The Sports Xchange

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — When you lose your best defensive player, you would figure your defense may not put forth its best effort.

That wasn’t the case with the Carolina Panthers on Sunday when they used two interceptions, including a pick-six, and five sacks of Jacksonville quarterback Blake Bortles to record a 20-9 win over the Jaguars on Sunday afternoon at EverBank Field.

Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly suffered a concussion late in the second quarter and missed the remainder of the game. But his injury, a concussion, did not diminish the effort of the Panthers defense. They inserted A.J. Klein in the middle and with a ball-hawking secondary and a lot of pressure from the front four, the Panthers kept the Jaguars offense at bay much of the game.

It was still a tight game early in the fourth quarter when the Panthers took over on their own 6-yard line following a Jaguars punt and Carolina penalty on the play. Panthers quarterback Cam Newton directed a 15-play march that advanced to the 29-yard line. It stalled there however, forcing Graham Gano to come in and convert a 47-yard field goal to hike the margin to 11 points with just over two minutes left in the game.

“That was extremely important especially in an away game, to take the crowd out of it,” Newton said. “Just finding a way to win it, that’s all we wanted.”

Jacksonville had the ball for just eight plays in the fourth quarter prior to getting the ball back and trailing 20-9. They had a seven-play drive that netted 24 yards and ended when Bortles was sacked for a 2-yard loss. On their possession, Bortles had his arm hit as he attempted to pass and linebacker Thomas Davis grabbed the wobbly ball for an interception just inside the 20-yard line.

What we learned about the Panthers:

1. The defense can play well even without its leader, middle linebacker Luke Kuechly. He went out with a concussion following a tackle on Jaguars running back T.J. Yeldon and did not return. Kuechly has led the NFL in tackles three of the last four years, but the Panthers defense rose to the occasion without their leader. They held the Jaguars to less than 100 yards in total offense in the second half and no points on the scoreboard. Carolina will welcome Kuechly back as soon as possible but with the way A.J. Klein played, there was little drop-off at the middle linebacker spot.

2. Quarterback Cam Newton can carry the offense even on a mediocre day. Newton didn’t have one of his best days statistically, passing for just 175 yards on 18 completions in 31 attempts. He had a touchdown but also threw an interception and finished with a passer rating of 71.3. But Newton is the leader of the offense and keeps the others on their game. Several times he saved the offensive line a sack by running out of would-be tacklers. His throws will be better than what he showed Sunday; he’s too good not to have better numbers.

3. Wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery is ready to have a big year. Someone needs to step up to replace Kelvin Benjamin, out for the season with a torn ACL. Cotchery looks like he might be up for the task. He grabbed four of the six passes thrown his way on Sunday for 45 yards, including a 24-yard hook-up with Cam Newton for the Panthers first touchdown. At 33 years old and in his 12th NFL season, Cotchery looks ready to have a break-out season.

Etc.

–LB A.J. Klein may not be as talented as teammate Luke Kuechly, but he’s not far behind. Klein was a demon for the Panthers in the second half, finishing with a total of six solo tackles, one behind Kuechly and Thomas Davis’ team-leading seven tackles. Klein’s effort drew the admiration of Panthers coach Ron Rivera. “The defense rallied around A.J. and he held up his end by playing really well. He is a solid football player.”

–RB Jonathan Stewart got off to a fast start for the Panthers but was held in check after that. Stewart gained 33 yards on four carries in the Panthers opening drive that led to a field goal, including a 22-yard scamper, the longest run in the game. But after that series Stewart managed just 23 yards on 14 more carries (1.6 yards per attempt). Stewart did catch four passes for 25 yards.

–CB Josh Norman is flamboyant off the field, which is widely known. Norman can be that way because of his play on the field. He had another strong effort on Sunday, forcing a Jaguars fumble and then recovering it in a wild scramble involving about eight players. His interception return of 30 yards was a back-breaker for the Jaguars, who never seemed to recover from it in the second half. “Josh had a heckuva day out there today,” fellow cornerback Charles Tilman said. “He’s that type of player. He can make the plays that turn momentum and turn the outcome of the game.”