5 studs and duds from the Panthers loss at the Packers

Studs and duds from the Carolina Panthers’ loss at the Packers.

It proved to be yet another game where the Carolina Panthers came within a final drive of tying down the stretch. Their narrow loss at the Green Bay Packers saw Matt Rhule’s men start slowly before completely shutting down Aaron Rodgers in the second half. But in the end, they left themselves too much to do down the stretch.

There were a lot of positives to take from the game, especially on defense. The Carolina Panthers had plenty of questions to answer in this area of the field after parting ways with some established veterans in free agency and losing Luke Kuechly to retirement. But after a slow start, Phil Snow’s unit seems to be coming of age that leaves plenty of reasons to be encouraged regarding their chances next season and beyond.

Moral victories will only get you so far in the NFL. But another strong offseason in terms of recruitment could see the Panthers become a playoff contender sooner rather than later.

Here are five studs and duds from the Panthers’ perspective after their loss at Lambeau Field.

Stud No. 1

D.J. Moore – Carolina Panthers WR

D.J. Moore returned to the lineup and made his presence felt almost immediately. The wide receiver connected on a rare deep ball from Teddy Bridgewater in the first quarter and he was a constant thorn in the Green Bay secondary with their stud cornerback Jaire Alexander going up against Robby Anderson for the majority of the contest.

The former first-round pick turned in a dazzling display, bringing in six of eight targets for 131 receiving yards, taking him over the 1,000-yard mark for the second straight season. Moore’s importance to the Panthers is undisputed at this juncture – as is his status as one of the league’s brightest young wideouts.

Although Carolina didn’t quite do enough to pull off an upset, Moore can look back at his individual contribution with a great sense of pride.