed an average of 37.6 points per game in their three-game losing streak that will stretch to four in Charlotte. Carolina won a nail biter last week when Bryce Young started looking more like the Bryce Young from Alabama, who could extend plays and keep drives going. This week, the game won’t come down to the final drive and the Panthers will start a little winning streak.
Alex Zietlow: Colts 21, Panthers 14. Let’s be clear: The Colts have lost their last three and are largely beating themselves — committing turnovers of all varieties and allowing unheralded offenses to score in the high 30s. And let’s be clear about this, too: The Panthers are riding high off their first win, one that came down to the wire, yes, but was also largely mistake-free. But something about this matchup makes me resist choosing the Panthers to win nonetheless. I think the Colts throw the proverbial kitchen sink at Carolina to get back on track and it ultimately leads to a low-scoring Indianapolis win.
What ESPN, CBS Sports, The Ringer experts believe
ESPN: ESPN’s talent has voted, and they are four to three in favor of the Panthers.
CBS: Pete Prisco is predicting a three-point win for the Panthers at home.
The Ringer: Sheil Kapadia is taking the Panthers as +2.5 home underdogs.
PHOTOS: Colts at Panthers
This story was originally published November 4, 2023 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Indianapolis Colts at Carolina Panthers: Panthers fall apart at home, drop to 1-7."
