Open Thread: Eagles vs. Panthers

It’s a second straight primetime showdown for the Eagles. This time, they hit the road and face Carolina on Sunday Night Football. We’ll pop in with some updates and thoughts from time to time. Feel free to join the conversation in the comments section below.

11:49 – Final: Panthers 27, Eagles 16.

11:40 – The Eagles go for it on fourth down with under two minutes to go, and Miles Austin drops a first down. The Panthers take over in Philadelphia territory. The Eagles only have one timeout left.

11:28 – The Eagles stop the Panthers’ offense with 3:18 to go. Sam Bradford and the offense will likely have one more chance to tie the game.

11:21 – A friendly reminder from Les Bowen.

Six carries, 97 yards for Ryan Mathews.

— Les Bowen (@LesBowen) October 26, 2015

11:20 – A sack slows the Eagles’ offense and Donnie Jones punts it away with just over seven minutes to play, with the Birds still trailing, 24-16.

11:14 – Panthers 24, Eagles 16. Carolina threatens deep in Eagles territory before the Birds’ defense steps up and holds the Panthers to a 35-yard field goal. The Eagles will take over with just under nine minutes to play.

Through 51 minutes:

Eagles have run 66 plays, Panthers have run 49.

Eagles have picked up 322 yards, Panthers have picked up 369.

11:06 – Another Eagles drive, another Eagles field goal attempt. Caleb Sturgis misses a 50-yard field goal attempt after the Eagles can’t sustain momentum on offense. The Panthers take over possession on their own 33-yard line with 11:58 to play and a five-point lead.

10:59 – End of the third quarter: Panthers 21, Eagles 16. Sam Bradford and the Birds are driving, with a second down near midfield to start the final quarter.

Bradford is 19-of-33 for 159 yards and an interception through three quarters.

10:53 – Zach Berman with perspective on Jeremy Maclin and the Eagles’ wide receivers.

Eagles miss Jeremy Maclin. He got paid big money, but he was so reliable for them. In addition to '14 stats, only dropped 2 of 143 targets

— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) October 26, 2015

10:48 – Panthers 21, Eagles 16. A solid pass from Sam Bradford to Josh Huff in the back of the end zone is dropped on third down, leading to another field goal from Caleb Sturgis, this time a 24-yarder.

10:42 – Live from North Carolina.

It's quiet here at Bank of America Stadium. Really seems like that Mathews run stunned everybody.

— Reuben Frank (@RoobCSN) October 26, 2015

10:41 – Cam Newton’s pass soars on his receiver and Byron Maxwell grabs the tipped ball for his first interception as an Eagle, returning the pick into the red zone.

10:35 – Panthers 21, Eagles 13. Ryan Mathews answers Carolina’s score with a 63-yard touchdown run, the longest run of his career.

He now has five carries for 96 yards and a touchdown this evening, to go along with his one catch for 20 yards.

10:29 – Panthers 21, Eagles 6. Mike Tolbert picks up his second touchdown of the evening on a swing pass, bowling over a poor tackle from Malcolm Jenkins on his way to the end zone. Cam Newton is 11-for-16 for 164 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.

10:26 – Nolan Carroll was shaken up after making a tackle.

Nolan Carroll was hurt on that last play.

— Josh Paunil (@JoshPaunil) October 26, 2015

10:23 – Jason Peters update.

Peters has lower back spasms. Will not return

— Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) October 26, 2015

10:22 – We’re back from halftime. Carolina starts the first drive of the second half from its own 20-yard line.

10:06 – Halftime: Panthers 14, Eagles 6. A couple of impressive defensive plays from the Panthers keep the Eagles out of the end zone, and Caleb Sturgis boots a 28-yard field goal.

10:02 – Malcolm Jenkins is having quite the season.

Malcolm Jenkins. All-Pro 2015. Book it.

— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) October 26, 2015

10:00 – Malcolm Jenkins makes an impressive diving interception and the Eagles take over with 1:05 to play in the first half.

9:49 – The Eagles pick up three yards and punt the ball away for the fifth time in the first half. Chip Kelly’s offense has run 38 plays to Carolina’s 21, but have picked up just three points.

9:42 – Panthers 14, Eagles 3. Caleb Sturgis follows his field goal up with a kickoff that lands out of bounds, and Carolina capitalizes on the excellent field position.

Ted Ginn takes an end-around 44 yards into the red zone, where Bennie Logan is called for two consecutive encroachment penalties and Cam Newton puts it into the end zone from one yard out.

Carolina has 12 carries for 118 yards and two touchdowns so far.

9:38 – Panthers 7, Eagles 3. Caleb Sturgis buries a 52-yard field goal, right down the middle, to draw the Eagles within four points.

Sturgis’ longest field goal of his career is 54 yards.

9:28 – The Eagles force a second straight punt, and will take over on their own 29-yard line with just over eight minutes left in the first half.

9:27 – On Jordan Matthews’ problem with catching passes this season.

Jordan Matthews has 6 drops through less than 6.5 games in 2015. He had 5 drops in 16 games in 2014.

— Brandon Lee Gowton (@BrandonGowton) October 26, 2015

9:22 – Another dropped ball from Jordan Matthews leads to yet another punt from the Eagles. Carolina still leads, 7-0, with 10:15 left in the first half.

Sam Bradford is 8-for-13 for 73 yards and an interception.

9:09 – A Jason Peters update.

Jason Peters (lower back) is going in for X-rays. Return questionable.

— Josh Paunil (@JoshPaunil) October 26, 2015

9:07 – Mychal Kendricks picks up his first sack of the season in his first game back from injury, and the Eagles’ defense forces a punt after Carolina moves just past midfield. The Eagles take over on their own 10-yard line with just under a minute to play in the first quarter.

Through 14 minutes of play, the Panthers have 107 yards of offense to 64 from the Eagles.

9:02 – With Jason Peters out, Matt Tobin moves to left tackle in Peters’ place, and Dennis Kelly slides in at right guard.

Meanwhile, the Eagles can’t convert and third down and 16, and Donnie Jones punts it away for the second time.

9:00 – The scene in Carolina before Jason Peters is carted off.

Here is scene around Peters, who still isn't up. #Eagles pic.twitter.com/tup37sloL8

— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) October 26, 2015

8:57 – Jason Peters is down, and it doesn’t look good.

Peters remains on the ground. Players are kneeling around him.

— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) October 26, 2015

8:54 – The Eagles’ defense is rolling.

#Eagles now have 8 takeaways in their last 9 quarters.

— Geoff Mosher (@GeoffMosherNFL) October 26, 2015

8:52 – Josh offers up his thoughts on Nolan Carroll’s performance through six-plus starts this year.

Nolan Carroll: The Eagles' most underrated defensive player this year (d-line, Hicks, safeties have all gotten their due credit, in my mind)

— Josh Paunil (@JoshPaunil) October 26, 2015

8:51 – Nolan Carroll responds to Bradford’s turnover with an interception of his own, picking off Cam Newton in the red zone after the ball bounces around for a little. The Eagles take over at their own six-yard line with 8:59 to go in the first quarter.

8:46 – Sam Bradford throws another ball behind a wide receiver, and Jordan Matthews drops yet another pass that hits his hands. Carolina intercepts the pass after it slips through Matthews’ hands and takes over in Philadelphia territory.

8:42 – Panthers 7, Eagles 0. Jonathan Stewart breaks off a pair of impressive runs on the Panthers’ first drive of the evening, picking up 45 yards on two carries, and Mike Tolbert punches the ball in from one yard out.

Cam Newton completed his only pass of the drive for 25 yards to Philadelphia native Corey Brown.

8:36 – After a false start negates the Eagles’ second first down of the evening, Sam Bradford is sacked on third down and the Birds punt it away, another game-opening drive that fails to yield a touchdown.

DeMarco Murray carried the ball twice for 18 yards, and caught one pass for two yards, on the opening drive.

8:30 – Carolina wins the coin toss and elects to defer to the second half. Sam Bradford and the Eagles will start with the ball.