Tommy Tremble played a key role in the Carolina Panthers’ overtime win against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Tremble, who grew up in Atlanta, made a 54-yard catch and run during the Panthers’ first possession of overtime. The play set up a game-winning field goal.
During the postgame locker room, Tremble joked with rookie Mitchell Evans about his mindset during the play. “Just don’t fumble and win the game,” he said.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales described how quarterback Bryce Young found Tremble after working through his progressions. “We got to give the offensive line credit for allowing him to take that second hitch and find Tommy late, and then Tommy just secured the ball and took off,” Canales explained.
Tremble said he anticipated being open based on how the Falcons’ defensive backs were positioned. “I knew that it was going to be open once we snapped the ball, the DB’s leverage, all that stuff, and so I was just patient, waiting for it,” Tremble said. He credited his teammates’ blocking for helping extend the play: “The receivers ended up getting some good blocks and we were able to take it down.”
Receiver Jalen Coker shared his reaction from watching Tremble break away: “I saw him catch it and then—and I’m kind of watching him, making sure like I’m like, all right, I’m about to go try to see if I can get in front of him to block.” Coker admitted he underestimated Tremble’s speed: “He makes one guy miss, throws a stiff arm, and then he’s out the gate, and I was like, go score, you know, let’s just walk out of here on that.”
Canales also remarked on wanting an immediate touchdown from Tremble’s run: “I’d love for him to just score on that one to get all the antics out of the way.”
Kaden Ellis managed to tackle Tremble near the red zone after being carried along for part of the run. Reflecting on why he went down instead of scoring himself, Tremble said: “I knew we were—a field goal won it, so I was just trying to be do the safe thing, do the smart thing, and make sure that we won the game…”
It was Tremble’s only catch in Sunday’s game but proved decisive as kicker Ryan Fitzgerald converted a short field goal for Carolina’s sixth win this season.
“It was just guys being where they’re supposed to be when they’re supposed to be there,” Canales said. “And one of our basic, most core concepts that we’ve run a million times… that’s what good football is about.”
Tremble summarized his approach by saying: “Everyone on our team is ready to make a play. And so when Bryce gave me the chance, I decided to try to make a play.”
