Caesars Superdome | New Orleans, LA | Attendance: 70,070 | FOX | Vegas Line: CAR -3.0
Charlie Smyth lined up a 47-yard field goal with two seconds left, the Caesars Superdome holding its breath, and Carolina’s season hanging somewhere in the balance. The 24-year-old from Northern Ireland — who had three NFL games on his résumé entering Sunday — put it through. Final: New Orleans Saints 20, Carolina Panthers 17.
The Panthers came into this game with a chance to seize sole possession of first place in the NFC South. A win here, followed by a victory over Tampa Bay in Week 16, and Carolina would have been division champions. Instead, they left at 7-7, beaten by a team that was 4-10, by a rookie quarterback in his sixth start and a kicker who weeks earlier was planning to become a primary school teacher back home.
That is the story. Now here are the numbers behind it.
Table of Contents
Scoring Summary
| Q | Time | Team | Play | CAR | NOR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6:39 | CAR | Rico Dowdle 4-yd rush (Fitzgerald kick) | 7 | 0 |
| 2 | 3:32 | NOR | Devin Neal 4-yd rush (Smyth kick) | 7 | 7 |
| 2 | 0:21 | CAR | Ryan Fitzgerald 40-yd FG | 10 | 7 |
| 3 | 9:54 | CAR | Jalen Coker 32-yd pass from Bryce Young (Fitzgerald kick) | 17 | 7 |
| 3 | 1:56 | NOR | Charlie Smyth 42-yd FG | 17 | 10 |
| 4 | 2:29 | NOR | Chris Olave 12-yd pass from Tyler Shough (Smyth kick) | 17 | 17 |
| 4 | 0:02 | NOR | Charlie Smyth 47-yd FG | 17 | 20 |
Team Stats
| Category | CAR | NOR |
|---|---|---|
| Total Yards | 281 | 337 |
| Net Passing Yards | 154 | 256 |
| Rushing Yards | 127 | 81 |
| First Downs | 15 | 27 |
| Comp/Att | 15/24 | 24/33 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost | 1-9 | 5-16 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Fumbles Lost | 1 | 0 |
| Penalties-Yards | 11-103 | 9-78 |
| 3rd Down Conversions | 7/14 (50%) | 6/11 (55%) |
| 4th Down Conversions | 2/3 | 1/2 |
| Red Zone (Scored/Att) | 1/1 | 2/3 |
| Time of Possession | 28:16 | 31:44 |
Carolina out-rushed New Orleans 127 to 81 and won the turnover battle going into the fourth quarter. On paper, the Panthers were the better team for three quarters. What cost them was 11 penalties for 103 yards, five sacks surrendered, and a fourth-and-1 stuff with 10:56 left that handed New Orleans the opening for its final two scoring drives.
How the Game Played Out
Carolina built a 17-7 lead through three quarters. Rico Dowdle capped the opening drive — 13 plays, 74 yards, 7:18 off the clock — with a 4-yard touchdown run. Bryce Young added a 32-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Coker in the third quarter on a pinpoint throw to the right sideline in tight coverage.
New Orleans answered with a 17-play, 95-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter — the longest of the game by every measure — that consumed 11 minutes and 22 seconds and required conversions on third-and-13 and fourth-and-1. Devin Neal scored from 4 yards out. The Saints then went down 17-10 on a Smyth 42-yarder before the fourth quarter flipped everything.
Carolina turned the ball over on downs at the Saints 35 with 10:56 left after Hubbard was stuffed at the line on fourth-and-1. That set Tyler Shough up to operate in a two-score game, which he handled without a mistake. He drove the Saints 78 yards in 2:08, hitting Chris Olave from 12 yards out to tie it at 17 with 2:29 remaining.
Chase Young then sacked Bryce Young to force a quick Carolina punt. Shough moved New Orleans into field goal range, took a carry near midfield and slid at the Carolina 44 — drawing an unnecessary roughness flag on safety Lathan Ransom that pushed the ball to the 29. Smyth did the rest.
“It’s difficult; every yard matters in that situation,” Ransom said. “He’s a quarterback. So, I guess I’ve got to be more aware of the situation and let him slide.”
Quarterback Stats
| Player | Team | C/A | Yds | TD | INT | Sacks | Long | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bryce Young | CAR | 15/24 | 163 | 1 | 0 | 1-9 | 34 | 96.4 |
| Tyler Shough | NOR | 24/32 | 272 | 1 | 0 | 5-16 | 19 | 110.4 |
| Spencer Rattler | NOR | 0/1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 39.6 |
Young threw for 163 yards and ran seven times for 49 yards, providing Carolina’s most consistent yards-after-contact on the ground. The Coker touchdown was the kind of throw that validates the faith the organization has placed in him — back-shoulder, tight window, 32 yards. The sack he took with 2:00 left on second-and-19, courtesy of Chase Young, ended any realistic chance of a game-winning drive.
Shough’s 272-yard, zero-turnover day was his clearest performance as a starter. His line against 13 blitzes: 24-of-32, no sacks, no pressure converted into a mistake. “His steadiness is really special,” head coach Kellen Moore said. “He made some big-time plays.”
Rushing Stats
| Player | Team | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rico Dowdle | CAR | 16 | 49 | 3.1 | 1 | 8 |
| Bryce Young | CAR | 7 | 49 | 7.0 | 0 | 15 |
| Chuba Hubbard | CAR | 8 | 29 | 3.6 | 0 | 10 |
| CAR Total | 31 | 127 | 4.1 | 1 | 15 | |
| Tyler Shough | NOR | 8 | 32 | 4.0 | 0 | 13 |
| Devin Neal | NOR | 7 | 28 | 4.0 | 1 | 15 |
| Evan Hull | NOR | 4 | 12 | 3.0 | 0 | 6 |
| Audric Estime | NOR | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 | 5 |
| Taysom Hill | NOR | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 2 |
| Mason Tipton | NOR | 1 | -4 | -4.0 | 0 | -4 |
| NOR Total | 25 | 81 | 3.2 | 1 | 15 |
Dowdle’s 16-carry, 49-yard afternoon included four explosive runs of 10-plus yards per PFF. Hubbard’s fourth-and-1 stuff by Bresee remains the clearest turning point — Carolina was 17-10 up and had New Orleans pinned back with just under 11 minutes left. That stop began the sequence that cost the Panthers the game.
Receiving Stats
Carolina Panthers
| Player | Pos | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | YAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jalen Coker | WR | 4 | 4 | 60 | 15.0 | 1 | 32 | 2 |
| Xavier Legette | WR | 3 | 2 | 39 | 19.5 | 0 | 34 | 3 |
| Tetairoa McMillan | WR | 4 | 2 | 25 | 12.5 | 0 | 21 | 9 |
| Tommy Tremble | TE | 4 | 2 | 13 | 6.5 | 0 | 8 | 10 |
| Chuba Hubbard | RB | 1 | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 9 | 14 |
| Jimmy Horn Jr. | WR | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 | 6 |
| Ja’Tavion Sanders | TE | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
| Rico Dowdle | RB | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 | 4 |
| CAR Total | 20 | 15 | 163 | 10.9 | 1 | 34 |
New Orleans Saints
| Player | Pos | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | YAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Olave | WR | 9 | 6 | 85 | 14.2 | 1 | 18 | 6 |
| Devaughn Vele | WR | 6 | 5 | 69 | 13.8 | 0 | 17 | 6 |
| Audric Estime | RB | 3 | 3 | 39 | 13.0 | 0 | 19 | 48 |
| Kevin Austin Jr. | WR | 5 | 3 | 33 | 11.0 | 0 | 18 | 8 |
| Juwan Johnson | TE | 4 | 4 | 30 | 7.5 | 0 | 12 | 14 |
| Jack Stoll | TE | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Mason Tipton | WR | 2 | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Devin Neal | RB | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| NOR Total | 31 | 24 | 272 | 11.3 | 1 | 19 |
Coker finished 4-for-4 with a touchdown and earned an 84.5 PFF grade — the highest on the Carolina offense. Olave led all receivers with six catches for 85 yards and the tying score, working on nine targets. Devaughn Vele had five receptions for 69 yards before leaving with a shoulder injury in the second half. Audric Estime’s three-catch, 39-yard day included 48 yards after the catch, the highest YAC total of any receiver on either team.
Defensive Stats
Carolina Panthers
| Player | Pos | Tot | Solo | Sacks | TFL | PD | QB Hits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Scott | S | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaycee Horn | CB | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Michael Jackson | CB | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Christian Rozeboom | LB | 6 | 3 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Bobby Brown III | DT | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Chau Smith-Wade | CB | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tre’von Moehrig | S | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| D.J. Wonnum | LB | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| A’Shawn Robinson | DT | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derrick Brown | DT | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lathan Ransom | S | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trevin Wallace | LB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trevis Gipson | LB | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Nic Scourton | LB | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Princely Umanmielen | LB | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Robert Rochell | CB | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
New Orleans Saints
| Player | Pos | Tot | Solo | Sacks | TFL | PD | QB Hits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Young | DE | 6 | 4 | 1.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Jonathan Bullard | DE | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonas Sanker | S | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Demario Davis | LB | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jordan Howden | S | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kool-Aid McKinstry | CB | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cameron Jordan | DE | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pete Werner | LB | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alontae Taylor | CB | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Quincy Riley | CB | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Jonah Williams | DE | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Rumph II | DE | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bryan Bresee | DT | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Danny Stutsman | LB | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Davon Godchaux | DT | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nathan Shepherd | DT | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
D.J. Wonnum was Carolina’s most productive pass rusher with two sacks, but the Saints generated 15 total pressures on Bryce Young compared to just five on Shough all afternoon, per PFF. Carl Granderson led the New Orleans pass rush with six hurries and a 35.3% pressure rate. Chase Young’s sack in the final minute directly forced the punt that handed Shough the ball for the walk-off drive.
“Every week, I can just tell he’s getting more comfortable; he’s just starting to look like that guy,” Chase Young said of Shough. “Whatever he’s doing, we got to get him to keep doing it.”
Passing Pressure & Advanced Defense
| Player | Team | Pressures | Sacks | Hits | Hurries | Pass Rush% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carl Granderson | NOR | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 35.3% |
| Cameron Jordan | NOR | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 25.0% |
| Chase Young | NOR | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 13.0% |
| D.J. Wonnum | CAR | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3.7% |
| Trevis Gipson | CAR | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 22.2% |
| A’Shawn Robinson | CAR | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5.6% |
Special Teams
Kicking & Punting
| Player | Team | FG | Pct | Long | XP | Punts | Avg | Long | In 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Fitzgerald | CAR | 1/1 | 100% | 40 | 2/2 | — | — | — | — |
| Sam Martin | CAR | — | — | — | — | 3 | 47.3 | 56 | 2 |
| Charlie Smyth | NOR | 2/2 | 100% | 47 | 2/2 | — | — | — | — |
| Kai Kroeger | NOR | — | — | — | — | 2 | 47.5 | 58 | 1 |
Kick Returns
| Player | Team | KR | Yds | Avg | Long | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chuba Hubbard | CAR | 2 | 50 | 25.0 | 27 | 0 |
| Trevor Etienne | CAR | 1 | 25 | 25.0 | 25 | 0 |
| Rico Dowdle | CAR | 1 | 23 | 23.0 | 23 | 0 |
| Evan Hull | NOR | 3 | 72 | 24.0 | 29 | 0 |
| Mason Tipton | NOR | 1 | 19 | 19.0 | 19 | 0 |
Punt Returns
| Player | Team | PR | Yds | Avg | Long | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Etienne | CAR | 1 | 16 | 16.0 | 16 | 0 |
| Dante Pettis | NOR | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Smyth was 4-for-5 on field goal attempts entering Sunday. Both kicks here — 42 and 47 yards — were clean. His 47-yarder in the final seconds gave New Orleans its second straight win over a playoff-contending team.
“I was just delighted to get the opportunity,” Smyth said. “It was a good moment and one I’ll never forget.”
PFF Initial Grades
Offense
| Player | Team | Pos | Grade | Snaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devaughn Vele | NOR | WR | 90.6 | 38 |
| Jalen Coker | CAR | WR | 84.5 | 39 |
| Tyler Shough | NOR | QB | 81.8 | 68 |
| Kelvin Banks Jr. | NOR | T | 76.7 | 69 |
| Ikem Ekwonu | CAR | T | 71.2 | 57 |
Defense
| Player | Team | Pos | Grade | Snaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cameron Jordan | NOR | ED | 84.6 | 25 |
| Trevis Gipson | CAR | ED | 81.7 | 24 |
| Mike Jackson | CAR | CB | 76.6 | 69 |
| Demario Davis | NOR | LB | 75.6 | 57 |
| Jonas Sanker | NOR | S | 75.5 | 57 |
All PFF grades are initial and subject to review.
Snap Counts
Panthers Offense (57 total snaps)
| Player | Pos | Snaps | Pct |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bryce Young | QB | 57 | 100% |
| OL (Lewis/Moton/Corbett/Ekwonu/Mays) | — | 57 | 100% |
| Tetairoa McMillan | WR | 48 | 84% |
| Xavier Legette | WR | 42 | 74% |
| Jalen Coker | WR | 39 | 68% |
| Rico Dowdle | RB | 34 | 60% |
| Ja’Tavion Sanders | TE | 30 | 53% |
| Tommy Tremble | TE | 28 | 49% |
| Chuba Hubbard | RB | 24 | 42% |
Saints Offense (69 total snaps)
| Player | Pos | Snaps | Pct |
|---|---|---|---|
| OL core (Banks/Radunz/Fuaga/Fortner) | — | 69 | 100% |
| Tyler Shough | QB | 68 | 99% |
| Chris Olave | WR | 58 | 84% |
| Mason Tipton | WR | 55 | 80% |
| Juwan Johnson | TE | 42 | 61% |
| Devaughn Vele | WR | 38 | 55% |
Injuries
- Devin Neal (NOR, RB): Hamstring — left after his second-quarter touchdown run
- Devaughn Vele (NOR, WR): Shoulder — left in the second half (5 rec, 69 yds before exit)
- Cesar Ruiz (NOR, G): Ankle — left in the second half
- Justin Reid (NOR, S): Knee — missed his second straight game
- Turk Wharton (CAR, DE): Hamstring — scratched on game day after being added to the injury report Saturday
What Comes Next
Bryce Young put it plainly after the game. “It was just a lack of execution. We’re a team that prides ourselves on the finish and we didn’t get that done today.”
Carolina left New Orleans still searching for its first postseason berth since 2017. The Panthers headed into Week 16 at 7-7, facing Tampa Bay in a game that had looked straightforward until Sunday changed the math.
For New Orleans, the Saints closed the 2025 season with six wins and back-to-back victories over division contenders. Shough won three of his six starts, threw for 272 yards without a turnover against a team fighting for its playoff life, and gave the franchise a real answer at quarterback entering the offseason.
“We’re not going to be able to go to the playoffs this year, but we’re building something really special,” Moore said. “Every single guy in that locker room, the way they prepare and compete and stay together — the last two weeks has been an awesome example.”
From two seconds on the clock and a 47-yard field goal attempt, the Saints made their point.
Stats sourced from Pro Football Reference, ESPN, and PFF. Game played December 14, 2025 at Caesars Superdome, New Orleans.
