The Carolina Panthers roared past the Houston Texans 24-9 last night, on Thursday Night Football. The Panthers moved to 3-0 for the first time since 2015, when Cam Newton led Carolina to a 15-1 regular season record. They also made it all the way to the Super Bowl where they lost to Peyton Manning and the Broncos, in Super Bowl 50. Newton also won the NFL MVP award in that same year. So here is the full breakdown of the Panthers win over the Texans.
What Went Well
Sam Darnold proved he could possibly be a sneaky dual-threat quarterback, by punching in 2 touchdowns on his own. Darnold also passed the ball really well, dotting up star receiver, DJ Moore 8 times for 126 yards. Rookie Terrace Marshall Jr. also had a good showing with 4 grabs and 48 yards. Another rookie that stepped up into the spotlight was Chuba Hubbard, who played starting running back in the 2nd half after Christian McCaffery went down with a hamstring injury.
Davis Mills played decently well, completing 19 of his 28 attempts. He also threw for 1 touchdown, hitting Anthony Miller in the back of the end zone from the goal line. Perhaps one of the only bright spots for the Texans this year also had a great game, as Brandin Cooks had another 100+ yard game on 9 catches.
What Didn’t Go So Well
Really the only thing that didn’t go well for the Panthers, was McCaffery’s hamstring injury. The severity of the injury is still yet unknown, but one thing we know for sure is that he should be back before the end of the season, according to Panthers’ QB Sam Darnold.
“Just that I’m thinking of him and to take his time,” he said. “We’ll be all right without him. Obviously, we want him back. But I want him to take his time and make sure he’s good for the end of the season.”
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/32266252/carolina-panthers-christian-mccaffrey-injures-hamstring-ruled-game%3fplatform=amp
On the other hand, there was a lot that didn’t go well for the Texans. Carolina’s defense totally shutdown Houston’s offense, limiting them to just under 200 yards. The Panthers defense also notched 4 sacks on the night, and stomped on the Texans run game, showing many flaws in the Texans O-Line. Here’s what Houston’s head coach had to say about his teams offense last night;
“We just weren’t very good on offense tonight … because we weren’t able to run the ball,”
https://www.espn.com/nfl/recap?gameId=401326363
Houston’s defense seemingly wasn’t any better. Letting up 28 first downs, on only 10 drives for. It seemed their was always an open Panthers receiver, questioning the Texans secondary.
What’s Next For These Two Teams?
The Panthers look to improve to 4-0 on the season next week, when they travel to play Dak Prescott and the Cowboys in Dallas. The Texans have a much tougher test, when they travel to Orchard Park to play Josh Allen and the Bills next Sunday.
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