Panthers vs. Packers: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2014 Regular Season

It's safe to say any early-season worries about the Green Bay Packers' offense have been assuaged. And then some.   

Aaron Rodgers threw for three touchdowns, the ground game looked as spry as it has all season and the Packers defense pummeled Cam Newton as Green Bay defeated the Carolina Panthers, 38-17, on Sunday.

Billed as a battle between two NFC playoff contenders, the Packers sent a loud and clear message from the opening whistle. Green Bay scored touchdowns on its first three offensive possessions and four of its first five, opening up a 28-3 halftime lead from which the Panthers would never recover.

Rodgers, given time in the pocket against a hapless Carolina pass rush, had one of his best per-play performances of 2014. The 2011 NFL MVP completed 19 of 22 passes for 255 yards, hitting Jordy Nelson for a 59-yard score on the Packers' opening drive and Randall Cobb from three yards out to complete a 94-yard drive in the second quarter.

Davante Adams was at the receiving end of Rodgers' third score, a 21-yard pitch and catch to open the second half that eliminated any chance of a comeback.

The last four games have seen the Packers do a complete offensive 180 from the three contests that came before. At 1-2 following a 19-7 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 3, Green Bay was averaging 18 points per game and was 21st in offensive DVOA, per Football Outsiders' premium stats database (subscription required).

The Packers have won four consecutive games since, upping their points-per-game average to 36.25 and looking like the loaded outfit some expected to challenge Denver for the best offense in football. Rodgers over that time has thrown for 14 touchdowns without an interception, with no fewer than three scores in any contest. After missing seven games last season with injury issues, Rodgers appears primed for his second MVP run.

“One of the things he does really well is his release is so fast,” Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly said before the game, per Jonathan Jones of the Carolina Observer. “It’s not one of those things where he’s got a big windup. He knows where he’s going with the ball and it’s gone. You turn your head, you’ve blinked and it’s gone.”

Morry Gash/Associated Press

Rodgers' unflappable brilliance helped open holes for the Green Bay running game. Eddie Lacy and James Starks combined for 99 yards on their 19 carries, each scoring as part of the Packers' big first-half run. Lacy got in from five yards out on their second drive from scrimmage and Starks finished off the third from 13 yards out.

It appears Mike McCarthy has settled on a two-back system with Starks and Lacy over allowing the second-year player to maintain a workhorse load. Starks has received at least seven carries in three of the last four weeks, and Lacy seems fresher as the game goes along while splitting the snaps.

“We know we’re coming in and out. It’s discussed on the sideline,” Lacy said this week, per
Mike Spofford of Packers.com. “I feel like Coach is cool to the point where if one of us is in and we’re doing good, he’s not going to sub him, because obviously he’s in a groove, so you just leave him in. It’s just a matter of finding it.”

Meanwhile, nothing on either side of the ball went right for Carolina. 

Consigned to one-man band duty caused by injuries and a lack of skill-position talent, Newton showed cracks under the weight of his responsibility Sunday. He made questionable throws under duress, miscommunicated on numerous occasions and failed to extend drives to keep his defense off the field. The Panthers went 4-of-12 on third downs and had one extended drive in meaningful minutes. Most of Carolina's positive headway came in garbage time against vanilla Green Bay looks.

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

Newton's only consistent connection of the day was with tight end Greg Olsen, who had eight receptions for 105 yards. The Pro Bowler finished with 205 yards, completing 17 of 31 passes with a touchdown and an interception. Kelvin Benjamin was at the receiving end of a 13-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, which made the score 38-10. (Derek Anderson threw a touchdown to Brenton Bersin with 1:24 remaining to finalize the score.)

The only good news on the offensive front was the return of Jonathan Stewart, who failed to do much behind a skeletal offensive line. Thirty-two of Stewart's 55 yards came late in the game on three draw plays against defensive back-laden Packers alignments in the fourth quarter. It appears unlikely that the Carolina running game will get much better anytime soon—especially after left tackle Byron Bell left with an elbow injury, per the team on Twitter.

Frustrations also bubbled over to the defensive side, as the normally cool-headed Kuechly was ejected in the third quarter for making contact with an official. Kuechly was angered when a Packers offensive player pulled him off the pile after a Lacy fumble, making contact with the official who was behind the reigning Defensive Player of the Year and attempting to restrain him. It did not appear at the time Kuechly knew the person restraining him was a referee.

Regardless of intent, it's hard to blame Kuechly for having a short temper. One of the NFL's fiercest units in 2013, the Panthers defense has fallen apart this season. After impressive wins over Tampa Bay and Detroit to start the season, Carolina has allowed 34.8 points per game and not allowed fewer than 24 in any single contest. Like Newton, Kuechly has at times been left on an island to drown as teammates around him make mistakes.

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

While the NFC South is far from a power division, the Panthers will struggle to hold off New Orleans without a vast improvement. The Seahawks make a trip to Carolina before a Thursday night clash with those Saints, so the schedule won't be doing them any favors either.

One way Carolina can help fend off New Orleans is by getting help from its Week 7 counterpart. The Packers are scheduled for a Sunday night trip to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome before heading off for their bye. Drew Brees and Co. can match offensive wits with any NFL team, but New Orleans' struggling defense will have its hands full with the Packers' red-hot unit.

Then again, at the rate Rodgers is performing, so would the 1985 Bears.

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter