CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Baker Mayfield’s much anticipated Panthers debut got off to a very rocky start, completing just five of his first eleven pass attempts for 14 yards and an interception. Carolina’s offense went three and out in three of its first five possessions and could not get anything going downfield. Cleveland’s stout defensive front gave Carolina all sorts of issues, as expected. Jadeveon Clowney got his hands on two passes at the line of scrimmage and the Browns as a team had four passes deflected in the first half.
The Browns had a chance to score on their opening possession when Jacoby Brissett had Amari Cooper wide-open down the sideline. He waited a hair too long which allowed Xavier Woods to close in and force the incompletion. Jaycee Horn slipped right out of his release and had Brissett noticed right away, the Browns would have taken a 7-0 lead right out of the gate.
Baker Mayfield dropped a couple of snaps that resulted in negative plays, but his biggest mistake of the first half was a poorly thrown ball to Shi Smith, resulting in an interception by Grant Delpit. Brissett took a deep shot to Cooper on 3rd & 3 that was intercepted by Xavier Woods. Unfortunately, CJ Henderson tried to compensate for getting beat on the route and was flagged for defensive pass interference, setting the ball up at the one-yard line. Kareem Hunt punched it in on the next play.
Third down continued to be an issue for the Panthers’ defense as they gave up a 15-yard gain to Donovan Peoples-Jones and then a 25-yard burst from Nick Chubb on 3rd and short on Cleveland’s next possession. Once again, Kareem Hunt capped off the drive with a touchdown. This time from 24 yards out, untouched.
Carolina’s offense finally awoke from its slumber toward the end of the half as Mayfield connected with DJ Moore for a gain of 15 on 3rd and 3, which was followed up by a 50-yard bomb to TE Ian Thomas. Christian McCaffrey went airborne and into the end zone a couple of plays later to get the Panthers on the board.
New Panthers’ kicker Eddy Pineiro sailed the kickoff out of bounds, allowing the Browns to start their final drive of the half at the 40. Cade York chipped in a 26-yard field goal to make it a 17-7 game at the break.
After a combined 24 points were scored in the second quarter, both defenses found a rhythm following adjustments that were made at the half. A 34-yard field goal by Cade York was the lone score of the frame.
The Panthers offense put together its best drive of the day toward the end of the third and into the fourth. Offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo made sure to get Christian McCaffrey involved and get the ball out of Mayfield’s hands quickly after Ikem Ekwonu allowed back-to-back sacks to Myles Garrett on the previous drive.
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Mayfield dropped another snap, but McCaffrey picked it up off the ground and gashed Cleveland for a gain of 32. Carolina methodically worked their way down the field, setting up a 7-yard touchdown run by Mayfield, drawing the Panthers to within a score.
Cleveland tacked on another field goal from York, pushing the lead back out to two scores, 23-14. One play later, Mayfield answered as he hit Robbie Anderson on a deep post for a 75-yard touchdown.
With the clock nearing two minutes, the Panthers desperately needed to get a stop and get the ball back to its offense. Frankie Luvu made a terrific open field tackle on Nick Chubb who had carved up the Panthers all day (141 yards on 22 carries). Brissett’s third down pass fell incomplete intended for Donovan Peoples-Jones, forcing a punt.
Mayfield led the Panthers right down the field which started with a 26-yard completion to DJ Moore. Christian McCaffrey had a nice catch and run of 21 yards and an additional 15 yards was added for a horsecollar tackle, moving the ball inside the red zone. The Panthers played it conservatively and played for the field goal. Eddy Pineiro gave Carolina its first lead of the day, 24-23 with 1:17 remaining.
On the first play of Cleveland’s drive, Brian Burns was flagged for roughing the passer which appeared to be the wrong call. The right tackle’s shoulder pad popped Brissett in the facemask, triggering the flag to be thrown. Brissett moved the offense up to the Carolina 40-yard line and rookie kicker Cade York booted through a 58-yard field goal for the win.
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