Anyone questioning what the Carolina Panthers’ effort level would look like with them needing nothing less than a Christmas miracle to make the playoffs, type “Jonathan Stewart facemask” into your search engine and buckle up.
During the second quarter of the Panthers’ 26-15 victory at Washington on Monday, Stewart banged off a couple of defenders for an 8-yard gain. The force of one of the hits ripped Stewart’s facemask from his helmet, making him look like one of those brutes from the leather-helmet days.
That was Exhibit A of Stewart’s bull-in-the-china-shop bruising of the Washington defense.
[ NFL schedule and scores | NFL standings | Panthers schedule and results ]
There were more to come, including a change-of-direction run in which he vaulted over former teammate Josh Norman and fought through five tacklers before going down after an 11-yard gain.