Quarterback Cam Newton tossed for 355 yards and three touchdowns as the Carolina Panthers held off a late rally by the Detroit Lions en route to a 27-24 win Sunday at Ford Field. Newton completed 26 of 33 passes with no interceptions for a passer rating of 141.8 as the Panthers improved to 4-1 overall and 3-0 on the road. Newton threw touchdown passes to three different teammates – Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess and rookie running back Christian McCaffrey. Ed Dickson caught five passes for 175 yards, Jonathan Stewart carried the ball 18 times for 21 yards while Graham Gano made two of three field goals for the Panthers.
Newton was solid despite the controversies surrounding him over his statement during a press conference where he told Charlotte Observer beat writer Jourdan Rodrigue "it's funny to hear a female talk about routes” when she asked him a question about Funchess. Newton later apologized to the reporter and showed remorse by wearing a pin in his hat showing the image of "Rosie the Riveter'', a symbol of feminism and women's economic power during the World War II era.
Lions’ comeback fell short
Matthew Stafford completed 23 of 35 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns and led the Lions’ comeback from a 27-10 deficit with two scoring strikes to Darren Fells in the fourth period. The loss dropped the Lions to 3-2 overall and 1-2 at home.
Ameer Abdullah ran 10 times for 31 yards, Zach Zenner carried the ball three times for 11 yards and a score while Marvin Jones Jr. caught six passes for 52 yards for Detroit.
After exchanging field goals in the first quarter, the Lions took the lead, 10-3, behind Zenner’s one-yard touchdown run. However, McCaffrey tallied his first NFL touchdown after catching a six-yard shovel pass from Newton.
Minutes later, Newton connected with Funchess for a 10-yard scoring strike that capped an 11-play, 73-yard attack. In the third, the Panthers made it 27-10 after Newton’s 31-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin and Gano’s 44-yard field goal.
3 main sponsors stick with Newton
After his apology to Rodrigue, Newton’s three main sponsors – Under Armour, Beats by Dre and Gatorade – decided to stick with the quarterback.
Earlier, Newton lost one of his endorsement deals with yogurt maker Dannon after his pronouncement. Earlier, Panthers coach Ron Rivera called Newton’s statement as a mistake. The controversy overshadowed the Panthers’ huge 33-30 win over the New England Patriots where Newton tossed for 316 yards and three touchdowns.
