CHARLOTTE – Cam Newton’s touchdown pass to Ted Ginn, Jr. gave the Carolina Panthers a 24-20 victory over the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football – but not without a little last-second drama.
After Carolina went ahead with :59 left in the fourth quarter, Tom Brady drove the Patriots down the field and took one last shot into the end zone as time expired. His pass intended for Rob Gronkowski was intercepted, but a penalty flag was initially thrown on the play for what could have been pass interference on Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly. After a short debate, officials waved off the flag and the game was declared over.
With the victory, Carolina has now won six straight games after a 1-3 start and sits at 7-3 – just a game behind New Orleans in the NFC South. The Patriots fell to 7-3 on the year.
Kevin Harlan and Boomer Esiason called the action on WestwoodOne Sports.