The Sports Xchange

CHARLOTTE — Shortly after defensive end Charles Johnson limped through the locker room Monday afternoon, the Carolina Panthers made a trade to help shore up their reeling pass rush.

Carolina acquired five-time Pro Bowl defensive Jared Allen from Chicago in exchange for a conditional late-round draft pick. In 12 seasons, Allen leads active players with 134 career sacks.

Johnson, who was carted off with a hamstring injury in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s win over the Saints, will likely miss multiple games.

Head coach Ron Rivera on Monday admitted the Panthers would “sit down and talk about” how they’d replace their best pass rusher. The answer came a few hours later.

The deal ends a disappointing stay in Chicago for Allen, who signed a four-year, $32 million deal before the 2014 season. After recording a career-low 5.5 sacks last year, Allen had no sacks and just five tackles in the Bears’ new 3-4 defense this season.

With Johnson on the shelf indefinitely, the unbeaten Panthers obviously felt they had to make a bold move. After beginning the season with five sacks of Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles, they’ve recorded just one in each of the past two weeks. And while the Saints made a concerted effort to get the ball out quickly on Sunday, a legitimate Super Bowl contender wouldn’t let Luke McCown complete 27 of his first 30 passes in his first start since 2011.

The Panthers didn’t add a defensive end in free agency or the draft, hoping they could again fill the position by committee. After Frank Alexander tore his Achilles in the preseason, Rivera said Kony Ealy “took the bull by the horns” to earn a starting spot across from Johnson. In three games, Ealy has four tackles and no sacks while playing 59 percent of the possible snaps. Mario Addison, who had two sacks in Week 1, will remain in a situational role while Wes Horton plays on more obvious run downs.

The deal is the second in the past month for Dave Gettleman, who didn’t trade for a player during his first two seasons as Panthers general manager. Four weeks ago, he dealt a conditional late-round pick to Seattle for receiver Kevin Norwood.

The trade for the NFL’s active sack leader spiced up a rainy Monday night at Bank of America Stadium.

News of the Panthers’ deal for defensive end Jared Allen dropped shortly before the team’s weekly “PantherTalk” radio show. In front of the crowd gathered for the live event, Rivera said the Panthers started trade talks Monday morning, a day after Charles Johnson aggravated a hamstring injury.

“We didn’t want to wait when we found out there was an opportunity,” Rivera said.

“(Allen’s) a pass-rushing specialist. He plays the run very well; he’s a physical guy. He’s got good size, good hand strength, he rushes with violence, he doesn’t just sit there and work one way or the other. He’s got counter moves. We watched a lot of tape on him today to make sure this could potentially be a fit for us.”

Unlike receiver Kevin Norwood, who has played 13 offensive snaps since the Panthers acquired him four weeks ago, Rivera said Allen should be able to acclimate quickly. Not only is he a 12-year veteran, but “for the most part, defensive linemen really just go in one direction, and that’s upfield.”

Of anyone around the Panthers’ organization, few are as familiar with Allen as former offensive tackle Jordan Gross. The two went head-to-head four times, first when Allen was a rookie in Kansas City, and then when he was starring in Minnesota. In those meetings, Allen totaled 14 tackles and two sacks.

“He’s very instinctual, so I think he doesn’t necessarily have a move he’s going to do before the ball is snapped. He’s very tough to read, he doesn’t have a lot of tells,” Gross said. “I think he would age well because he never was incredibly explosive off the ball, never was incredibly strong, but just a good, technical pass rusher.

“He just wants to get to the quarterback; he’s not worried about beauty points.”

REPORT CARD VS. SAINTS

–PASSING OFFENSE: A-minus. QB Cam Newton passed for 315 yards, his most since Oct. 2, 2011. He didn’t throw an interception while tossing two touchdowns, both to TE Greg Olsen, who had a career-best 134 receiving yards. WR Ted Ginn had a 55-yard reception, his longest since 2008.

–RUSHING OFFENSE: C. Running room continues to be limited for Jonathan Stewart, who gained just 52 yards on 14 carries. He’s now averaging 3.5 yards per attempt on 49 carries. Newton added 33 yards and a touchdown on seven attempts.

–PASS DEFENSE: D-plus. Making his first start since 2011, Saints QB Luke McCown completed 27 of his first 30 passes. The good news for the Panthers, who had just one sack, is McCown’s longest completion went 23 yards. When the defense needed a stop, CB Josh Norman made a leaping interception in the end zone.

–RUN DEFENSE: B-plus. RB Mark Ingram gained 50 yards and scored a touchdown on 14 carries while the Saints picked up just 70 yards on the ground. It was the ninth time in their last 10 regular-season games the Panthers held an opponent to under 100 rushing yards.

–SPECIAL TEAMS: C-minus. The Saints took a 16-10 lead when Marcus Murphy returned a punt 74 yards early in the third quarter. K Graham Gano made both of his field-goal attempts.

–COACHING: B. The Panthers were slow to adjust against McCown and the Saints’ quick passing game. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula called a great game, shifting Olsen all over the field and picking perfect spots for Newton to make big plays.