CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – The Carolina Panthers’ head coach seemingly took the blame for his team’s blowout loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday.
“They outplayed us in every phase,” head coach Dave Canales said following the 42-13 whipping. “Offensively, defensively, on special teams … when it’s a full team effort like this, I have to put that on myself.”
Canales — who calls offensive plays for the Panthers — said that as head coach, he was “the common denominator” for the struggles.
The Panthers got off to a fast start against the Patriots. They marched 76 yards down the field and scored a touchdown on their first drive, and forced a three-and-out on their first defensive possession. After that, though, it was all New England.
Following that three-and-out, the Panthers went back into Patriots territory before their offensive drive stalled out. With the ball at the 43-yard line, Carolina opted to punt. New England’s Marcus Jones fielded the punt at the 13-yard line and dashed to the end zone, breaking tackles on his way to a Patriots touchdown.
Carolina’s ensuing drive again ended with a punt on New England’s side of the field, and Charlotte native and former UNC star Drake Maye took the Patriots 80 yards in just six plays for a touchdown. He celebrated with a Cam Newton “Superman” moment.
Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales claimed responsibility for Sunday’s 42-13 loss to the New England Patriots.(Steven Senne | AP)
After that, the game simply got out of hand, thanks to a defense that allowed touchdowns on four out of five possessions at one point, an offense that couldn’t score again until garbage time, and a special teams unit responsible for a missed field goal, extra point and that surrendered another huge punt return.
“When it happens in all phases, I’m the common denominator,” Canales said after the game. “I have to take responsibility for that. I have to make sure that I’m pushing the guys the right way. I have to evaluate what we’re doing, how we’re working, how we’re preparing our guys. I felt confident about that part, but we’re not getting the results.”
Despite his coach’s words, star cornerback Jaycee Horn stopped short of placing the blame on him.
“He can’t go out there and play,” Horn said in Canales’ defense. “We got to be ready to play on all three phases. We wasn’t. Offense wasn’t ready, defense wasn’t ready, special teams wasn’t ready … He can’t wake everybody up Sunday morning and have them ready to play.”
Defensive tackle Derrick Brown also declined to place the blame on Canales.
“Coach takes the blame for us all the time,” Brown said after the game. “We got to step up. We got to have his back … We appreciate him but this team knows that if we want to be a player-run team, a player-led team, to where it doesn’t matter what he calls, it doesn’t matter what Dave and Brad [Idzik] call or Tracy [Smith]. We want to go out there and have execution at the highest level so we can enjoy the fruits of our labor.”
The Panthers actually outgained the Patriots in terms of total yards, had the ball for 10 minutes longer, had five more first downs, and reached New England territory on seven of their 11 drives — but scored on just two of those possessions.
With Sunday’s loss, Carolina dropped to 1-3, while New England moved to 2-2.
The Panthers will back home in Week 5 when they host the Miami Dolphins, who lost each of their first three games.
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