The Panthers were playing on a short week after an embarrassing Monday night loss to the 49ers that dropped them to .500.
The Rams had won six straight games, five by at least two touchdowns, and had looked like the class of an NFL that otherwise is defined by parity.
And so of course the Panthers pulled off one of the bigger stunners of the season in an upset that likely will have playoff implications.
Carolina forced three turnovers of Matthew Stafford, including a pick-six, to surprise the Rams, 31-28, Sunday at Bank of America Stadium.
The Panthers won because their quarterback made several clutch plays.
Bryce Young (15-of-20 for 206 yards) threw for three touchdowns, two of which came on fourth-down plays.
The Panthers won because their defense continually took the ball away from Stafford.
Cornerback Mike Jackson stepped in front of Puka Nacua and returned the interception 48 yards for a touchdown late in the first quarter; a seven-play, 60-yard drive earlier in the quarter ended with Stafford’s pass getting batted up in the air at the line of scrimmage and ending up in the hands of safety Nick Scott in the end zone. The Rams engineered a 10-play drive in the closing minutes that looked as if it would end with at least a game-tying field goal and perhaps more, before Derrick Brown lunged at Stafford for a game-sealing strip-sack.
The Panthers — perhaps the most confusing team in the NFL, who began 0-2 and who lost to the Saints just a couple weeks ago — now are 7-6 and a half-game back of the Buccaneers in the NFC South.
The Bucs and Panthers meet in Weeks 16 and 18, setting up an entertaining race for the division.
The Rams (9-3), meanwhile, have fallen out of the NFC’s No. 1 seed.
The Bears (9-3), who beat the Eagles on Friday, would have home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs if the season ended today.
As they fell short, the Rams were still waiting to see whether they would retain a game lead on the Seahawks in the division.
Seattle (8-3) was hosting the Vikings, though the Rams still would maintain the lead in the NFC West even with a Seahawks victory because they beat Seattle in Week 11.
