Woody:PANTHERS 20, SKINS 17

[TK]

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PANTHERS 20, SKINS 17

COMPILED BY STAFF WRITER PAUL WOODY

Monday, November 17, 2003

Play of the game

Was it a touchdown or a fumble? Did Carolina running back Stephen Davis break the plane of the goal line with the ball or was he down by contact a yard short?

As far as the officials were concerned, Davis scored the game-winning touchdown on a 3-yard run on second and goal with 1:09 left. Davis hit into a pile of players, drove forward then began squirming and twisting in an effort to get the last few inches. He stretched his arms forward with the ball in his grasp and the official ran in from the side with his arms upraised, signaling a touchdown. Then, Redskins safety Matt Bowen sprinted to Davis, knocked the ball from his arms and the Redskins grabbed it. But it was too late. The officials in the replay booth called for a review, but referee Gerald Austin, after looking at the replay, said there was "no visual evidence" to overturn the ruling on the field.

Scoring drives

SECOND QUARTER

Carolina 3, Washington 0, 12:52 - The Panthers picked up 50 yards in their 66-yard drive on two plays. The first was a 22-yard pass from quarterback Jake Delhomme to wide receiver Ricky Proehl on a third-and-9 at the Carolina 41. The next was a 28-yard pass from Delhomme to wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad that put the Panthers on the Redskins' 9. They could get no closer than the 7 and settled for a 24-yard field goal by John Kasay.

Carolina 3, Washington 3, 3:09 - Redskins safety Matt Bowen intercepted a pass that bounced off the hands of wide receiver Steve Smith. Bowen returned the ball 44 yards to the Panthers' 39. On third and 4 from the 33, Redskins quarterback Patrick Ramsey found fullback Rock Cartwright open over the middle, and Cartwright turned the short pass into a 23-yard gain. The Redskins moved to the 5 then settled for a 23-yard field goal from John Hall. THIRD QUARTER

Carolina 10, Washington 3, 10:36 - The Panthers began the second half with a 39-yard kickoff return by Rod Smart to the Carolina 45. They then used seven plays to cover the remaining 55 yards. The big plays in the drive were a 13-yard sweep by Davis that put Carolina on the Redskins' 39, followed by a 30-yard pass to Muhammad to the 9. On fourth and goal at the 1, Delhomme faked a handoff, then ran a bootleg to his left for the touchdown. FOURTH QUARTER

Carolina 10, Washington 10, 11:57 - The Panthers attempted a 54-yard field goal, and when it fell short, Washington took over at its 44. The Redskins used 12 plays to drive the 56 yards with the game-tying touchdown coming on a nicely thrown and nicely caught pass from Ramsey to backup wide receiver Darnerien McCants on a third-and-goal from the 4. McCants ran along the back of the end zone, Ramsey lofted the ball over the defenders, and McCants made the grab and managed to get both feet down before stepping out of the end zone. McCants also had an 11-yard reception in the drive.

Carolina 13, Washington 10, 5:24 - The Panthers drove 72 yards on nine plays to get a 26-yard field goal from Kasay. The big play in the drive was a 40-yard pass from Delhomme to Muhammad that put the Panthers on the Redskins' 29.

Washington 17, Carolina 13, 4:19 - The Redskins needed just three plays and a major penalty to cover 59 yards and score a touchdown on a 10-yard pass from Ramsey to backup wide receiver Patrick Johnson. Two plays set up the touchdown. Ramsey passed to Rod Gardner for 20 yards on second and 10 from the 41. And Panthers cornerback Reggie Howard was called for pass interference on McCants, which resulted in a 29-yard penalty and put the Redskins on the Panthers' 10.

Carolina 20, Washington 17, 1:09 - Davis nudged the ball over the goal line at the end of a 3-yard run to give the Panthers a touchdown. Davis also had a 25-yard catch-and-run when the Panthers faced a fourth-and-2 at their 38. Another big play in the drive was a 30-yard pass from Delhomme to Smith, who made a jumping catch at the 7. Davis then carried on the next two plays to get the score.

He said it

Redskins coach Steve Spurrier on the fumble Redskins running back Rock Cartwright made at the goal line in the first quarter and the Davis touchdown: "It came down to a game with two running backs who went into the end zone. One fumbled and one didn't. They ended up being the two big plays in the game, and we were on the bad end of both of them."

Injury report

The Redskins reported no significant injuries

Next up

The Redskins (4-6) are at Miami in an 8:30 p.m. game Sunday.

Statistics

Washington ------------------------- 0 3 0 14 - 17

Carolina ------------------------- 0 3 7 10 - 20

Second Quarter

Car - FG Kasay 25, 12:52.

Was - FG Hall 23, 3:09.

Third Quarter

Car - Delhomme 1 run (Kasay kick), 10:36.

Fourth Quarter

Was - McCants 4 pass from Ramsey (Hall kick), 11:57.

Car - FG Kasay 26, 5:24.

Was - P.Johnson 10 pass from Ramsey (Hall kick), 4:19.

Car - S. Davis 3 run (Kasay kick), 1:09.

A - 70,029.

Was

Car

First downs-------------------------13

17

Total Net yards-------------------------181

427

Rushes-yards-------------------------22-54

35-110

Passing yards-------------------------127

317

Passes-------------------------16-35-1

20-30-2

Sacked-yards lost-------------------------3-23

0-0

Interceptions-yards-------------------------2-79

1-10

Punt returns-yards-------------------------2-31

3-16

Kickoff ret.-yards-------------------------4-86

3-73

Punts-avg.-------------------------7-43.3

4-50.3

Fumbles-lost-------------------------2-1

3-2

Penalties-yards-------------------------0-0

4-69

Time of possession-------------------------25:44

34:16

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING - Washington, Cartwright 9-32, Canidate 10-18, Ramsey 2-4, Coles 1-0. Carolina, S.Davis 28-92, Goings 2-20, Foster 1-2, Delhomme 3-(minus 2), S.Smith 1-(minus 2).

PASSING - Washington, Ramsey 16-35-1-150. Carolina, Delhomme 20-30-2-317.

RECEIVING - Washington, Coles 4-35, McCants 3-25, Cartwright 2-26, Gardner 2-24, P.Johnson 2-16, Canidate 1-13, Ware 1-6, Flemister 1-5. Carolina, Muhammad 9-189, S.Smith 4-50, S.Davis 2-40, Proehl 1-22, Mangum 1-7, Seidman 1-4, Hoover 1-3, Wiggins 1-2.

MISSED FIELD GOALS - Washington, Hall 46 (WL). Carolina, Kasay 47 (SH), 54 (WR).

DEFENSIVE STATISTICS

Tackles: Washington - Trotter 10, Bailey 9, Ohalete 8, Armstead 7, Bowen 6. Carolina - Morgan 8, Witherspoon 7, Jenkins 5, Grant 4, Minter 4, Howard 4.

Forced fumbles: Washington - Armstead, Bowen. Carolina -- Buckner.

Fumble recoveries: Washington - Ohalete, Bailey. Carolina - Burton, Smith.

Interceptions: Washington - Smoot, Bowen. Carolina -- Burton.

Sacks: Carolina - Jenkins 2, Cousin.