Sunday's 21-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns was a frustrating one for the Carolina Panthers. Had one or two plays gone the other way, perhaps we'd be talking about a 2-1 start for the reigning NFC South champions.
Perhaps the most consequential development was a roughing the passer penalty late in the game, which wiped out what could've been a game-sealing interception by Carolina. Linebacker Bobby Okereke wound up hitting Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson high after his release, resulting in a new set of downs to continue what turned out to be the game-winning drive for Cleveland.
It was a pretty weak hit, all things considered—weak enough for Panthers edge rusher Jaelan Phillips to question if Watson flopped a bit to sell the call. Here's what
he said about it, per Joe Person at The Athletic:
“I don’t know how hard he got hit. I mean, I wouldn’t put it past him, flopping or selling the call or whatever the case was. It’s a veteran move … but I don’t really know.”
For his part, Watson says he stayed on the ground so long because he was trying to catch his breath.
“I guess they thought it was my head. I just lost my breath... I was trying to get up and I asked the guys if there was a flag. I was just trying to catch my breath, honestly," Watson stated.
In any case, the Panthers don't really have a right to complain when they had so many opportunities to close the door on the Browns. Had they protected quarterback Bryce Young at a merely just-below-average rate, they would have won. Had they gotten contributions from more than just one backup wide receiver, they would have won—and they definitely would have won if they had been able to convert pressures into actual sacks of Watson.
That last part seems to be a recurring theme for the 2026 Panthers. While they are getting pressures that were simply not there at all over the last three years, they're having a difficult time turning them into takedowns. Until this changes, their defense is only going to finish average, at best, overall.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers OLB Jaelan Phillips questions if Deshaun Watson flopped on controversial penalty
