Panthers coach Ron Rivera supplied more detail Monday on the final play of Carolina's road loss to Green Bay, explaining that quarterback Kyle Allen had the option to hand the ball off to Christian McCaffrey or to throw a pass.
"It was an RPO," Rivera said, referring to the run-pass option that has become popular in the NFL over the past few years. "Based on what Kyle had read, he went to hand the ball off."
The Panthers were down 24-16 Sunday to the Packers but had the ball at Green Bay's 2 with 4 seconds remaining in regulation.
There was still a lot of work to do for a Carolina win at that point. The Panthers needed to score on that final play, then convert a two-point conversion with no time remaining and then outduel Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in overtime on a snowy Lambeau Field.
Allen's other option on the RPO? A pass to tight end Greg Olsen in the end zone. But Olsen told the Observer on Monday that Allen made the correct decision given Green Bay's defensive alignment, which wasn't overly loaded at the line of scrimmage.
"He made the right call," Olsen said of Allen. "They had five guys in there (on the defensive line). We had five blockers. Kyle was by no means wrong."
Rivera seemed to agree, saying Allen "gave it to our best player (McCaffrey). Unfortunately, we missed a block. That's really what happened."
Although Carolina had five offensive linemen blocking five defensive linemen, Green Bay linebacker Kyler Fackrell knifed inside Panthers left guard Greg Van Roten and hit McCaffrey in the backfield.
That slowed McCaffrey down enough that he was gang-tackled inches short of the goal line, even though Van Roten tried to drag his teammate over the line himself.
Van Roten was disconsolate after the game, saying of the Panthers' final 88-yard drive that needed to go about six more inches: "You just feel like you got your heart ripped out."
Rivera said of Van Roten's ineffective block: "The hard part is people remember that missed opportunity. There's a guy that's been very consistent for us the last couple of years and done some really good things. ... He probably makes that block the majority of the time, too."
Other Panthers notes from the day after the loss to the Packers:
_ Rivera said he had no regrets about Carolina's failed two-point try earlier in the fourth quarter, which he said was a decision determined both by the team's analytics and the feel of the game.
"What I did, I'd do it again in that same exact situation," Rivera said. "Why? Because it's about winning. ... You're going into a hostile environment, the weather had changed (it had begun to snow harder) ... the opportunity was looming." The Panthers have put more emphasis on analytics since owner David Tepper bought the team in 2018.
_ Panthers wide receiver D.J. Moore has had two consecutive 100-yard receiving games and is "a young guy who has blossomed," Rivera said. Moore had 120 yards receiving against the Packers and caught nine of 11 passes thrown his way, including a critical 12-yard gain on fourth-and-10 on Carolina's last drive.
The coach said that a number of young players on offense are playing well _ he also singled out Allen and wide receiver Curtis Samuel. But he didn't have the same sort of high praise for the team's younger defenders.
"Some of our young defensive players have struggled a little bit, especially Brian (Burns) with the broken hand," Rivera said. "It's been very tough on him, because it's hard to be a pass rusher and basically work the hand games, trying to fight guys off."
Burns has been playing with his right wrist heavily wrapped after undergoing surgery on it during the bye week in October. After getting to the quarterback for at least a half-sack in five of the Panthers' first six games, Burns has had no sacks in the past three games and only one total tackle.
Burns' playing time was also been cut considerably _ he only played 11 defensive snaps Sunday, which amounted to just 16% of the defensive snaps. The Panthers primarily went with veterans Mario Addison and Bruce Irvin as edge rushers Sunday (57 snaps apiece).
_ Speaking of snap counts, McCaffrey played all 73 offensive snaps Sunday, as the team's two backup tailbacks once again only saw the field on special teams.
_ Carolina only got to Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers twice for sacks, but that was enough to keep the Panthers' NFL lead in sacks (entering Monday night's game). The Panthers have 36 sacks through nine games. The Panthers' ragged rush defense, however, has dropped to 29th in the NFL and is now allowing 136.7 rushing yards per game.
