Panthers feeling good at the bye

Nov 16, 2017 - 5:28 PM CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Carolina Panthers are on a roll with three victories in a row and a thorough beating of the Miami Dolphins on Monday night.

The offense is clicking and the defense is ranked as tops in the NFL.

With all that momentum, it might seem like a good time to jump into another game. Yet this is a good time for the Panthers to take a break.

It's the team's annual bye week, coming later on the schedule than usual.

"I think our guys earned a good break," head coach Ron Rivera said.

Carolina (7-3) has six games remaining, with three on the road and three at home. The post-bye stretch begins with trips to the New York Jets and New Orleans Saints, with the latter bound to impact the top of the NFC South standings and a rematch of a game the Panthers lost in September.

Quarterback Cam Newton said he definitely needs the break in the schedule even as he's coming off a stellar performance that ended up making him the NFC Offensive Player of the Week. He said it's important to have a chance to regroup physically after the Panthers played for 10 consecutive weeks.

"It feels good to get a win like that going into the bye," linebacker Luke Kuechly said.

Safety Kurt Coleman said the Panthers can make good use of the time off to prepare for the final stretch of the season.

"Continue to rejuvenate," Coleman said. "Learn from what we haven't done well throughout the season."

Defensive tackle Kawann Short said the Panthers should be motivated by what they have accomplished so far.

"We will come back next week and just be refreshed and ready to go," Short said.

Carolina's offense put up a franchise-record 548 total yards in the 45-21 victory over Miami. With 30 first downs, it was the third most in team history.

Rivera said it's good to have the open weekend coming off a victory, yet he said now isn't the time to overlook shortcomings or areas that need to be upgraded.

"We are good enough, but I still think we could be better," Rivera said. "I think there are some things we could correct and work on. These are things that we as coaches have to be honest about and make sure we are holding ourselves to the right standards. ... When we come back, we have to make sure we have these guys ready to roll and pick up right where we left off."

--The Panthers have lost speedy rookie wide receiver Curtis Samuel to a season-ending injury. He'll have surgery on his left ankle.

It was a rather disjointed first season for Samuel, a former Ohio State standout who was hampered in the preseason by ailments and then never really got into a groove. But with the recent trade of wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, that was supposed to give new emphasis to upgrading Samuel's role.

Samuel, who became a starter recently, made 15 catches for 115 yards this season. He also was used as a return specialist.

"It's kind of a collective thing," offensive coordinator Mike Shula said, suggesting Samuel might be the fastest player on the team.

In the short term, the Panthers handled the absence of Samuel for the rest of the Miami game.

"Guys came in and did their job, knew their assignments," Shula said. "We hardly missed a beat."

--Quarterback Cam Newton seems to embrace the spotlight, so maybe it's too bad for the Panthers the rest of their games are scheduled for Sunday afternoons (barring some flex scheduling by the television networks).

Newton improved to 5-1 in Monday night games all time. He's the first quarterback with at least two passing touchdowns in each of his first six games on Monday Night Football.

"There is something about when the lights turn on," head coach Ron Rivera said. "There is something about this stage. He just carries it over."

Newton said there is prestige when playing in a game with no other NFL games being contested at the same time.

"You still want to treat it like any other game," Newton said. "You know that America is watching."

NOTES: TE Greg Olsen is expected to be given a chance for regular practice on Monday when the Panthers return to game preparation and he could play Nov. 26 against the New York Jets. In the meantime, he'll be a guest analyst for Fox on Sunday's telecast of the Los Angeles Rams-Minnesota Vikings game. ... WR Damiere Byrd is on track to come off injured reserve for the first weekend in December. That would make him eligible to play against the New Orleans Saints. ... RB Christian McCaffrey has scored five touchdowns as a rookie, with three of those coming over the past two games. He's tied for fourth in the NFL for touchdowns by rookies this season.