Charlie Smyth put a 47-yard field goal through the uprights with two seconds on the clock, capping a frantic 62-yard Saints drive that began with under a minute to play and no timeouts. New Orleans beat Carolina 20–17 at Caesars Superdome on December 14, 2025 — the second time the Saints beat the Panthers that season — handing Carolina a defeat that cost them sole possession of the NFC South lead at 7–7. Every player stat, drive summary, and box score figure from the game is below.
Table of Contents
Final Score and Game Information
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Final
Carolina Panthers (7–7)
7
3
7
0
17
New Orleans Saints (4–10)
0
7
3
10
20
Date
Sunday, December 14, 2025
Kickoff
4:25 PM ET
Venue
Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Attendance
70,070
Game Duration
3:06
Broadcast
FOX
Surface
SportTurf (Dome)
Vegas Line
Panthers –3.0
Total
40.5 (Under)
Scoring Summary
Qtr
Time
Team
Play
Drive
Score
1st
6:39
CAR
Rico Dowdle 4-yd run (Ryan Fitzgerald kick)
13 plays, 74 yds, 7:18
CAR 7–0
2nd
3:32
NO
Devin Neal 4-yd run (Charlie Smyth kick)
17 plays, 95 yds, 11:22
7–7
2nd
0:21
CAR
Ryan Fitzgerald 40-yd FG
9 plays, 51 yds, 3:11
CAR 10–7
3rd
9:54
CAR
Jalen Coker 32-yd pass from Bryce Young (Fitzgerald kick)
8 plays, 70 yds, 5:06
CAR 17–7
3rd
1:56
NO
Charlie Smyth 42-yd FG
14 plays, 48 yds, 7:58
CAR 17–10
4th
2:29
NO
Chris Olave 12-yd pass from Tyler Shough (Smyth kick)
7 plays, 78 yds, 2:08
17–17
4th
0:02
NO
Charlie Smyth 47-yd FG
8 plays, 62 yds, 0:55
NO 20–17
Team Stats
Carolina Panthers
New Orleans Saints
Total Yards
281
337
Total Plays
56
63
Yards per Play
5.0
5.3
First Downs
15
27
— Passing
10
14
— Rushing
4
6
— Penalty
1
3
Net Passing Yards
154
256
Comp–Att
15–24
24–33
Yards per Attempt
6.2
6.7
Interceptions
0
0
Sacks – Yards Lost
1–9
5–16
Net Rushing Yards
127
81
Rush Attempts
31
25
Yards per Rush
4.1
3.2
Turnovers
1
0
Fumbles Lost
1
0
Penalties
11
9
Penalty Yards
103
78
3rd Down Conv.
7–14 (50%)
6–11 (55%)
4th Down Conv.
2–3
1–2
Red Zone (Scored–Att)
1–1
2–3
Time of Possession
28:16
31:44
Avg Plays per Drive
8.3
8.2
Avg Yards per Drive
35.3
39.8
Avg Points per Drive
2.1
2.2
Passing Stats
Bryce Young — Carolina Panthers
Cmp
Att
Cmp%
Yds
Avg
TD
INT
Sacks
Yds Lost
Long
Rating
QBR
15
24
62.5%
163
6.8
1
0
1
9
34
96.4
77.3
Tyler Shough — New Orleans Saints
Cmp
Att
Cmp%
Yds
Avg
TD
INT
Sacks
Yds Lost
Long
Rating
QBR
24
32
75.0%
272
8.5
1
0
5
16
19
110.4
59.9
Spencer Rattler (NO): 0–1, 0 yds, 39.6 rating (1 snap, end of game)
Quarterback Advanced Comparison — PFF
Stat
Bryce Young
Tyler Shough
Dropbacks
31
40
Adj. Completion %
80.0%
80.7%
Avg Depth of Target (aDOT)
8.6 yds
8.1 yds
Avg Time to Throw
3.53s
2.65s
Air Yards
110
182
Yards After Catch
50
91
Throwaways
4
1
Drops
1
2
Bad Throws
2 (10.0%)
2 (6.5%)
Pressures Faced
9 (29.0%)
6 (15.0%)
Scrambles
6
3
Scramble Yards
32
18
Explosive Passes (15+ yds)
5
9
Yards on Explosive Passes
126
166
Deep Attempts (20+ yds)
2
0
Deep Completions
2
0
Yds on Deep Completions
66
0
EPA per Pass Play
+0.25 (74th pct.)
+0.40 (92nd pct.)
PFF Grade
—
81.8
Rushing Stats
Carolina Panthers
Player
Pos
Att
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
1D
YBC/Att
YAC/Att
Rico Dowdle
HB
16
49
3.1
8
1
2
1.6
1.4
Bryce Young
QB
7
49
7.0
15
0
3
5.0
2.0
Chuba Hubbard
HB
8
29
3.6
10
0
2
2.0
1.6
Team
31
127
4.1
15
1
7
New Orleans Saints
Player
Pos
Att
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
1D
YBC/Att
YAC/Att
Tyler Shough
QB
8
32
4.0
13
0
2
3.4
0.6
Devin Neal
HB
7
28
4.0
15
1
3
2.3
1.7
Evan Hull
HB
4
12
3.0
6
0
0
2.3
0.8
Audric Estime
HB
3
11
3.7
5
0
1
1.7
2.0
Taysom Hill
TE
2
2
1.0
2
0
1
0.5
0.5
Mason Tipton
WR
1
–4
–4.0
–4
0
0
–4.0
0.0
Team
25
81
3.2
15
1
7
Rushing — PFF Team Report
Stat
CAR
NO
Net Rushing Yards
129
83
Avg Yards Before Contact
2.1
1.5
Avg Yards After Contact
2.0
1.1
Explosive Runs (10+ yds)
4
2
Yards on Explosive Runs
46
28
TFLs Against
2
1
Missed Tackles Forced (Run)
1
4
QB Scrambles
6
4
Scramble Yards
32
33
Designed QB Run Yards
2
16
EPA per Rush Play
+0.00 (77th pct.)
–0.28 (18th pct.)
Receiving Stats
Carolina Panthers
Player
Pos
Rec
Tgt
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
1D
YAC
ADOT
Drop
Jalen Coker
WR
4
4
60
15.0
32
1
3
2
14.5
0
Xavier Legette
WR
2
3
39
19.5
34
0
1
3
14.0
0
Tetairoa McMillan
WR
2
4
25
12.5
21
0
1
9
11.5
0
Tommy Tremble
TE
2
4
13
6.5
8
0
1
10
8.8
1
Chuba Hubbard
HB
1
1
9
9.0
9
0
1
14
–5.0
0
Jimmy Horn Jr.
WR
1
1
7
7.0
7
0
0
6
1.0
0
Ja’Tavion Sanders
TE
2
2
5
2.5
6
0
0
2
1.5
0
Rico Dowdle
HB
1
1
5
5.0
5
0
0
4
1.0
0
Team
15
20
163
10.9
34
1
New Orleans Saints
Player
Pos
Rec
Tgt
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
1D
YAC
ADOT
Drop
Chris Olave
WR
6
9
85
14.2
18
1
5
6
14.3
0
Devaughn Vele
WR
5
6
69
13.8
17
0
4
6
11.8
0
Audric Estime
HB
3
3
39
13.0
19
0
1
48
–3.0
0
Kevin Austin Jr.
WR
3
5
33
11.0
18
0
2
8
7.4
2
Juwan Johnson
TE
4
4
30
7.5
12
0
2
14
4.0
0
Jack Stoll
TE
1
1
7
7.0
7
0
0
7
0.0
0
Mason Tipton
WR
1
2
5
5.0
5
0
0
1
9.0
0
Devin Neal
HB
1
1
4
4.0
4
0
0
1
3.0
0
Team
24
31
272
11.3
19
1
Defensive Stats
Carolina Panthers
Player
Pos
Tkl
Solo
Ast
Sacks
TFL
QB Hits
PD
INT
FF
Nick Scott
S
10
6
4
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Jaycee Horn
CB
7
6
1
0.0
0
0
2
0
0
Christian Rozeboom
LB
6
3
3
1.0
0
1
0
0
0
Mike Jackson
CB
6
5
1
0.0
1
0
1
0
1
Bobby Brown III
DT
6
3
3
0.5
0
1
0
0
0
Chau Smith-Wade
CB
6
3
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Tre’von Moehrig
S
5
3
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
D.J. Wonnum
ED
4
2
2
2.0
1
2
0
0
0
A’Shawn Robinson
DT
4
1
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Derrick Brown
DT
4
1
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Lathan Ransom
S
3
1
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Trevin Wallace
LB
3
0
3
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Robert Rochell
CB
2
1
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Trevis Gipson
ED
1
1
0
1.0
1
1
0
0
0
Nic Scourton
ED
1
0
1
0.5
0
1
0
0
0
Princely Umanmielen
ED
1
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Claudin Cherelus
LB
1
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Team
70
38
32
5.0
3
6
3
0
1
New Orleans Saints
Player
Pos
Tkl
Solo
Ast
Sacks
TFL
QB Hits
PD
INT
FF
Chase Young
ED
6
4
2
1.0
2
2
0
0
0
Jonas Sanker
S
6
3
3
0.0
1
0
0
0
0
Jonathan Bullard
DE
6
2
4
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Demario Davis
LB
5
4
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Jordan Howden
S
5
3
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Kool-Aid McKinstry
CB
4
3
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Cameron Jordan
ED
3
3
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Pete Werner
LB
3
3
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Alontae Taylor
CB
3
2
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Quincy Riley
CB
3
2
1
0.0
0
0
2
0
0
Jonah Williams
DE
3
1
2
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Chris Rumph II
ED
3
1
2
0.0
1
0
0
0
0
Bryan Bresee
DT
3
1
2
0.0
1
0
0
0
0
Danny Stutsman
LB
2
2
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Davon Godchaux
DT
2
1
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Nathan Shepherd
DT
2
1
1
0.0
0
1
0
0
0
Jaylan Ford
LB
1
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Isaiah Stalbird
LB
1
0
1
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
Team
61
37
24
1.0
5
3
2
0
0
Pass Rush — PFF
Player
Tm
Pos
Pressures
Sacks
Hits
Hurries
Snaps
PR%
Carl Granderson
NO
ED
6
0
0
6
17
35.3%
Cameron Jordan
NO
ED
3
0
0
3
12
25.0%
Chase Young
NO
ED
3
1
1
1
23
13.0%
Christian Rozeboom
CAR
LB
1
0
0
1
3
33.3%
Trevis Gipson
CAR
ED
2
1
0
1
9
22.2%
Nathan Shepherd
NO
DT
2
0
1
1
22
9.1%
Bobby Brown III
CAR
DT
1
1
0
0
12
8.3%
A’Shawn Robinson
CAR
DT
2
0
1
1
36
5.6%
Nic Scourton
CAR
ED
1
1
0
0
27
3.7%
D.J. Wonnum
CAR
ED
1
1
0
0
27
3.7%
Derrick Brown
CAR
DT
1
0
0
1
36
2.8%
Pass Blocking — PFF
Player
Tm
Pos
Pressures Allowed
Sacks
Hits
Hurries
Snaps
PR%
Foster Moreau
NO
TE
1
1
0
0
5
20.0%
Tommy Tremble
CAR
TE
1
0
0
1
1
100%
Taylor Moton
CAR
T
3
0
0
3
31
9.7%
Ikem Ekwonu
CAR
T
2
1
1
0
31
6.5%
Cesar Ruiz
NO
G
1
0
0
1
20
5.0%
Dillon Radunz
NO
G
2
0
1
1
41
4.9%
Luke Fortner
NO
C
2
1
0
1
41
4.9%
Taliese Fuaga
NO
T
2
1
0
1
41
4.9%
Austin Corbett
CAR
C
1
0
0
1
31
3.2%
Kelvin Banks Jr.
NO
T
1
1
0
0
41
2.4%
Cade Mays
CAR
C
0
0
0
0
31
0.0%
Damien Lewis
CAR
G
0
0
0
0
31
0.0%
Will Sherman
NO
T
0
0
0
0
21
0.0%
Coverage
Carolina Panthers
Player
Pos
Tgt
Rec
Cmp%
Yds Allowed
TD
Passer Rating
PBU
INT
Jaycee Horn
CB
8
5
62.5%
59
1
124.5
2
0
Nick Scott
S
6
6
100%
74
0
118.1
0
0
Mike Jackson
CB
6
5
83.3%
64
0
111.1
1
0
Trevin Wallace
LB
4
4
100%
43
0
111.5
0
0
Chau Smith-Wade
CB
4
2
50.0%
27
0
71.9
0
0
Christian Rozeboom
LB
2
2
100%
14
0
95.8
0
0
Tre’von Moehrig
S
2
2
100%
15
0
97.9
0
0
D.J. Wonnum
ED
2
1
50.0%
10
0
64.6
0
0
New Orleans Saints
Player
Pos
Tgt
Rec
Cmp%
Yds Allowed
TD
Passer Rating
PBU
INT
Quincy Riley
CB
7
4
57.1%
78
1
135.7
2
0
Alontae Taylor
CB
4
3
75.0%
26
0
91.7
0
0
Demario Davis
LB
3
3
100%
–1
0
79.2
0
0
Jordan Howden
S
2
1
50.0%
24
0
93.7
0
0
Pete Werner
LB
2
1
50.0%
5
0
56.2
0
0
Cameron Jordan
ED
1
1
100%
5
0
87.5
0
0
Nathan Shepherd
DT
1
1
100%
9
0
104.2
0
0
Jonas Sanker
S
1
1
100%
–1
0
79.2
0
0
Special Teams Stats
Kicking
Player
Tm
FGM–FGA
Pct
Long
XPM–XPA
Points
Ryan Fitzgerald
CAR
1–1
100%
40 yds
2–2
5
Charlie Smyth
NO
2–2
100%
47 yds
2–2
8
Punting
Player
Tm
Punts
Yards
Avg
Long
TB
In 20
Sam Martin
CAR
3
142
47.3
56
0
2
Kai Kroeger
NO
2
95
47.5
58
0
1
Kick Returns
Player
Tm
No.
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
Chuba Hubbard
CAR
2
50
25.0
27
0
Trevor Etienne
CAR
1
25
25.0
25
0
Rico Dowdle
CAR
1
23
23.0
23
0
CAR Total
4
98
24.5
27
0
Evan Hull
NO
3
72
24.0
29
0
Mason Tipton
NO
1
19
19.0
19
0
NO Total
4
91
22.8
29
0
Punt Returns
Player
Tm
No.
Yds
Avg
Long
TD
Trevor Etienne
CAR
1
16
16.0
16
0
NO
—
—
—
—
—
Fumbles
Player
Tm
Fumbles
Lost
Recovered By
Jalen Coker
CAR
1
1
Pete Werner (NO) — final play
Mason Tipton
NO
1
0
Dillon Radunz (NO) — 3rd Qtr
Drive Log
Carolina Panthers
#
Qtr
Start
Plays
Time
Yards
Result
1
1st
CAR 26
13
7:18
74
Touchdown
2
1st
CAR 12
6
2:51
27
Punt
3
2nd
CAR 27
9
3:11
51
Field Goal
4
3rd
CAR 30
8
5:06
70
Touchdown
5
3rd
CAR 33
11
6:00
32
Turnover on Downs
6
4th
CAR 23
3
2:16
9
Punt
7
4th
CAR 29
6
1:32
14
Punt
8
4th
CAR 35
1
0:02
–11
Fumble (End of Game)
New Orleans Saints
#
Qtr
Start
Plays
Time
Yards
Result
1
1st
NOR 28
3
1:03
4
Punt
2
1st
NOR 34
6
3:54
17
Punt
3
2nd
NOR 5
17
11:22
95
Touchdown
4
2nd
NOR 28
1
0:21
–1
End of Half (kneel)
5
3rd
NOR 28
14
7:58
48
Field Goal
6
4th
NOR 35
9
4:03
42
Turnover on Downs
7
4th
NOR 22
7
2:08
78
Touchdown
8
4th
NOR 9
8
0:55
62
Field Goal (Walk-off)
Snap Counts
Carolina Panthers — Offense
Player
Pos
Snaps
%
Bryce Young
QB
57
100%
Damien Lewis
G
57
100%
Taylor Moton
T
57
100%
Austin Corbett
G
57
100%
Ikem Ekwonu
T
57
100%
Cade Mays
C
57
100%
Tetairoa McMillan
WR
48
84%
Xavier Legette
WR
42
74%
Jalen Coker
WR
39
68%
Rico Dowdle
HB
34
60%
Ja’Tavion Sanders
TE
30
53%
Tommy Tremble
TE
28
49%
Mitchell Evans
TE
25
44%
Chuba Hubbard
HB
24
42%
Brycen Tremayne
WR
8
14%
Jimmy Horn Jr.
WR
4
7%
Jake Curhan
T
3
5%
Carolina Panthers — Defense
Player
Pos
Snaps
%
Mike Jackson
CB
69
100%
Nick Scott
S
69
100%
Tre’von Moehrig
S
69
100%
Jaycee Horn
CB
69
100%
Trevin Wallace
LB
69
100%
Derrick Brown
DT
60
87%
A’Shawn Robinson
DT
56
81%
Chau Smith-Wade
CB
55
80%
Christian Rozeboom
LB
49
71%
D.J. Wonnum
ED
45
65%
Nic Scourton
ED
43
62%
Bobby Brown III
DT
32
46%
Trevis Gipson
ED
24
35%
Lathan Ransom
S
20
29%
Princely Umanmielen
ED
12
17%
LaBryan Ray
DE
9
13%
Cam’Ron Jackson
DT
5
7%
Isaiah Simmons
LB
1
1%
Akayleb Evans
CB
1
1%
New Orleans Saints — Offense
Player
Pos
Snaps
%
Kelvin Banks Jr.
T
69
100%
Dillon Radunz
G
69
100%
Taliese Fuaga
T
69
100%
Luke Fortner
C
69
100%
Tyler Shough
QB
68
99%
Chris Olave
WR
58
84%
Mason Tipton
WR
55
80%
Cesar Ruiz
G
44
64%
Juwan Johnson
TE
42
61%
Devaughn Vele
WR
38
55%
Foster Moreau
TE
29
42%
Will Sherman
T
26
38%
Kevin Austin Jr.
WR
26
38%
Audric Estime
HB
25
36%
Evan Hull
HB
22
32%
Devin Neal
HB
22
32%
Taysom Hill
TE
15
22%
Jack Stoll
TE
10
14%
Spencer Rattler
QB
1
1%
New Orleans Saints — Defense
Player
Pos
Snaps
%
Jordan Howden
S
57
100%
Jonas Sanker
S
57
100%
Kool-Aid McKinstry
CB
57
100%
Alontae Taylor
CB
57
100%
Demario Davis
LB
57
100%
Chase Young
ED
42
74%
Quincy Riley
CB
38
67%
Nathan Shepherd
DT
37
65%
Bryan Bresee
DT
37
65%
Pete Werner
LB
36
63%
Carl Granderson
ED
33
58%
Cameron Jordan
ED
25
44%
Jonathan Bullard
DE
23
40%
Davon Godchaux
DT
23
40%
Jonah Williams
DE
21
37%
Chris Rumph II
ED
15
26%
Danny Stutsman
LB
11
19%
Terrell Burgess
S
1
2%
PFF Grades
Initial post-game grades, subject to review.
Offense
Grade
Player
Pos
Team
Snaps
90.6
Devaughn Vele
WR
NO
38
84.5
Jalen Coker
WR
CAR
39
81.8
Tyler Shough
QB
NO
68
76.7
Kelvin Banks Jr.
T
NO
69
71.2
Ikem Ekwonu
T
CAR
57
Defense
Grade
Player
Pos
Team
Snaps
84.6
Cameron Jordan
ED
NO
25
81.7
Trevis Gipson
ED
CAR
24
76.6
Mike Jackson
CB
CAR
69
75.6
Demario Davis
LB
NO
57
75.5
Jonas Sanker
S
NO
57
Officials
Role
Official
Referee
Alex Moore
Umpire
Terry Killens Jr.
Down Judge
Dana McKenzie
Line Judge
Thomas Eaton
Back Judge
Terrence Miles
Side Judge
Anthony Jeffries
Field Judge
Mearl Robinson
New Orleans completed their 2025 regular-season sweep of Carolina with the win — five weeks earlier, the Saints had beaten the Panthers 17–7 in Charlotte in Week 10, with Shough throwing for 282 yards in his second-ever NFL start. The defeat left Carolina at 7–7 and out of sole possession of the NFC South lead, though the Panthers did recover to earn a playoff berth before the 2025 season closed. For a Saints team that finished 4–10, the back-to-back wins over playoff-caliber divisional opponents stood as the clearest evidence of what Kellen Moore’s roster was capable of on its best days.
Statistics sourced from Pro Football Reference, ESPN, and Pro Football Focus. PFF figures are initial post-game grades and subject to review. Box score data reflects official NFL statistics.
Cornelia Lindqvist is a Swedish-American sports journalist with 4 years of experience covering professional athletics. She previously worked at Sports Illustrated before joining Newzire. Cornelia reports on the NFL, NBA, MLB, WNBA, international football, and cricket, covering game results, roster moves, trade deals, playoff standings, and player statistics. Her sports analysis background helps readers understand the strategies and numbers behind wins and losses.
