– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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ATLANTA — Unfortunately, the Carolina Panthers’ defense, led by their new leader, linebacker Devin Lloyd, had their second consecutive disappointing effort on Sunday, and it was Lloyd’s admission after the game that their standard was not good enough.
The issue today? They allowed three points, Lloyd solemnly stated. Three too many.
The Atlanta Falcons’ point total was one more than the number of interceptions that the newly-acquired superstar linebacker had in 60 minutes as Lloyd’s all-world performance singlehandedly dismantled the Birds’ offense in the Panthers’ 34-3 rout inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Lloyd also scored one more touchdown than the Falcons, with his 16-yard return for a touchdown on his second pick of the day was the piece de resistance of a performance that included a deflected pass that led to another pick, a tackle for loss on a fourth down and, on the first play of the game, converging on a tackle that helped force a fumble from Cooper Rush that was a harbinger to come for both teams.
The defensive dominance a la a Panthers great and 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, Luke Kuechly, somehow relegated Carolina’s offense to playing the role of supporting actor, though Bryce Young starred once again with three more touchdown passes, including a four-yarder to Chuba Hubbard on fourth down on the Panthers’ first drive after the Rush fumble created a short field.
At some point, the rest of the National Football League will know more definitively if the Carolina Panthers’ defense resembles the sieve that it showed itself as after allowing 59 points to the Chicago Bears in a nightmare of an opener, or is closer to an impersonation of the 1985 Chicago Bears. If there’s more of the latter than the former, along with an offense that stamped another game with efficiency, then last year’s magic carpet ride that resulted in a division title could be this year’s dark horse.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Sunday afternoon’s game, with photos taken by ALOST photo editor Dale Horton. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page, Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 46 pictures in total.
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