“I was hoping they would give a warning”.
Advertisement
The Ravens, though, got an impressive performance by its stable of running backs, solid efforts by several of their young defensive players, and a late defensive stand to preserve a 22-19 victory over the Carolina Panthers before an announced 70,082 at M&T Bank Stadium.
Not surprisingly, it was because of quarterback Cam Newton – although, in a sense, it was a surprise. “It looks like a bruise”, coach Ron Rivera said. However the game is airing as a live stream online.
Newton was 5-of-6 passing for 36 yards, and the fact they had to settle for a field goal was practically a let-down. “Our offensive line played well, obviously, but our backs were dynamic”. Fellow running back Buck Allen caught a 19-yard touchdown pass and rookie fourth-round pick Kenneth Dixon rushed for 44 yards in his first National Football League game.
But on a humid 94-degree night, the Ravens’ defense was first under the gun. In receiving, Kamar Aiken led with 944 yards and five touchdowns in 75 catches while Steve Smith Sr. had 670 yards and three touchdowns in 46 catches. Anderson connected with Devin Funchess for a 10-yard touchdown reception a few plays later.
“Being able to score on the drives we had felt really good”, Mallett said.
“We definitely had some guys making plays, and that’s what we need to continue to do to be successful”. Defensively, Carolina yielded 234.5 yards in passing and 8.4 yards in rushing. The Panthers finished a 15-1 record in the regular season.
Linebacker Chris Carter (three quarterback hits), who was thought to have a concussion early in the game, passed the protocol test and almost forced an Anderson fumble as well.
Newton was penalized for running onto the field during Klein’s interception return, which would have been a 95-yard runback for a touchdown.
Advertisement
“At the end of the day, if you hold them to field goals, you’re always going to have a chance to win”. “You can’t always hit a home run on the first play”, said Allen, who finished with just the one catch and six yards rushing on six carries.
