–The Panthers hold a six-game home winning streak going into Sunday’s contest against Cincinnati. It matches the longest active streak in the NFL (tied with Minnesota and New England).
Under new owner David Tepper, several game-day initiatives that might draw more fan frenzy have been introduced by the team.
“We’ve just got to keep feeding the energy,” quarterback Cam Newton said of the atmosphere. “It’s just like anything else, it’s a living creature. Our fans are alive and when you do certain things to get them hyped, they can be a huge asset for us and that’s what we’re going to expect throughout this whole year.”
–Quarterback Cam Newton came away pretty much unscathed after a vicious hit from Atlanta safety Damontae Kazee that resulted in the defender’s ejection.
Rivera said he won’t spend much time dwelling on it, allowing the league to take whatever action is deemed necessary.
“What needed to happen, happened,” Newton said of the ejection.
Still, this was a division rival and the Panthers were quick to respond, particularly receiver Torrey Smith. He received an unnecessary roughness penalty for his reaction.
The teams will meet again in Charlotte, so the issue might not be totally gone away.
–The Panthers gave up 170 rushing yards in the loss to Atlanta. That’s jarring for a team that tries to set a tone by getting after it with its defense along the line of scrimmage.
That came in part because defenders weren’t getting the right reads, head coach Ron Rivera said. Other times, it might have appeared that there were effort issues.
“A couple of times not knowing how to fit or where to fit and a couple times playing behind, playing a little lazy,” Rivera said. “We can’t accept that.”
BY THE NUMBERS: 21 games — That was the number of games without allowing a 100-yard rusher until Atlanta’s Tevin Coleman snapped the streak. The length of the streak was a Carolina franchise record.
