What we learned from the Panthers’ humbling home loss to the Cowboys

The Panthers were soundly beaten at home by the Cowboys.

Dec 15, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen (19) is tackled by Dallas Cowboys cornerback Andrew Booth Jr. (25) during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers suffered a truly humbling defeat on Sunday. During the offseason, if someone said the Dallas Cowboys would beat them 30-14 at home, no one would have batted an eye. But the two teams that came into Sunday didn't resemble what they were supposed to this year.

The Panthers had been playing excellent ball despite three straight close losses. The Cowboys were 5-8 and missing a host of defenders and QB Dak Prescott. Yet, that didn't seem to matter on the field, when the Cowboys looked like a class above Carolina.

What Carolina can glean from shocking loss to Cowboys

Aside from a long touchdown drive and an 83-yard pass play, the Panthers had very few bright spots on Sunday. The 83-yard touchdown cut the deficit to three, and the lengthy drive capped off by a Bryce Young run cut the lead to 13 with nine minutes left. Otherwise, it was a bad display all around.

Unfortunately, there are only negative things to learn from this game. We learned that Dave Canales is still a very young playcaller. He spent last season calling plays for the first time for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so he has called plays for 31 games total.

He reminded everyone of that at times on Sunday, with a curious gameplan that really didn't do the offense any favors. The running game was abandoned despite there being a good matchup there on paper. The offense was also fairly vanilla for most of the game, having Bryce Young drop straight back wuthout moving the pocket or even trying play action.

Speaking of Young, we also learned that development is far from linear. After three straight excellent weeks and five consecutive good outings, Young struggled. Four turnovers (two interceptions and two fumbles) plagued him. An argument can be made that a pick on a PBU and a fumble when the pass protection was immediately beaten aren't all on the QB, but the other two turnovers were worse.

The pass protection also taught us something. It has been sterling all year, but it completely broke down today. They allowed a season-high six sacks, and Young avoided a couple of others. Both tackles had no answer for Micah Parsons, and whenever the Cowboys blitzed, the Panthers could hardly pick it up.

It's not necessarily news that the Panthers have an awful defense, but they've managed that in recent weeks. They got plays when they needed to and have done a good job at keeping the passing game more in check even if all opponents have run wild on Carolina.

On Sunday, the Panthers couldn't stop anyone. Rico Dowdle had a career outing, and Cooper Rush threw for three touchdowns. Xavier Woods was particularly awful, and he might have played himself out of a chance to re-sign with the team.

The Cowboys, with backups and an overall bad running game from this season, did whatever they wanted except on one drive. That drive was an unforced fumble by Rush, so it wasn't even a good play for the defense for the most part.

In all three phases, the Panthers were beaten. They were also outcoached, and it should teach everyone that they're perhaps a little further from contention than the last three weeks would've indicated.

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