The Carolina Panthers have defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, winning on the road by a score of 25-14.
But a masterclass of beautifully played football this was not. With Philly's offense decimated by injuries and two defensive play-callers deep into their respective bags, the game turned into a low-scoring slog. What matters is that Carolina came out of it with a (sort-of) convincing victory to stay on top in the NFC South.
Let's check out the studs and duds for the Panthers this week . . .
Stud: RB Chuba Hubbard
For the third straight game, Hubbard came to life in the second half. His 19-yard run on a key fourth-and-1 may have been the most important play of the game.
Hubbard had just 24 rushing yards at halftime, but he wound up finishing with a line of 120 yards and
a touchdown on 28 carries (4.3 yards per attempt).
Stud: QB Bryce Young
This definitely wasn't Young's best game, but his bad and mediocre games are certainly a lot better than they used to be. The best thing you can say is he didn't turn the ball over, and managed to put up a decent line against a tough Eagles defense.
Young had trouble maintaining drives and getting into a rhythm with anyone not wearing Nos. 4 or 18, but he finished 20-of-39 for 281 passing yards, two touchdowns and a 91.9 passer rating.
Stud: TE Tommy Tremble
Tremble accounted for both of Young's touchdowns. His second score, a 19-yarder in the fourth quarter, served as the knockout punch.
Stud: WR Jalen Coker
Carolina also got a strong game from Coker after he sat out against the Detroit Lions with a quad injury. He caught six of his 13 targets for a game-high 97 receiving yards.
Stud: LB Bobby Okereke
The second level of the Panthers defense was the most impressive unit in this one.
From the very start, Okereke was all over quarterback Tanner McKee, notching a sack on a blitz on the first snap of the game. He continued flashing the rest of the afternoon—posting a team-high eight combined tackles, with three for a loss, plus two pass breakups.
Stud: LB Devin Lloyd
Okereke wasn't the only linebacker to make a big impact on this game. Lloyd was equally disruptive, hurrying McKee and shutting down any limited attempts by the Eagles to get their run game going. He wound up totaling a sack, two quarterback hits and a bunch of pressures.
Dud: Penalties
Not for the first time this season, the Panthers drew a lot of unnecessary flags on themselves. The worst offender continues to be right guard Robert Hunt, who got called for a pair of ineligible man downfield offenses.
Whatever the issue is here, head coach Dave Canales has to clean it up - because for a veteran making as much as Hunt is this trend is inexcusable.
All together, Carolina lost a franchise-record 149 yards on 13 penalties.
Dud: HC Dave Canales
Canales' decision-making left much to be desired. He failed to challenge a catch that wasn't a catch by wideout Darius Cooper, he allowed the first half to bleed out instead of pushing for points around midfield and, overall, just led a rough offering.
The Panthers appeared as if they were playing not to lose, and not playing to win.
Stud: DC Ejiro Evero
Normally the most stubborn zone-heavy defensive play-caller in the league, Evero mixed things up in a big way. Looking to take advantage of McKee's inexperience, he called a very aggressive game plan, dialing up blitz after blitz to put the fourth-year passer to the test.
For the most part, it worked—as Philadelphia was limited to 222 yards and 40-percent success rate on third downs.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Studs and duds from Panthers' Week 6 win over Eagles
