Patriots vs. Panthers 2013, Week 11: Carolina beats New England in Monday Night Football thriller

Steve Smith really gave it to Aqib Talib Monday night. Outplayed him on the field, then sent all sorts of trash talk his way after the Panthers beat the Patriots, including the instant classic “ICE UP, SON!” during a walk-off interview. Charlotte-based fast food purveyor Bojangles’ seized the opportunity to support, promote, and troll all at once:

Does this count as another notch on Steve Smith’s bedpost, or no?

They said he didn’t bring it on every down. They said he wore down late in games. They said his health would be an issue. What they forgot to mention was what a high percentage of his team’s snaps he played, how versatile he was, or how consistently he dominated the point of attack.

It would be one thing if Loutlelei could only attack an offense from one spot. He would be limited by scheme, which would have explained his draft day fall. On Monday night, Lotulelei showed how his skills can transcend scheme. He’s capable of lining up all over the defensive line and making life a living hell for offensive lines from every spot.

Prior to that madness, there was the third quarter, which did not feature a single incompletion by either quarterback.

Over at Cat Scratch Reader, Edgar Salmingo Jr. wrote about the all-around game authored by Carolina:

After the game, referee Clete Blakeman explains why the flag was put back in the pocket, courtesy of masslive.com:

Blakeman also says after watching the replay, he stands by the call:

Gronkowski, 24, finished the game with five receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown, including a 23-yard reception on a fourth down with less than a minute remaining to keep the Patriots’ chances alive. With just three seconds left, Brady looked to the end zone where Gronkowski was covered by Kuechly.

Gronkowski has 24 receptions for 343 yards and two touchdowns in four games since returning from offseason back and forearm surgeries.

And then Round 2 promptly came with Smith and Talib getting into it again on the same drive. That scuffle ended with some pushing, shoving and facemask grabbing.

Smith wasn’t done:

Belichick was extra frosty with the media, trotting out the usual non-answers and cliches ... until he went a little further discussing the final play of the game. He did not keep his team on the field or get to speak with any of the refs before they left the field.

• 2014 NFL mock draft: How high should Johnny Football go?

Tom Brady wasn’t happy about it. And neither was Ryan Mallet, who made a cameo in that impromptu meeting with the ref racing to get off the field.

After the game, things got really strange at Bill Belichick’s press conference. Silence brought on by audio problems, timid reporters and a dazed coach at the podium. Watch:

Cam Newton hit Ted Ginn for a go-ahead touchdown with 59 seconds to play and the Carolina Panthers knocked off New England, 24-20, on Monday Night Football.

Facing a second-and-15 with a little more than a minute remaining, Newton fired a strike to Ginn, who broke a tackle and burst up the sideline and into the end zone. The catch was Ginn’s only reception of the game and just the third time Newton had thrown his way.

The Patriots finally got a lead over the Panthers in the fourth quarter, but Cam Newton and the Carolina offense responded with a 13-play drive that took more than five minutes and put New England in a four-point hole with around a minute left on the clock. A depleted and struggling New England secondary was exposed on the drive, with multiple missed tackles and a crucial holding penalty. That left the duo of Aqib Talib, who’s been losing his one-on-one battle with Steve Smith, and Marquice Cole forlornly looking off into the distance for answers:

They’re left waiting for Tawmmy to redeem them with a final minute answer.

Jerry Richardson is generally not known for his pleasantness, and the ESPN cameras caught him in his luxury box looking particularly dour:

His life has to be better than the way he makes it look. Smile -- judging by your beverage, you clearly just enjoyed some Bojangles.

At this pace, Gronkowski could be the all-time touchdown king among tight ends when it’s all said and done. Of course, keeping up this ridiculous pace won’t be easy.

• 2014 NFL mock draft: How high should Johnny Football go?

For all the hot takes Cam Newton inspires, at least he can, you know, play football at a really high level. Newton’s done some impressive things with this arm, but his third quarter scramble to convert a third-and-7 has been the highlight of his night so far.

It’s not really fair to call that a scramble. And the best part isn’t even converting the third down; it was faking out the two Patriot defenders who nearly crash into each other.

Johnson went down to the ground immediately and was helped to the sideline. He had to be carted back to the locker room.

Johnson entered the game with 8.5 sacks this season and has been one of the Panthers’ top defensive players throughout his seven year career. Just two years ago, Johnson agreed to a six-year contract extension that paid him $32 million in guaranteed money.

The Panthers took a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter when Cam Newton capped off a 90-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell. Carolina added to its lead with a field goal in the second quarter, but the story of the first half was the Panthers’ defense.

The Patriots will receive the kickoff to open the second half.

Here’s hoping we get some more of those trademark Smith fireworks for the rest of MNF, because he’s one of the best quote-meisters and trash talkers we have.

Update: And it didn’t take long for the duo to deliver some more, as the two went at it after the whistle upon their next meeting:

Gregory and Dennard were ruled out earlier in the week, Gregory due to a finger injury and Dennard due to a knee injury. Arrington and Talib were both listed as questionable after being limited in practice during the week. Talib missed the last three games due to a hip injury while Arrington injured his groin last week.

Although New England will be forced to get by without a couple of key players on defense, the Patriots could get a boost offensively with the return of Shane Vereen. Vereen was activated from injured reserve on Monday after suffering a wrist injury in Week 1. He’s expected to be eased back into the offense, but proved to be an effective weapon in his lone appearance in 2013.

New England and Carolina both utilize balanced offenses with schemes that branch from the run game. The Patriots have run the ball on 44-percent of downs, while the Panthers rely even more on their running backs at 52-percent.

Much is made of the Panthers’ ability to stop runners, but teams haven’t tested this run defense very often because they’ve been forced to throw. Only five running backs have carried the ball more than 15 times against Carolina, and there’s a chance wearing down the front is the key to winning the matchup.

Game Date/Time and Location: Monday, Nov. 18, 8:40 p.m. ET at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, N.C.

TV schedule and distribution map: ESPN; The506.com

The Panthers will be hoping for better luck in this marquee game.

Defensively, the Patriots have been an opportunistic bunch in 2013, forcing a total of 19 turnovers.

There have probably been other songs written about Ron Rivera. But those songs were probably about a stuffed-shirt football coach, one who played by the rules written on the card, using fourth downs only punting.

That Ron is dead. Faced with the a choice of a pink slip or actually trying to win games, Riverboat Ron emerged. A new man, needed a new song ... or at least a remake of an old classic complete with awkward PhotoShop and comedic singing voice.

Vereen was placed on the injured reserve, designated-to-return list after breaking his wrist in the Week 1 win over the Buffalo Sabres. The third-year running back was explosive in the first game of the season, gaining 101 yards yards on 14 carries while also putting up 58 yards receiving on seven catches before suffering the injury.

New England, 7-2 on the season, takes on the Panthers on Monday Night Football, with kickoff set for 8:30 p.m. ET.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick has won nine of his last 10 coming out of a bye, which is one reason to be wary of the one-point spread favoring the Panthers. The Patriots have thrived under the prime-time glare of Monday Night Football, as well, winning 10 of their last 12 games and going 9-3 against the spread (ATS).

Factoring against the Pats is their 1-3 record ATS on the road this season. Carolina, on the other hand, is 3-1 at home both straight up and ATS. They’ve won their last two home games by a combined score of 64-25.

The panel of experts at SB Nation and CBS Sports favor the Panthers. Only Joel Thorman picked the Patriots to win straight-up at SB Nation, and at CBS six of nine panel members are on Carolina’s side. ESPN and Yahoo! disagree, slightly. The Patriots were selected eight times across ESPN’s 14-member panel, and twice across Yahoo!‘s three prognosticators.

In case you’re keeping score, that’s 18 picks for Carolina and 14 picks for New England. The distribution of picks parallels neatly with the 1-point spread in favor of the Panthers, according to Odds Shark.