The Carolina Panthers lost 40-9 to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, marking another challenging week for the team. Despite the defeat, the Panthers maintained their record of not allowing a first-quarter offensive touchdown this season.
Rookie receiver Tetairoa McMillan narrowly missed his second 100-yard game, ending with seven catches for 99 yards. Running back Rico Dowdle led the team in rushing with 54 yards on eight carries, continuing his streak of four games with at least 50 rushing yards. This matches his career-best streak set previously with Dallas.
Chuba Hubbard scored his first rushing touchdown of the season in the fourth quarter and now has 23 career rushing touchdowns, placing him fifth in franchise history.
On defense, Carolina recorded two sacks for a total loss of 20 yards. Trevin Wallace earned his first sack of the season by tackling Bills quarterback Josh Allen for a four-yard loss in the first quarter. Nic Scourton and A’Shawn Robinson combined for a 16-yard sack in the second quarter. The Panthers have accumulated 13 sacks through eight games.
Christian Rozeboom led all defenders with 12 tackles, tying his career high and marking his seventh game with at least ten tackles. Mike Jackson had two passes defensed, while Nick Scott contributed eight tackles.
Buffalo’s James Cook set a new record against Carolina by rushing for 216 yards on 19 carries and scoring two touchdowns. This surpassed Derrick Ward’s previous opponent record from December 2008. The Panthers allowed four rushing touchdowns, equaling their fourth-highest total allowed in team history.
Turnovers were an issue for Carolina; they did not force any takeaways and committed three turnovers themselves—one interception and two fumbles—which resulted in 17 points for Buffalo. After eight games, Carolina holds a negative-5 turnover ratio and is undefeated when positive in turnover margin but winless when even or negative.
Injuries impacted snap counts significantly. Only Damien Lewis and Ikem Ekwonu played all offensive snaps among starters due to injuries sidelining other linemen like Brady Christensen (out for season) and uncertainty about Taylor Moton and Cade Mays’ status pending further tests.
Tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders returned to playing over half of offensive snaps after easing back from injury last week. Jalen Coker also saw increased action at wide receiver as he continues to recover from injury.
Defensively, Tershawn Wharton played more snaps than any other lineman as he returned from injury. Backup corners Corey Thornton and Akayleb Evans saw time late in the game as starters rested or dealt with injuries. Claudin Cherelus got his first defensive snaps following Trevin Wallace’s concussion evaluation (he was cleared).
Due to injuries affecting regular contributors on offense and defense, several players took on larger roles on special teams as well.
