Carolina
Panthers
7-8
27
FINAL
23
New Orleans
Saints
6-9
AI Recap
AI RECAPIn a thrilling Week 17 showdown, the Carolina Panthers narrowly defeated the New Orleans Saints, finishing the game with a final score of 27-23. This victory was crucial for the Panthers as they aimed to secure their playoff positioning in a tightly contested season.
Offensively, the Panthers were led by a stellar performance from Trey Benson, who rushed for 124 yards, consistently breaking through the Saints' defense. On the other side, Tyler Shough of the Saints put up a respectable 219 passing yards, tossing two touchdowns and keeping New Orleans competitive throughout the match. Jordyn Tyson was a standout receiver for the Saints, racking up 142 receiving yards and making critical catches when needed.
Defensively, the Panthers made their mark with DJ Waller Jr. leading the charge, tallying seven total tackles and two crucial interceptions that helped swing momentum in Carolina's favor. The turning point came late in the game when Waller's second interception set up a touchdown drive that ultimately sealed the victory. With Jayden Woods adding 2.5 sacks to the mix, Carolina's defense played a pivotal role in this tightly contested battle.
Passing
| Player | Pos | ATT | CMP | CMP% | YDS | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyler Shough | QB | 31 | 17 | 55% | 219 | 2 | 2 | 71.8 |
| Haynes King | QB | 34 | 19 | 56% | 190 | 2 | 0 | 91.5 |
Rushing
| Player | Pos | ATT | YDS | YPC | YAC | TD | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trey Benson | HB | 13 | 124 | 9.5 | 74 | 1 | 48 | 1 |
| RJ Harvey | HB | 19 | 93 | 4.9 | 27 | 0 | 18 | 0 |
| Haynes King | QB | 5 | 27 | 5.4 | — | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Travis Etienne Jr | HB | 7 | 20 | 2.9 | — | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Trevor Etienne | HB | 4 | 10 | 2.5 | — | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Tyler Shough | QB | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | — | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Jordyn Tyson | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Malik Benson | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Darren Waller | TE | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Brazzell II | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
| Player | Pos | REC | YDS | YPR | YAC | TD | LNG | DROP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordyn Tyson | WR | 6 | 142 | 23.7 | 81 | 2 | 70 | 0 |
| Malik Benson | WR | 7 | 97 | 13.9 | 54 | 1 | 55 | 0 |
| Chris Olave | WR | 4 | 45 | 11.3 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 0 |
| Darren Waller | TE | 5 | 33 | 6.6 | 14 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| Chris Brazzell II | WR | 2 | 30 | 15.0 | 12 | 1 | 22 | 0 |
| Brandon Inniss | WR | 1 | 19 | 19.0 | 6 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Isaiah Horton | WR | 2 | 12 | 6.0 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Lawson Luckie | TE | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Barion Brown | WR | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Juwan Johnson | TE | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| RJ Harvey | HB | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Trey Benson | HB | 2 | -1 | -0.5 | — | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Defense
| Player | Pos | TKL | SACK | INT | FF | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DJ Waller Jr | CB | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Erick Hunter | MIKE | 6 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jayden Woods | REDG | 3 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Highsmith | REDG | 5 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Tao Johnson | FS | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Danny Stutsman | MIKE | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaycee Horn | CB | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ahmad Moten Sr | DT | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nic Scourton | LEDG | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Talanoa Hufanga | FS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jamel Johnson | SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dax Hill | CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Drue Tranquill | WILL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kris Jenkins Jr | DT | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Hamilton | SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Domani Jackson | CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonas Sanker | SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cameron Jordan | DT | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Payton Pierce | SAM | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Devin Lloyd | WILL | 1 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| KJ Bolden | FS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lorenzo Styles Jr | CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Whit Weeks | MIKE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kool-Aid McKinstry | CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Boireau | DT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trey Reddick | SAM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Johnathan Edwards | CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Princewill Umanmielen | LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | Pos | FGM | FGA | XPM | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tate Sandell | K | 2 | 3 | 3 | 27 |
| Ryan Fitzgerald | K | 3 | 3 | 2 | 28 |

