For all that the Carolina Panthers have done right during this 13-0 run, they got a first this season with their 38-0 win over the Falcons on Sunday – a shutout.
The Panthers defense held the Falcons scoreless for the first time in their 41 meetings against Atlanta. For the Panthers, it was only their sixth shutout in their 21 seasons as a franchise.
A goal line stand on fourth and goal from the Panthers 6 with 9:49 to go in the fourth quarter kept the shutout intact, after Tre Boston and Dwan Edwards brought down Roddy White after only a four-yard gain on a pass from Matt Ryan.
Panthers safety Kurt Coleman intercepted Falcons backup quarterback Sean Renfree at the Carolina 36 on the Falcons final drive to seal the shutout.
“We were very fortunate,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. “They could have kicked the field goal if they wanted, but their coach wanted to score the touchdown. So we were fortunate we were able to stop them on the 1 ½. That was a big play for our defense. I know they wanted to score and they were trying to. They’re a good football team that’s young, and a new coaching staff. They’ve got playmakers on their football team, and it’s just a matter of time. You’ve got to respect what they’re trying to build.”
The Falcons were right there with the Panthers in terms of time of possession, trailing 31:21 to 28:21. They had 15 first downs to the Panthers 20. But they were outgained 424 total yards to 230 on the game, and three second half turnovers killed any easy scoring chances.
Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis, the former standout for the University of Georgia, finished with seven tackles and shared a sack with Mario Addison. Coleman had eight tackles and an interception.
A first half trip into the red zone – down to the Panthers 20 – was thwarted by a 26-yard loss on one play. Ryan was sacked by Kawann Short and fumbled the ball deep into his own backfield where Julio Jones recovered it for the Falcons at the Panthers 46.
“It’s huge,” Panthers cornerback Josh Norman said of the shutout. “I’m not going to lie to you. You get a shutout, the first one of the year like we did.…I can’t say enough about how well the D Line got off the ball, the linebackers played downhill and the secondary broke on the ball.”
Norman Rivera alluded to the fact that the Panthers didn’t get caught up in the Falcons’ “chippiness” either, after players from each team got into a few mostly verbal skirmishes. Only one went for a penalty - against Panthers cornerback Bene Benwikere.
“It was one of those things where if they wanted to get chippy, we didn’t want to go there,” Norman said. “But however you want to play the game, that’s how we’re going to give it to you. End of the day, 38-0. You’ve got to give them credit for the fight they put up…respects to that. But at the end of the day we know who we are, and we know that we got a team to be resilient in the face of our adversaries.”
Norman got into a jawing match with Jones once during the game but for the most part they kept their matchup respectful. Norman didn’t shut Jones down – he had 88 yards receiving on seven receptions – but he held him in check and well below his 111.5-yard season average.
“He is a formidable foe,” Norman said. “The way he comes off the ball, the way he plays, I like his style. He pushes us. We push him. We just want to be the better of the two that day.”
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