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Carolina used a secret weapon Sunday, and no matter how sophisticated or comprehensive Atlanta's scouting was, there was no way the Falcons could have prepared for it. The Panthers passed on third and long.
The Panthers are 2-4 as underdogs and 2-1 as favorites.
Defensive tackle Hollis Thomas is Carolina's 340-pound fashion critic. He once saw safety Chris Harris in a red, white and blue warm-up suit, and asked Harris if he were a Harlem Globetrotter. A few weeks ago he saw me wearing a black V-neck sweater over a V-neck white T-shirt, and said something every time I passed in front of his locker.
"I noticed you wouldn't come over, either," Thomas says Sunday.
Hey, big dog, I was working. I had to serve readers. Plus, my sweater was cutting-edge cool. What could you possibly have said?
"That I haven't seen a V-neck sweater in 15 years," Thomas says.
Jake Delhomme has not thrown an interception since the Buffalo game. That's three weeks. The Panthers have won twice and were in position to win a third.
There's something about cold weather that lends itself to football. Maybe it's the frozen breath coming out of the mouths of players. Maybe it's the toughness cold-weather games imply. Maybe it's all those brutal games over the years in the Midwest and Northeast.
But Sunday in Charlotte was 73 and sunny, and I'll take that every time.
