Carolina Panthers vs New Orleans Saints Player Stats: Week 10 Breakdown

The Saints defeated the Panthers 17-7 on November 9, 2025, with rookie Tyler Shough throwing for 282 yards and 2 touchdowns. New Orleans dominated in total yards (388-175) and time of possession. Chris Olave led receivers with 104 yards and 1 TD, while Bryce Young’s two turnovers sealed Carolina’s loss.

Game Overview & Final Stats

New Orleans snapped a four-game losing streak with a wire-to-wire victory at Bank of America Stadium on Sunday, but the real narrative wasn’t about ending skids—it was about efficiency. The Saints didn’t beat Carolina with volume; they beat them with precision.

New Orleans improved to 2-8. Carolina dropped to 5-5 and lost momentum heading into a brutal schedule stretch. But numbers reveal the game’s true complexity. The Saints owned the field in almost every measurable way: 388 total yards versus 175, 33 minutes and 21 seconds of possession time versus 26:39, and a third-down conversion rate of 47% (8 of 17) compared to Carolina’s 33% (3 of 9).

One stat matters most: this was the eighth game in nine starts where Bryce Young threw for fewer than 200 yards. Patterns, when repeated, stop being anomalies.

Saints Offense: Rookie QB Makes the Most of Opportunity

Tyler Shough wasn’t supposed to be the story. Derek Carr was New Orleans’ guy. Then Carr got injured, and the Saints handed the keys to their second-round rookie from Louisville.

Shough completed 19 of 27 passes (70.4%) for 282 yards and 2 touchdowns with zero interceptions. His passer rating: 128.9. Those numbers alone would impress. What made them matter was how he generated them. Shough made plays when coverage was clean and plays when it wasn’t. On the 62-yard touchdown to Chris Olave, he rolled left out of a collapsing pocket, found space, and fired a ball 40 yards downfield with velocity and accuracy. On the 30-yard touchdown to Juwan Johnson, he stepped into a blitz, climbed the pocket, and found his receiver in stride down the left sideline.

Compare that to Bryce Young on the other side. Young completed 17 of 25 (68%) but managed only 124 yards. He threw an interception to Alontate Taylor on a fake-blitz coverage he misread. He fumbled a handoff exchange on an end-around. More critically, his inability to push the ball downfield meant Carolina’s run game—usually a strength—became predictable. The Saints knew what was coming and loaded the box accordingly.

Chris Olave’s return to Charlotte carried emotional weight. In November 2024, he suffered a concussion at Bank of America Stadium from a hit by then-Panthers safety Xavier Woods. One year later, Olave was back on that field, facing that stadium, needing to prove something to himself.

He finished with 5 catches for 104 yards and the 62-yard touchdown. His yards-per-catch average: 20.8. Early in the game, he beat cornerback Jaycee Horn—Carolina’s best coverage corner—down the sideline for the TD. Later, he created separation in zone coverage and made plays on contested catches. The performance felt like more than statistics. It felt like closure.

Alvin Kamara added 22 carries for 83 yards and 3 receptions for 32 yards. His 3.8 yards per carry and role as a receiving target kept Carolina’s pass rushers honest. Tight end Juwan Johnson, meanwhile, posted a career-high 92 receiving yards on 4 catches, including his 30-yard touchdown. That receiving-by-committee approach—Olave, Johnson, Kamara all producing—forced the Panthers defense to stay in coverage rather than aggress upfield.

Panthers Offense: Turnovers & Missed Opportunities Cost Carolina

Rico Dowdle opened the game with authority, punching in a 5-yard touchdown on Carolina’s first drive. The Panthers looked like the team that had won four of five. Then they stopped looking like anything.

Dowdle finished with 53 yards on 18 carries (2.9 yards per carry after that opening touchdown). The Saints’ defensive game plan was clear: overload the line of scrimmage, dare Carolina to beat them through the air. The Panthers had no answer. McMillan’s 5 catches for 60 yards represented the only consistent offensive output on a day when Carolina managed just 83 yards in the first half—their season-low.

The interception came late in the third quarter. Nic Scourton sacked Young on fourth down, and the Panthers’ defense forced a three-and-out. The offense got the ball back with a chance to build momentum. Young dropped back, saw what he thought was coverage, and underthrew a pass down the right sideline. Alontate Taylor read the route, slipped under it, and came away with the interception. That play shifted the entire game. Instead of a close third quarter, it became a two-possession game heading into the fourth.

The fumble came earlier, on an end-around to receiver Jimmy Horn Jr. Young didn’t secure the handoff exchange, the ball came loose, and the Saints recovered. Small mistakes, but in games decided by 10 points, small mistakes become the story.

Young has now thrown for under 200 yards in eight of his last nine starts. That’s not variance. That’s a pattern worth examining. It suggests either the offense isn’t generating separation for receivers, the run game isn’t creating play-action opportunities, or Young isn’t pushing the ball downfield with confidence. Likely, it’s all three.

For Carolina, this loss stings because the Panthers were in playoff position at 5-4 before kickoff. A road win against a 2-7 team should be a winnable game. Instead, they’re at 5-5, closer to the middle of the pack than the top of their division.

Defensive Standouts: Saints’ Pass Rush vs. Panthers’ Secondary

The Saints’ defensive line was relentless. Cameron Jordan, the potential future Hall of Famer in his 15th season, sacked Young for 9 yards. With that sack, Jordan reached 125 career sacks—a milestone that landed him among the elite of NFL history. Nathan Shepherd added 2 sacks for 13 total yards, including one that ended a Panthers drive in the first half. The Saints recorded 3 total sacks and 4 tackles for loss.

Alontate Taylor’s interception on the fake blitz wasn’t just a defensive play; it was the turning point. Reading the fake coverage, he broke toward the quarterback’s release point and came away with the ball. In a game decided by 10 points, that single play might have been the difference between a Panthers win and a Saints win.

Derrick Brown registered 9 tackles, his season-high, moving him to 288 career tackles. With that performance, Brown surpassed Kawann Short (280) for 4th all-time on the Panthers’ defensive line tackles list. It’s the kind of milestone that gets overlooked in a losing effort but represents the consistency of a defensive fixture.

Nic Scourton, the rookie outside linebacker, added a 4-yard sack, bringing his season total to 3.0 sacks. He’s now tied for the team lead. Scourton joins Brian Burns (7.5 sacks in 2019) and Thomas Keiser (4.0 sacks in 2011) as Carolina rookie OLBs with this level of early impact. For a defense that drafted him in round two, that production validates the selection.

D.J. Wonnum finished with 6 tackles (his season-high), and Tre’von Moehrig posted 7 tackles and 1 tackle for loss.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: the Panthers’ defense wasn’t the problem. Allowing 17 points at home is respectable. The problem was that the offense could only generate 7 points. When your defense does its job and your offense can’t, defensive effort becomes academic. The Saints held the Panthers to 175 total yards. That’s not a defensive failure; that’s an offense that couldn’t establish rhythm or make plays.

Rookie Impact & Emerging Trends

Tyler Shough’s winning debut is the story that will carry forward into Week 11. He’s now the first Saints rookie quarterback to win a game since Dave Wilson in 1981. That’s 44 years of quarterback instability—injuries, draft busts, mid-career declines. If Shough can replicate this efficiency (70%+ completion percentage, 250+ passing yards, multiple touchdowns with minimal turnovers) over the next month before the playoff window closes, the Saints have found their stabilizing force.

The bye week that follows gives New Orleans time to build momentum and scheme around Shough’s strengths. The next steps matter more than this performance. One good game can be a fluke; two in a row become a trend.

For Carolina, Tetairoa McMillan’s ceiling remains visible but incomplete. The rookie wide receiver finished with 60 yards on 5 receptions against tight coverage. He’s on pace for 100 catches this season—a path few rookies travel. But his inability to create explosive plays when the Saints stacked the box (8 defenders within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage on run plays) hints that his development against elite defensive pressure is still ongoing.

Nic Scourton’s consistent pass-rush impact is worth monitoring. Three sacks through 10 games puts him on pace for roughly 5 sacks in his rookie season. That’s starter-level production from a second-round pick. The tape shows technique improving week to week, which is the most important metric for a young pass rusher.

What This Means Moving Forward

For the Panthers, 5-5 is a crossroads. They were in a playoff position. They’re not anymore, though the math still works. The schedule ahead includes matchups against better teams (the Falcons, Lions, Buccaneers), which means a six-game losing streak is possible. Conversely, Bryce Young could break his under-200-yard trend, and the offense could regain rhythm. Playoff runs have been built on smaller margins than this.

The offensive line stayed healthy (a win in itself), but the play-calling couldn’t adapt to New Orleans’ scheme. That’s a coaching concern worth monitoring. Dave Canales has been praised for offensive innovation this season, but against a single defensive look (stacked box, light secondary coverage), the Panthers’ offense looked predictable.

For the Saints, this win is validation for the Shough experiment. At 2-8, they’re unlikely to make the playoffs—the math is brutally obvious. But closing strong matters for the 2026 roster confidence and developmental momentum. If Shough plays well down the stretch, the Saints know they have direction at the most important position. If he reverts to turnover-prone play, they’re back to the drawing board.

The divisional rematch in Week 15 looms with entirely different expectations now. Will Shough maintain efficiency? Will Young find consistency? Will Carolina’s run game get back on track? Those answers matter far more than this 17-7 scoreline suggests.

Final Takeaways

The Saints dominated efficiency metrics (5.8 yards per play vs. 3.5), controlled time of possession, and forced two turnovers. Tyler Shough proved he can manage an offense at an NFL level, at least in one outing. Chris Olave’s redemption performance added narrative resonance to what could have been just another divisional win.

For Carolina, turnovers and an ineffective run game against a predictable defensive look cost them a winnable game at home. Bryce Young’s eighth game under 200 yards is no longer a statistical curiosity—it’s a pattern. The rookies showed promise (Scourton, McMillan, their own defensive standouts), but rookie promise doesn’t win games when the veteran quarterback can’t sustain drives.

New Orleans leaves Charlotte with confidence and momentum. Carolina stays at home with questions. That 10-point margin, in reality, was the difference between a defense + efficient passing game and an offense that couldn’t establish identity. The next four weeks will answer whether this loss was a bump in the road or the beginning of a longer downward slide.