Well, there was no dancing around the question.
Of all the eyesores that presented themselves Sunday during the Carolina Panthers’ 31-24 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, run defense would certainly rank near — or at — the top of the list. The Falcons snapped Carolina’s 21-game streak of not allowing a 100-yard rusher, as Atlanta backup Tevin Coleman ran through and around the Panthers’ defense at will. Even Atlanta’s third-string back, Ito Smith, averaged more than 5 yards per carry to compliment Coleman’s 107 yards.
And so disappears what was the longest such streak in the NFL, and the longest ever for the Panthers’ historically defensive-minded franchise.