‘Monday Night Football’ results: Panthers improve to 7-0 with overtime win

For the first time ever, six teams remained unbeaten as we entered Week 6 of the NFL season. That changed in the first game of the week, when the Atlanta Falcons lost to the New Orleans Saints, 31-21, on Thursday night. The number of unblemished teams fell to four when the 7-0 Denver Broncos dominated the previously 6-0 Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football in Week 8.

Those same Broncos finally fell a week later, against the struggling Indianapolis Colts, surprisingly. A week later, the Cincinnati Bengals’ seemingly impenetrable offensive line was dominated by the Houston Texans in a 10-6 loss.

According to Five Thirty Eight, both teams now have over a 99 percent chance of making the playoffs, and have virtually clinched their divisions. Nate Silver’s website gives New England a 98 percent chance of winning the East, while the Bengals are at 97 percent in the North.

Tampa Bay boosts Carolina in the NFC South

NFL games this season -- especially on Monday Night Football -- have been filled with controversial calls that have had major impact on the outcomes. From a major clock mistake in Pittsburgh Steelers-San Diego Chargers to an incorrect ruling in Detroit Lions-Seattle Seahawks, NFL refs have not shined in the final minutes. The Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers met on Monday Night Football in Week 8, and again there was a late-game controversy.

The Colts took over possession trailing 23-20 with 2:02 to play in the game. They kicked a game-tying field goal to force overtime and it was partially aided by a pair of controversial calls that went the Colts’ way.

Pretty easy to be super excited after pulling off a big win in overtime to stay undefeated.

Clearly Jonathan Stewart was in a good mood after rushing for 82 yards and a touchdown on Monday night. Luke Kuechly will probably be a little surprised when he sees this one later.

And yet, as crazy as the game was, perhaps the most interesting thing that happened Monday night was a staged protest by activists who rappelled from the upper deck of Bank of America Stadium to unfurl a banner directing attention to Bank of America’s funding of a North Carolina energy company. Before that, there was a lot of ugly football.

The Colts set the tone for the night by fumbling away their second snap of the game. Luck made a bad decision that resulted in a bad interception three plays into Indianapolis’ next possession. The turnovers led to 10 points for the Panthers on just 40 yards of offense.

Right. Off. His. Hands. Luckily for Ginn, the Panthers went on to win in overtime, making them 7-0 on the season.

Cam Newton’s teammates have always seemed to love him, so it should come as no surprise that they are willing to squish anyone who tries to fight him.

Colts safety Mike Adams appeared to lunge for Cam Newton. Cam’s linemen were having none of that. Trai Turner, recognizing that Fernando Velasco’s 6’4, 310-pound frame was already in position to do some damage, came over and shoved him down on top of Adams. To reiterate, a 320-pound man shoved a 310-pound man down on top of another human being for picking on his quarterback.

Two protesters unfurled a banner while hanging from the upper deck of Bank of America Stadium on Monday night in an apparent protest against a North Carolina energy company. ESPN cameras showed the protesters suspended over the lower stands with climbing gear. The banner read “Dump Dominion,” apparently referring to Dominion North Carolina Power, a company supported by Bank of America.

A press release was published at the website dumpdominion.org taking responsibility for the banner, which was apparently the work of two people from a group called We Are Cove Point. The release explained that the protesters were calling for Bank of America to stop financing Dominion. The banner read “BoA: Dump Dominion, WeAreCovePoint.org.” The protesters said Bank of America allowed “companies like Dominion to operate without checks and balances.”

On Sunday, Brad Wing busted out the golf swing celebration after a big punt. On Monday, Pat McAfee followed suit.

McAfee probably just didn’t want anyone to forget that he did the celebration originally. Wing was plenty impressed with his fellow punter’s swing though.

They just didn’t expect it to be the Panthers.

Luck has thrown nine interceptions in five starts and is completing just 56.2 percent of his passes. Forty-year-old Matt Hasselbeck actually outperformed Luck in his two starts while the starter was recovering from a shoulder problem, but the Colts’ future is tied to Luck, so he will keep the job.

It’s still a little weird typing “the undefeated Carolina Panthers” after the team won the NFC South with a paltry 7-8-1 record last season. The Panthers were not good until the final weeks of 2014, but Ron Rivera’s team has played excellent football this season, despite plenty of things working against them.

An AFC South sending a team with a losing record to the playoffs, much like the NFC South did for the Panthers last year, is a real possibility. The Texans still have huge issues at the quarterback position; the Jaguars, despite an offense performing above expectations, cannot get things done; the Titans aren’t just starting a rookie quarterback, they’re starting a rookie quarterback who is banged up. The Colts don’t need to win that many games.

The biggest problem for the Colts has been the defense, though. It enters Week 8 as the NFL’s worst and has given up more than 400 yards of offense in five consecutive games. Keeping the Panthers under that mark is a tall task, but needs to happen if the Colts hope to pull the upset.

The Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts square off on Monday Night Football in a battle of two teams seemingly headed in opposite directions. The Panthers have started the season 6-0, while the Colts are struggling at 3-4 and have lost two games in a row.

Carolina is surging thanks to an elite defense and Cam Newton playing quality football. Despite the lack of weapons at wide receiver, Newton led the Panthers to their sixth straight win with the likes of Ted Ginn and Philly Brown playing significant snaps. After a slow start, Jonathan Stewart found his groove again, rushing for 125 yards against the Philadelphia Eagles last week. The offense is far from the best in the league, but it’s done enough to help the Panthers win games while the defense terrorizes opponents.