Late in the first half, it seemed like the New Orleans Saints (9-3) were just about to put the game on wax. However, a fumble by Josh Hill gave the Carolina Panthers (8-4) a chance to get within one score before the two-minute warning.
They were able to make it 21-14 after Cam Newton connected with a wide-open Christian McCaffrey on a 21-yard pass. However, that was as close as they were able to get with the Saints finishing the regular season series sweep with a 31-21 victory on Sunday afternoon.
The Saints star rookie Alvin Kamara increased their lead at the midway mark of the third quarter with a 20-yard run into the endzone, capping off an eight play drive that took a little more than five minutes off the clock to make it 28-21. After missing a field goal earlier in the game, Wil Lutz redeemed himself in the fourth quarter with a 31-yard field goal to extend the lead to 17 points.
Carolina started to rally back late with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Devin Funchess to make it a 10-point ballgame. However, Funchess recovered the ensuing onside kick out of bounds to officially put the game out of reach and give the Saints sole possession of first place in the NFC South.
The Saints will have a short week with a Thursday night matchup against the Atlanta Falcons (7-5) with kickoff set for 7:25 pm.
-Clint Domingue