Saints vs. Panthers: Score and Twitter Reaction for Thursday Night Football

The Carolina Panthers may want to petition the NFL to cancel fourth quarters, but they hung on for a 23-20 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday at Bank of America Stadium.

Carolina entered the final period with a 23-3 lead, but New Orleans scored 17 unanswered points and had the ball with an opportunity to win in the final seconds.

The Panthers, however, tackled receiver Michael Thomas at their 43-yard line as time expired.

Carolina allowed the Kansas City Chiefs to score 20 straight points—including 17 in the fourth quarter—in a 20-17 loss Sunday, so the late collapse was nothing new.

The defending NFC champions and Saints are each 4-6 after Thursday's contest, with both looking up at the 6-4 Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South.

Cam Newton threw for 192 yards and a touchdown, which helped the Panthers make up for an abysmal performance on the ground. They ran for just 50 yards on 27 carries, though Jonathan Stewart did score a touchdown.

New Orleans' Drew Brees countered with 285 passing yards and two touchdowns against one interception.

While Carolina is still within striking distance of the division title, its win was a particularly costly one. Linebacker Luke Kuechly was carted off the field in the fourth quarter, and the Panthers announced that he was being evaluated for a concussion.

Carolina also announced that center Ryan Kalil left the game with a shoulder injury, while the team's sack leader, Mario Addison, left with a foot injury, per David Newton of ESPN.

Addison made the first big play of the game, strip-sacking Brees and recovering the fumble, which gave the Panthers the ball at the Saints' 32-yard line.

It appeared as though Ted Ginn Jr. had turned the favorable field position into a touchdown, but his 14-yard run was overturned by a replay review. New Orleans held Carolina to a field goal even though it roughed kicker Graham Gano on his first attempt, which gave the Panthers a fresh set of downs.

Steve Reed of the Associated Press reacted to the strange sequence:

The Saints answered with Wil Lutz's 27-yard field goal on the ensuing possession. The defenses then settled in and forced three straight punts before Kurt Coleman intercepted Brees.

The NFL shared video of the pick that put Carolina at the Saints' 34-yard line:

The Panthers parlayed the turnover into a touchdown when Stewart leapt in from a yard out. NFL Research noted the score was a welcome sight for Carolina:

Special teams then took over for the Panthers.

After New Orleans went three-and-out, Gano drilled a 49-yard field goal, and Vernon Butler blocked Lutz's 38-yard field-goal attempt, which Kuechly returned 88 yards to the end zone—though the score didn't stand because of an illegal block.

"The Saints special teams are an unmitigated disaster," Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com tweeted.

Carolina scored on the next play, as Ginn made a fantastic catch on Newton's perfectly placed 40-yard pass. The NFL shared video of the touchdown:

The Panthers kept rolling with a 14-play drive to open the second half, and Gano connected on a 42-yard field goal.

The New Orleans offense woke up on its first chance of the half, putting together a 16-play, 58-yard drive but settling for a 30-yard field goal.

"Surprised the Saints would go for a field goal," Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com tweeted. "There were only two drives that entire quarter, and they are down 20."

The drive proved costly for reasons beyond the clock, as running back Mark Ingram went to the locker room after taking a hit to the head. Larry Holder of NOLA.com reported that Ingram was in the concussion protocol, and Duncan pointed out the Alabama product wasn't pleased with the development:

New Orleans didn't miss Ingram on its next drive. After a 22-yard punt return by Marcus Murphy, Tim Hightower carried the ball three straight times for 42 yards to set up Brees' nine-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Coleman, and Duncan described the mood in the stadium:

The sense of dread intensified when Newton threw three straight incompletions on the ensuing drive. The Carolina defense then earned a three-and-out, but the Panthers couldn't pick up a first down, and the Saints got the ball back down 10 with 8:03 to play.

Kuechly was hurt on the eighth snap of the Saints' 13-play march, and Carolina struggled without its defensive leader and Addison on the field.

San Francisco 49ers linebacker NaVorro Bowman, who missed the 2014 season with a severe left knee injury, reacted to the injury:

Brees completed three of his next four passes for 25 yards and then found Coby Fleener for an eight-yard touchdown near where Kuechly would've been playing in the middle of the field, and the extra point made it 23-20 with 2:52 remaining.

The Panthers looked to be in trouble again, but on 3rd-and-10 with 2:39 to go, Newton threw a strike to Kelvin Benjamin for 18 yards, and Matt Bowen of ESPN.com underscored how physical the receiver was on the critical catch:

Carolina drained all but 28 seconds from the clock with three consecutive runs before it punted the ball back to New Orleans.

The Saints had to start from their own 14 after a holding penalty on the return, and though Brees completed three passes in a row, the game ended when Thomas was tackled after picking up 21 yards on the last play.

What's Next?

The Panthers will play two straight road games against the 7-2 Oakland Raiders and 6-2-1 Seattle Seahawks. They are still alive in the playoff picture but will be hard-pressed to stay there if they can't find a way to beat their upcoming opponents.

New Orleans has two home games coming up against the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions, who are a combined 9-9, so the Saints may have a better chance than Carolina to remain in the thick of the race.

Postgame Reaction

"It's tough right now," Lutz said of the blocked field goal, per Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. "I really felt like I let this team down."

Brees said the two turnovers were crucial, per John DeShazier of the team's website: "The two turnovers in [the] first half put us in a bad spot. Played that first half on our side of [the] field."

Newton talked about injuries, per Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer: "It was the Grim Reaper walking out there today."

Panthers tight end Greg Olsen also discussed the injuries, per Person: "The only positive out of this whole thing is we won, which is a huge positive. But we need to take this week and regroup."

Fortunately for Carolina, it has a long week before its next game.