The Carolina Panthers have come off a 17-6 loss to the New York Jets. Jake Delhomme was asked to lead Carolina, but couldn’t, passing for about 130 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions. And what makes things worse is that he has eight touchdowns and 18 interceptions for the years. Now how can you succeed in the passing game with a quarterback like that?

They need a new one. Delhomme’s struggles have been a problem ever since the playoff game against the Arizona Cardinals last year. They need to improve, and big. Delhomme has been struggling ever since. And they can’t move to their backup quarterbacks because they can’t lead with them. I don’t know if they want to sign a free agent quarterback, but it could be better than having Jake.

But there is also another plan. They can keep Delhomme for this season and next year, but here’s the catch: don’t start him next season. Why? Well, they’ll obviously be one of the worst teams this year and will have one of the earliest picks in the Draft, so they should draft a quarterback. Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy will be picked really early, but if the Panthers have a chance, they should go get him.

Also, they could Florida Gators’ Tim Tebow. I really have no idea why people say he should be picked in the second round because I really don’t see anything wrong with him. He’s more capable of a first-rounder to me. But if the Panthers can, they can draft Tebow in the second round. No matter what, they should draft him. Or like I said, if they have a chance: get Bradford or McCoy.

Stafford and Sanchez were brave enough to enter the draft, and both of them have been okay. But there’s a new, and possibly a better class of quarterbacks for the upcoming draft.

I think Tebow would fit right. With a good arm, size, strength, quickness, and agility, the Panthers can be dangerous with him. Plus, with Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams and also Steve Smith as a target, Carolina can once again be leaders in their division next year.

It could work. I just hope John Fox and the Panthers staff is aware of this.

The Carolina Panthers reeled off their fourth win in six games on Sunday, defeating the Atlanta Falcons 28-19 at Bank of America Stadium.

Much-maligned Carolina QB Jake Delhomme outdueled highly-heralded Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan in the game, completing 15 of 24 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns.

It was Delhomme’s third straight interception-free game.

Ryan completed 22 of 41 passes for 224 yards and one touchdown for Atlanta, but the second-year QB had two passes intercepted by an aggressive and opportunistic Carolina defense.

As is usually the case when the Panthers win, “Double Trouble”, Carolina’s vaunted running attack, was a major factor in the game as DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart combined for 174 yards rushing and two touchdowns in 30 carries.

Not to be outdone, Carolina wide receivers Muhsin Muhammed and Steve Smith combined for 10 pass receptions and 125 receiving yards, with Smith on the receiving end of two Delhomme touchdown passes.

On the downside, the Cats lost star left tackle Jordan Gross to an ankle injury during the game, and Carolina coach John Fox said after the game that Gross had suffered a broken ankle.

Injuries have hit the Panthers hard all year long, and just when the Cats start playing really well as a team, they get hit with yet another major injury to a key player.

When it rains, it pours, I guess…

Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers

Atlanta record: 5-3

On To the Second Half

The Atlanta Falcons are 5-3, more than halfway to a winning season. They are right in the thick of things, playoff-wise. And now, they’re in Carolina to start the second half of the season, hopefully in the same manner the first half began, with a solid win.

Here’s a few quick hits on how the Falcons can defeat the Panthers

• Contain DeAngelo Williams. Don’t be fooled by his knee injury. He’s playing today, and anytime he’s on the field, he’s a threat. Don’t let him turn the corners. Either stay in front of him and keep him running horizontally until he runs out of room, or else, force him to the inside and close off the lanes. Williams, and to and extent, Jonathan Stewart, are the most dangerous weapons the Panthers have, and should be treated with a great deal of respect.

• Keep Turner churning. Michael Turner has topped 150 yards rushing for 2 weeks in a row, and keeping that going today will greatly improve the Falcons’ chances. Sam Baker is out today, so Will Svitek will get a chance to prove himself, and aiding in springing Turner from the backfield will say a lot about him. It is also worth mentioning that Jerious Norwood is out once again today, but Jason Snelling is back. Aaron Stecker has been released, so that might bode well for Norwood’s return soon.

• Keep it up on defense. This defense, though not great, is playing a whole lot better than anticipated in the preseason, and they have been doing a good job forcing turnovers. If they are able to force a couple early, it is likely that Delhomme will go back to his old ways of throwing to the wrong colors. Also, don’t forget about Steve Smith. Nothing about his statistics are particularly memorable, but he has demonstrated time and time again in the past that he can do some damage, and we don’t want the team he gets hot against.

It’s nearly kickoff, so I’ll have more after the game.

Drew Brees completed 24 of 35 passes for 330 yards to lead the unbeaten New Orleans Saints to a come-from-behind 30-20 win over the Panthers on Sunday afternoon in New Orleans.

The Panthers got off to a great start in the game, racing out to a 14-0 first quarter lead on a pair of touchdown runs by DeAngelo Williams, but Brees and the unbeaten Saints rallied, outscoring the Panthers 30-6 over the final three quarters.

Jake Delhomme completed 17 of 30 passes for 201 yards and Williams rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns in 21 carries, but the Cats were unable to put the ball in the endzone after the first quarter, settling for a pair of John Kasay field goals the rest of the way.

In contrast, the Saints started slowly, but overcame a 17-6 halftime deficit with a 24-point second half as Pierre Thomas scored on a 10-yard touchdown run, Drew Brees hit Robert Meacham with a 54-yard touchdown pass, and Anthony Hargrove returned a fumble for a touchdown.

John Carney added a 40-yard field goal for New Orleans.

The New Orleans win snapped Carolina’s seven-game winning streak on the Saints’ home field and was the Saints’ first home win over the Panthers since 2001.

The unbeaten Saints improved to 8-0 with the win, while the loss dropped the Cats’ record to 3-5.

For about seven minutes in the fourth quarter, it looked questionable whether Jason Garrett would ever serve as an offensive coordinator again, let alone as a head coach. With the Cowboys leading 10-7 early in the fourth quarter and having moved the ball from the Dallas 26 to the Carolina 1, Dallas faced a second-and-goal. Carolina could not stop the run, but Garrett decided to call a fade to Roy Williams. Granted, Williams should have caught the ball, but he didn’t, and the Cowboys faced a third-and-goal. Conventional wisdom would suggest that Dallas should run the ball, but Garrett had Romo try the same play to Martellus Bennett. Romo overthrew the ball into the corner. Dallas settled for a field goal.

Dallas 13, Carolina 7.

At that point, Carolina had already completed a 79-yard pass that would have been a touchdown, but it was called back due to a questionable offensive pass interference penalty. Steve Smith had struggled, but there was cause for great concern that Smith could make a big play at any given time.

Dallas held Carolina to a three-and-out, but the offense could not provide a cushion. Carolina got the ball back with 5:57 remaining in the game. On the second play of the drive, Jake Delhomme tried a slant pass to Smith, who stopped. Terence Newman made the pick and ran it in to extend the lead. With the two-point conversion, Dallas led 21-7. From there, the defense stepped up and held the Panthers, giving Dallas the win.

As a very general matter, the Dallas defense looked better than in previous weeks, especially in the second half. The Cowboys recorded three sacks and two interceptions. Two of those sacks came from rookie Victor Butler, who showed more quickness coming around the end than Anthony Spencer has. Mike Jenkins had the other pick, giving the Cowboys their first turnover of the season.

That said, the Cowboys missed a number of tackles yet again. Both Newman and Jenkins missed tackles in the first quarter, and Ken Hamlin completely whiffed trying to tackle Muhsin Muhammad on the play called back due to offensive pass interference.

Hard not to suggest that a training camp without tackling could be a culprit when the team tackles so poorly during the first three weeks of the season.

Marion Barber did not play, but looked as if Felix Jones might end up with more than 200 yards in total offense. He opened the game with a 20-yard reception, and his 40-yard run on the opening drive of the third quarter helped to set up the Cowboys first field goal. Jones injured his knee on the run, leaving Dallas with one back in Tashard Choice. Like he did late in 2008, Choice came through, gaining 82 yards on 19 carries.

The first half was an ugly one for Dallas. The Cowboys moved the ball to the Carolina 12 on the opening drive, but Romo was sacked on a second down play. Dallas could not get into better field goal range, and Nick Folk missed his first field goal of the season.

From that point on, it was a few good plays by Felix Jones, some passes to Jason Witten, and nothing else for the Dallas offense. With the game scoreless, Carolina drove the ball 90 yards to get into Dallas territory. Hamlin appeared to bite on an underneath route, leaving the middle of the field for tight end Dante Rosario, who caught a 25-yard touchdown pass from Delhomme.

The Cowboys drove to the Carolina 1 on the first Dallas drive of the second half. Tashard Choice appeared to score on a dump-off pass from Romo, but the Panthers successfully challenged the play. The Cowboys could not push the ball in on third down. Dallas lined up for a fourth-down play, but third tight end John Phillips pushed the Cowboys back, and the Cowboys had to settle for a field goal.

After holding the Panthers to a three-and-out, the Cowboys drove the ball back to the red zone. Choice scored from five yards out, giving Dallas a lead that it did not relinquish.

The Cowboys (2-1) must now travel to Denver to take on the 3-0 Broncos on Sunday.