A QUARTERBACK: Cam Newton ran his streak of consecutive passes without an interception to 152, breaking Jake Delhomme's team record of 150, set in 2006. A week after his first 100-yard rushing game, Newton stayed in the pocket and took what the defense gave him. He also took several big hits, but kept getting up.

B+ RUNNING BACKS: DeAngelo Williams set season highs with 22 carries for 93 yards. And though Williams' fumble led to the Chargers' lone touchdown, he made a tremendous play on a deflected screen pass in the first half, taking it 45 yards for a touchdown. Fullback Mike Tolbert had a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs against his former team.

B RECEIVERS: With Brandon LaFell playing on a toe that is still less than 100 percent, Newton again looked to Steve Smith (six catches for 57 yards, one touchdown) and tight end Greg Olsen (five catches for 56 yards). Smith went over 1,000 yards for the seventh time in his career.

B OFFENSIVE LINE: With Geoff Hangartner out with a sprained foot, backup center Jeff Byers did a nice job setting the protections and getting movement up front. Guard Amini Silatolu has improved dramatically from early in the season, as has right guard Garry Williams.

A DEFENSIVE LINE: Defensive ends Greg Hardy and Charles Johnson continued their inspired play with two sacks apiece. Newcomer Mario Addison added his first sack as the Panthers got to Philip Rivers six times and recovered two of his three fumbles.

B LINEBACKERS: Thomas Davis made a number of nice, open-field tackles and finished with a team-high 10 stops. Rookie Luke Kuechly had a quiet game with eight tackles. Jason Phillips was solid in place of the injured James Anderson.

A DEFENSIVE BACKS: The Panthers' corners played physical press coverage against the Chargers' big receivers, jamming at the line and throwing off their timing. Malcolm Floyd's 30-yard catch in the fourth quarter was Rivers' only completion longer than 9 yards.

B- SPECIAL TEAMS: Punt returner Joe Adams’ longest runback was negated by an illegal block by Nate Chandler. Brad Nortman averaged 39.5 yards, but only had a net of 28.8. Graham Gano made a 33-yard field goal and had touchbacks on four of his six kickoffs.

A COACHING: For the second season in a row, Ron Rivera's team is playing its best down the stretch. Coordinators Rob Chudzinski and Sean McDermott had smart game plans to help make Rivera's homecoming a successful one.

Joseph Person