NFL

Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints

· National Football League
0-1, 0-1 Away
Final
10 - 47
1-0, 1-0 Home

Derek Carr and the Saints rout the Panthers 47-10 in Klint Kubiak's play-calling debut

McAfee critical of 'disappointing' Bryce Young, Panthers in Week 1

New Orleans' defense didn't look too bad, either.

Carr passed for three touchdowns and the New Orleans Saints scored on their first nine possessions in a 47-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

“That was a fun way to start the season,” said Carr, who got booed in the Superdome at times last season, but heard only rousing applause this time. "They liked us a lot today. That was nice.”

Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams each ran for touchdowns and Blake Grupe kicked four field goals — two from beyond 50 yards — in an extraordinary debut for new Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. His first game calling plays resulted in the most points the Saints have ever scored in a season opener.

“That's what we made some changes for,” Kamara said. “I've been here a while and I know what it's supposed to feel like — and it felt good today.”

The Panthers, who went 2-15 last season, made front office, coaching and key roster changes in hopes of improving this season. But this season opener could not have gone much worse for new coach Dave Canales and second-year quarterback Bryce Young.

“The nature of the loss matters, but whether it was by three points or as much as it was today, you have to just count them as a loss and then move forward to the next challenge,” Canales said. "In weeks from now, it’s not going to matter what the score was.”

Young was 13 of 30 passing for 161 yards and was intercepted twice — once each by safeties Will Harris and Jordan Howden.

The Saints profited from another turnover when safety Tyrann Matthieu forced and recovered a fumble by receiver Jonathan Mingo.

“Everyone’s going to want to talk about how exciting it was for your offense. But our defense gave us a lot of short fields,” Carr said. “Them setting us up with short fields and us executing allows a day like that to happen.”

Young was sacked three times by defensive back Alontae Taylor and once by linebacker Demario Davis.

Carr was 19 of 23 for 200 yards, highlighted by his Rashid Shaheed on the game's opening series. Carr also found tight ends Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson for touchdowns of three and 16 yards, the latter putting New Orleans up 30-0 before Carolina scored its first points on a field goal as the first half ended.

Johnson also got a hand on a Johnny Hekker punt that went just 11 yards, setting up the Saints on the Panthers’ 36. Williams' 14-yard, fourth-quarter TD run came two plays later.

Kamara finished with 83 yards rushing and 27 receiving for his 50th game with at least 100 yards from scrimmage.

Young scored the Panthers' lone touchdown on a three-yard scramble in the third quarter.

“This doesn’t define us," Young said. "It’s a long year.”

Franchise history The Saints were founded in 1967 and Taylor became the first New Orleans defensive back to record as many as three sacks in a game.

“That’s just Week 1, though. So, plenty more to come,” Taylor said. “Someone told me as I was coming off the field, 'Sacks get you paid just like interceptions get you paid.”

Saints coach Dennis Allen, who calls defensive plays, has wanted to develop Taylor as a blitzer because “he's fast. That would be No. 1. And he's aggressive.”

“It’s one thing to say that you’re going to send somebody on a pressure, but they've got to be willing to go in and deal with the noise that’s in there," Allen continued. “There's big, 300-pound offensive linemen and things of that nature.”

Injuries Saints: Left guard Lucas Patrick left the game with a toe injury in the first half. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore left with a hamstring injury. ... Moreau was pulled from the game with concussion symptoms after a first-down catch in the fourth quarter.

Up next Panthers: Host the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

Saints: Visit Dallas on Sunday.

How can I watch Panthers vs. Saints?

  • TV Channel: Panthers at Saints 2021-22 NFL, week 1 is broadcasted nationally on FOX and NFL Sunday Ticket.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
    In Canada, viewers can watch Panthers vs. Saints on DAZN.

Matchup Prediction

Saints: 63.2%
Panthers: 36.5%
*According to ESPN's Football Power Index

Scoring Summary

NO TD 1st Period 12:08 Rashid Shaheed 59 Yd pass from Derek Carr (Blake Grupe Kick)
NO FG 1st Period 10:04 Blake Grupe 57 Yd Field Goal
NO TD 1st Period 1:23 Foster Moreau 3 Yd pass from Derek Carr (Blake Grupe Kick)
NO FG 2nd Period 7:03 Blake Grupe 44 Yd Field Goal
NO FG 2nd Period 2:08 Blake Grupe 52 Yd Field Goal
NO TD 2nd Period 1:18 Juwan Johnson 16 Yd pass from Derek Carr (Blake Grupe Kick)
CAR FG 2nd Period 0:00 Eddy Pineiro 43 Yd Field Goal
NO TD 3rd Period 8:27 Alvin Kamara 1 Yd Run (Blake Grupe Kick)
CAR TD 3rd Period 4:55 Bryce Young 3 Yd Run (Eddy Pineiro Kick)
NO FG 4th Period 13:08 Blake Grupe 39 Yd Field Goal
NO TD 4th Period 10:38 Jamaal Williams 14 Yd Run (Blake Grupe Kick)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/car.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCAR https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/no.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originNO
11 1st Downs 22
7 Passing 1st downs 7
2 Rushing 1st downs 13
2 1st downs from penalties 2
1-10 3rd down efficiency 7-13
1-3 4th down efficiency 0-0
55 Total Plays 62
193 Total Yards 379
3.5 Yards per Play 6.1
13 Total Drives 11
135 Passing 199
13/31 Comp/Att 19/24
3.9 Yards per pass 8.0
2 Interceptions thrown 0
4-26 Sacks-Yards Lost 1-1
58 Rushing 180
20 Rushing Attempts 37
2.9 Yards per rush 4.9
1-2 Red Zone (Made-Att) 4-4
6-80 Penalties 10-95
3 Turnovers 1
1 Fumbles lost 1
2 Interceptions thrown 0
0 Defensive / Special Teams TDs 0
23:21 Possession 36:39

Game Information

Caesars Superdome

Location: New Orleans, LA
Attendance: 70,007 · Capacity:

2024 NFC South Standings

TEAM W L PCT T PF PA
Atlanta 8 7 .533 0 327 349
Tampa Bay 8 7 .533 0 427 352
New Orleans 5 10 .333 0 309 346
Carolina 4 11 .267 0 283 448
Full Standings

NFL News

Steelers' Russell Wilson scores on 1-yard run

Steelers' Russell Wilson scores on 1-yard run

After being picked off in the end zone, the Steelers quarterback redeemed himself with a 1-yard touchdown run that cut the Chiefs' lead to 13-7.

Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes throws 2 TD passes early

Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes throws 2 TD passes early

Xavier Worthy's unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the first TD resulted in a longer PAT try, which Harrison Butker missed.

Seahawks look to boost fading playoff hopes against struggling Bears

Seahawks look to boost fading playoff hopes against struggling Bears

Seattle (8-7) at Chicago (4-11)

2024 NFL Christmas games: Picks, schedule, predictions, odds

2024 NFL Christmas games: Picks, schedule, predictions, odds

We have top storylines, bold predictions, game-plan keys and fantasy X factors for the Christmas games and Week 17's Thursday night matchup.

NFL Week 17 uniforms: Texans rock H-Town blue for Christmas

NFL Week 17 uniforms: Texans rock H-Town blue for Christmas

The Christmas week is bringing out notable uniforms on the field during NFL's Week 17.