SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 26, 2012
Panthers 30, Eagles 22: Cam Newton tossed a pair of touchdown passes and rushed for two more as the visiting Panthers handed the reeling Eagles their seventh consecutive loss.
Newton threw scoring strikes to tight end Gary Barnidge (24 yards) and Brandon LaFell (43) during the first quarter before adding a pair of short-yardage plunges in the second half. Newton completed 18 of 28 passes for 306 yards and rushed for an additional 52 for Carolina (3-8).
Making his first start since high school, Bryce Brown replaced the concussed LeSean McCoy and rushed for a franchise rookie-record 178 yards - highlighted by a 65-yard scoring scamper in the second quarter. Brown added a 5-yard touchdown in the third, but a pair of fumbles and a failed fourth-down conversion marred his otherwise stellar evening.
Carolina took advantage of his second fumble with a 23-yard field goal by Graham Gano, who was signed after the team released Justin Medlock earlier in the week.
Newton made Philadelphia (3-8) pay for the failed fourth-down conversion by bulling his way in from 2 yards out. Although Gano missed the subsequent extra-point attempt, rookie Brandon Boykin fumbled the ensuing kickoff as many at Lincoln Financial Field headed for the exits.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Philadelphia kicker Alex Henery set a franchise record by making his 18th consecutive field goal. After booting a 36-yarder in the first quarter, Henery broke David Akers' team record with a 41-yard kick in the second. He extended the record to 19 straight with a 45-yarder later in the quarter. ... Brown's first touchdown run was the longest by an Eagles player since McCoy's 66-yarder versus the New York Giants on Nov. 1, 2009. ... Philadelphia WR DeSean Jackson exited the contest in the first quarter with a sternum injury. He did not return.