SCORING

Team		1	2	3	4	OT	Total
VISITOR:	Carolina Panthers	7	7	0	7	0	21
HOME:	Detroit Lions	0	14	3	3	0	20

Scoring Plays
Team	Qtr	Time	Play Description (Extra Point) (Drive Info)	Visitor	Home
Panthers	1	0:54	R.Gardner 4 yd. pass from J.Delhomme (J.Kasay kick) (3-11, 1:30)	7	0
Lions	2	14:17	B.Bailey 34 yd. interception return (J.Hanson kick)	7	7
Panthers	2	14:00	S.Smith 80 yd. pass from J.Delhomme (J.Kasay kick) (1-80, 0:17)	14	7
Lions	2	8:28	K.Kennedy 64 yd. interception return (J.Hanson kick)	14	14
Lions	3	0:40	J.Hanson 52 yd. Field Goal (11-31, 6:09)	14	17
Lions	4	5:08	J.Hanson 25 yd. Field Goal (6-89, 3:44)	14	20
Panthers	4	0:32	R.Proehl 3 yd. pass from C.Weinke (J.Kasay kick) (11-79, 2:41)	21	20

Paid Attendance: 61,083

Game Length: 3:19

Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions 10/16/2005 at Ford Field

Final Individual Statistics

Carolina Panthers		Detroit Lions

RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LG TD S.Davis 13 27 2.1 8 0 N.Goings 4 15 3.8 10 0 J.Robertson 4 7 1.8 8 0 J.Delhomme 2 5 2.5 5 0 C.Weinke 2 0 0.0 1 0   Total 25 54 2.2 10 0		RUSHING ATT YDS AVG LG TD K.Jones 12 21 1.8 8 0 S.Bryson 5 12 2.4 5 0 J.Harrington 3 12 4.0 8 0 A.Pinner 4 7 1.8 3 0   Total 24 52 2.2 8 0

PASSING ATT CMP YDS SK/YD TD LG IN RT J.Delhomme 25 15 236 2/20 2 80 3 78.5 C.Weinke 7 5 47 0/0 1 18 0 129.2   Total 32 20 283 2/20 3 80 3 83.2		PASSING ATT CMP YDS SK/YD TD LG IN RT J.Harrington 28 17 201 6/44 0 86 1 67.7   Total 28 17 201 6/44 0 86 1 67.7

PASS RECEIVING NO YDS AVG LG TD S.Smith 6 123 20.5 80 1 R.Proehl 5 50 10.0 18 1 R.Gardner 4 32 8.0 12 1 K.Colbert 3 53 17.7 42 0 N.Goings 2 25 12.5 14 0   Total 20 283 14.2 80 3		PASS RECEIVING NO YDS AVG LG TD K.Johnson 4 23 5.8 9 0 M.Pollard 3 105 35.0 86 0 M.Williams 2 27 13.5 14 0 S.Bryson 2 9 4.5 9 0 K.Jones 2 3 1.5 7 0 S.Vines 1 13 13.0 13 0 A.Pinner 1 13 13.0 13 0 P.Smith 1 4 4.0 4 0 C.Fitzsimmons 1 4 4.0 4 0   Total 17 201 11.8 86 0

INTERCEPTIONS NO YDS AVG LG TD K.Lucas 1 27 27.0 27 0   Total 1 27 27.0 27 0		INTERCEPTIONS NO YDS AVG LG TD K.Kennedy 1 64 64.0 64 1 B.Bailey 1 34 34.0 34 1 D.Bly 1 0 0.0 0 0   Total 3 98 32.7 64 2

PUNTING NO YDS AVG TB IN20 LG J.Baker 5 189 37.8 0 1 51   Total 5 189 37.8 0 1 51		PUNTING NO YDS AVG TB IN20 LG N.Harris 5 213 42.6 0 2 50   Total 5 213 42.6 0 2 50

PUNT RETURNS NO YDS AVG FC LG TD S.Smith 4 14 3.5 1 8 0   Returns 4 14 3.5 1 8 0		PUNT RETURNS NO YDS AVG FC LG TD R.McQuarters 2 3 1.5 1 5 0 [DOWNED] 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 [OUT OF BOUNDS] 1 0 0.0 0 0 0   Returns 2 3 1.5 1 5 0

KICKOFF RETURNS NO YDS AVG FC LG TD J.Robertson 5 72 14.4 0 17 0   Returns 5 72 14.4 0 17 0		KICKOFF RETURNS NO YDS AVG FC LG TD R.McQuarters 3 87 29.0 0 43 0 S.Bryson 1 25 25.0 0 25 0   Returns 4 112 28.0 0 43 0

Carolina Panthers FUMBLES FUM OWN-REC YDS TD FORCED OPP-REC YDS TD OUT-BDS K.Colbert 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 S.Davis 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 J.Robertson 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 S.Smith 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 M.Wahle 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 K.Moorehead 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 A.Wallace 0 0 0 0 1 1 6 0 0 M.Minter 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 J.Peppers 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 K.Rasmussen 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Total 3 2 0 0 4 3 6 0 0 Detroit Lions FUMBLES FUM OWN-REC YDS TD FORCED OPP-REC YDS TD OUT-BDS J.Harrington 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 K.Jones 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 M.Williams 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 T.Holt 0 0 0 0 1 1 38 0 0 E.Holmes 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 K.Kennedy 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 Total 4 1 0 0 3 1 38 0 0

Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions 10/16/2005 at Ford Field

Final Team Statistics

	Visitor Panthers	Home Lions
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS	14	11
By Rushing	0	1
By Passing	13	8
By Penalty	1	2
THIRD DOWN EFFICIENCY	6-14-43%	4-15-27%
FOURTH DOWN EFFICIENCY	0-1-0%	1-2-50%
TOTAL NET YARDS	317	209
Total Offensive Plays (inc. times thrown passing)	59	58
Average gain per offensive play	5.4	3.6
NET YARDS RUSHING	54	52
Total Rushing Plays	25	24
Average gain per rushing play	2.2	2.2
Tackles for a loss-number and yards	3-4	2-8
NET YARDS PASSING	263	157
Times thrown - yards lost attempting to pass	2-20	6-44
Gross yards passing	283	201
PASS ATTEMPTS-COMPLETIONS-HAD INTERCEPTED	32-20-3	28-17-1
Avg gain per pass play (inc.# thrown passing)	7.7	4.6
KICKOFFS Number-In End Zone-Touchbacks	4-0-0	5-0-0
PUNTS Number and Average	5-37.8	5-42.6
Had Blocked	0	0
FGs - PATs Had Blocked	1-0	1-0
Net Punting Average	37.2	39.8
TOTAL RETURN YARDAGE (Not Including Kickoffs)	41	101
No. and Yards Punt Returns	4-14	2-3
No. and Yards Kickoff Returns	5-72	4-112
No. and Yards Interception Returns	1-27	3-98
PENALTIES Number and Yards	10-73	10-75
FUMBLES Number and Lost	3-1	4-3
TOUCHDOWNS	3	2
Rushing	0	0
Passing	3	0
Interceptions	0	2
EXTRA POINTS Made-Attempts	3-3	2-2
Kicking Made-Attempts	3-3	2-2
FIELD GOALS Made-Attempts	0-1	2-3
RED ZONE EFFICIENCY	2-3-67%	0-1-0%
GOAL TO GO EFFICIENCY	1-1-100%	0-1-0%
SAFETIES	0	0
FINAL SCORE	21	20
TIME OF POSSESSION	27:57	32:03

Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions 10/16/2005 at Ford Field

Ball Possession And Drive Chart

Carolina Panthers

#	Time Recd	Time Lost	Time Poss	How Ball Obtained	Drive Began	# Play	Yds Gain	Yds Pen	Net Yds	1st Down	Last Scrm	How Given Up
1	9:55	6:14	3:41	Punt	CAR 9	7	63	0	63	2	DET 34	Fumble
2	5:01	3:36	1:25	Missed FG	CAR 37	3	9	0	9	0	CAR 46	Punt
3	2:24	0:54	1:30	Fumble	DET 11	3	11	0	11	1	*DET 4	Touchdown
4	14:30	14:17	0:13	Punt	CAR 12	1	0	0	0	0	CAR 12	Interception
5	14:17	14:00	0:17	Kickoff	CAR 20	1	80	0	80	1	CAR 20	Touchdown
6	9:33	8:28	1:05	Punt	CAR 41	3	-2	5	3	0	CAR 44	Interception
7	8:28	6:14	2:14	Kickoff	CAR 22	3	-11	0	-11	0	CAR 11	Punt
8	3:40	1:48	1:52	Fumble	DET 39	4	9	-5	4	0	DET 35	Missed FG
9	0:43	0:00	0:43	Punt	CAR 13	1	2	0	2	0	CAR 13	End of Half
10	15:00	13:09	1:51	Kickoff	CAR 9	3	1	0	1	0	CAR 10	Punt
11	11:05	10:58	0:07	Interception	DET 39	1	0	0	0	0	DET 39	Interception
12	8:45	6:49	1:56	Fumble	DET 45	4	18	-20	-2	0	DET 47	Punt
13	0:40	8:52	6:48	Kickoff	CAR 26	11	70	0	70	4	*DET 4	Downs
14	5:08	3:38	1:30	Kickoff	CAR 22	3	4	-5	-1	0	CAR 21	Punt
15	3:13	0:32	2:41	Punt	CAR 21	11	64	15	79	6	*DET 3	Touchdown
16	0:04	0:00	0:04	Downs	DET 49	1	-1	0	-1	0	DET 49	End of Game
				(549) Average CAR 34

Detroit Lions

#	Time Recd	Time Lost	Time Poss	How Ball Obtained	Drive Began	# Play	Yds Gain	Yds Pen	Net Yds	1st Down	Last Scrm	How Given Up
1	15:00	9:55	5:05	Kickoff	DET 22	7	21	-5	16	2	DET 38	Punt
2	6:14	5:01	1:13	Fumble	CAR 34	4	5	0	5	0	CAR 29	Missed FG
3	3:36	2:24	1:12	Punt	DET 3	2	3	5	8	1	DET 15	Fumble
4	0:54	14:30	1:24	Kickoff	DET 39	3	3	0	3	0	DET 42	Punt
5	14:00	9:33	4:27	Kickoff	DET 36	4	28	-35	-7	1	DET 29	Punt
6	6:14	3:40	2:34	Punt	DET 43	5	7	-5	2	1	CAR 47	Fumble
7	1:48	0:43	1:05	Missed FG	DET 43	3	-5	0	-5	0	DET 38	Punt
8	13:09	11:05	2:04	Punt	CAR 48	5	2	0	2	1	CAR 46	Interception
9	10:58	8:45	2:13	Interception	DET 20	4	25	0	25	1	DET 31	Fumble
10	6:49	0:40	6:09	Punt	DET 36	11	31	0	31	3	CAR 33	Field Goal
11	8:52	5:08	3:44	Downs	DET 4	6	89	0	89	1	*CAR 7	Field Goal
12	3:38	3:13	0:25	Punt	DET 39	3	0	0	0	0	DET 39	Punt
13	0:32	0:04	0:28	Kickoff	DET 49	4	0	0	0	0	DET 49	Downs
				(452) Average DET 35

* inside opponent's 20

Time of Possession by Quarter	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Visitor  Carolina Panthers	6:36	6:24	4:34	10:23		27:57
Home  Detroit Lions	8:24	8:36	10:26	4:37		32:03

Kickoff Drive No. - Start Average

Panthers: 5 - CAR 20

Lions: 4 - DET 36

Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions 10/16/2005 at Ford Field

Final Defensive Statistics

Carolina Panthers	Regular Defensive Plays									Special Teams						Misc
	TKL	AST	COMB	SACK /	YRDS	IN	PD	FF	FR		TKL	AST	FF	FR	BL		TKL	AST	FF	FR
D.Morgan	8	5	13	1.5	15.5	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
B.Short	3	3	6	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
M.Rucker	4	1	5	1.5	8.5	0	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
A.Wallace	4	1	5	1	8	0	0	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
B.Buckner	4	0	4	0	0	0	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
W.Witherspoon	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.Carstens	2	1	3	1	8	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
M.McCree	0	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
M.Minter	2	0	2	0	0	0	1	1	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
K.Moorehead	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.Peppers	2	0	2	1	4	0	0	1	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
R.Manning	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
T.Davis	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
K.Lucas	1	1	2	0	0	1	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
D.Wesley	1	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0		1	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
K.Rasmussen	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1		1	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
S.Tufts	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		2	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.Kyle	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
G.Wilds	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
[Blank]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	1		0	0	0	0
S.Davis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0
S.Smith	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	1
M.Wahle	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	1
Total	41	15	56	6	44	1	5	4	3		6	0	0	0	1		1	0	0	2

	TKL / TK = Tackle	AST / AS = Assist	COMB = Combined	IN = Interception
	PD = Pass Defense	FF = Forced Fumble	FR = Fumble Recovery	BL = Blocked

Detroit Lions	Regular Defensive Plays									Special Teams						Misc
	TKL	AST	COMB	SACK /	YRDS	IN	PD	FF	FR		TKL	AST	FF	FR	BL		TKL	AST	FF	FR
K.Kennedy	10	2	12	0	0	1	2	1	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
T.Holt	4	2	6	0	0	0	1	1	1		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
A.Goodman	5	0	5	0	0	0	2	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
B.Bailey	2	3	5	0	0	1	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
D.Bly	4	0	4	0	0	1	1	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
E.Holmes	3	1	4	0	0	0	0	1	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.DeVries	2	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
S.Rogers	2	1	3	0.5	5	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
S.Cody	1	2	3	1.5	15	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.Davis	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
T.Lehman	1	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
C.Redding	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
R.McQuarters	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
K.Edwards	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
D.Wilkinson	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
V.Fox	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		2	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
D.Curry	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		2	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
J.McGraw	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		2	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
G.Martinez	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
B.Walker	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
W.Rainer	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
S.Bryson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	1	0	0	0		0	0	0	0
[Blank]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	1		0	0	0	0
D.Woody	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0
A.Pinner	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0
K.Kosier	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0
M.Williams	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		1	0	0	0
K.Jones	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	1
Total	38	15	53	2	20	3	7	3	1		7	4	0	0	1		4	0	0	1

News: 10/17/05

This was painful, almost too painful to watch. This was repetitive, almost too repetitive to bother recounting.

The Lions' offense right now is an abomination wrapped in disarray tied together with duct tape. It also happens to be brutal, and futile.

Here we sit, just five games into the season, and already the Lions are teetering on the brink of something, maybe a mutiny by the defense.

Of course, before defensive players start grabbing offenders and shaking them until their eyes roll, they might consider closing out a game first.

Carolina rolled 79 yards in the final three minutes, mostly behind backup quarterback Chris Weinke, to edge the Lions, 21-20, Sunday, a defeat that seemed worse than a one-pointer to a decent team. The Panthers' Jake Delhomme tried to hand the game to the Lions (2-3), with Boss Bailey and Kenoy Kennedy returning interceptions for touchdowns. But Detroit's offense, with a wobbling Joey Harrington, is incapable of taking anything these days, including gifts.

We have seen this nightmare so many times, we know exactly how it ends. Steve Mariucci has a mess, a shattered quarterback and a frustrated defense and alleged key players providing nothing.

"To lose a game like that, when the defense scores two touchdowns, is disgusting," guard Damien Woody said. "I'm ashamed of it, and everybody else on the offense should be ashamed of it. ... It seems like everyone wants to take this offense by the hand and walk it like a little child. I get tired of hearing the excuses. That's disgusting. That's pitiful."

Hey, that's my job to come up with the nasty adjectives. As much as we need to focus on Harrington's never-ending struggles, he's not the only element of Mariucci's ridiculously passive offense that doesn't work.

The Lions couldn't run, throw, catch or block. The line was horrible, and lost tackle Jeff Backus to an ankle injury. Kevin Jones ran for exactly 21 yards. The Lions are so low on receivers again, someone named Glenn Martinez was Harrington's primary receiver on the final, faltering drive.

The Lions aren't giving Harrington much to work with again, and that's a problem. But Harrington is making nothing out of nothing, and that's the painful part.

The fans booed the quarterback all day, and then serenaded him afterward with a resounding "Joey (isn't good)!" chant. That's understandable but unfortunate because the guy really does care. But with this offense, there's nothing to believe in right now, not even Jones, who's slowed by a shoulder injury.

Could the anemic production divide the locker room? Of course it could, although it seems a tad early.

"If could get to that point," tight end Marcus Pollard admitted. "But I'm not concerned about it. It's like sibling rivalries. Sometimes you don't get along with your brothers and sisters, but I think we'll circle the wagons."

Fine. But will it ever become a bandwagon, and who's capable of driving it? For the third straight week, the defense forced four turnovers. For the third straight week, the offense did little with them. Harrington passed for 201 yards (86 on one toss to Pollard), was sacked six times and hit a ton. With Charles Rogers suspended and Roy Williams injured, the Lions looked more lost than usual.

Mariucci sounded as down as we've ever heard him, and acknowledged locker-room tensions were high. Players did a decent job not pointing fingers, but really, name one guy who has the credentials and production to do it.

Harrington looked spent, as if he knows the end is near, and it probably will be as soon as Jeff Garcia is healthy in a couple of weeks. He's not making excuses. He's also not making plays.

"If you want to put it on me, so be it," Harrington said. "Would it be nice to have all our starters? Yeah, it would. But we don't, so we need to make do. More than anything, I feel terrible for our defense. I went up to them and apologized. There's nothing else I can say except I'm sorry."

They're all sorry right now, and I mean that in both contexts. They should be apologetic, and their sorry performance could collapse the season if the Lions aren't careful, or proactive.

There were hints of discord leading up to the game, with Williams and Jones trying to bury the remnants of their on-field disagreement last month. On Sunday, Harrington jawed with receiver Kevin Johnson, and later with center Dominic Raiola. All the while, the crowd booed and the offense went nowhere, or almost nowhere, producing two Jason Hanson field goals.

After all the great college football the previous day, this was hard to watch. If anyone sees a way this offense can get better quickly, please pass it along to Mariucci. At this point, he should be willing to try anything.

RECAP

Chris Weinke was ready when Jake Delhomme was woozy.

Playing in his first game since 2002, Weinke threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Proehl with 32 seconds left to give the Carolina Panthers a 21-20 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Weinke relieved Delhomme, who was knocked out of the game when he slid and was crushed by safety Kenoy Kennedy.

''I knew right when he got hit that he was going to be dazed,'' Weinke said. ''I didn't have time to think about it. I had been standing around all day. I just had to get loose. I was excited.

''You never want to see someone go down, but I've been waiting for this opportunity for three years.''

The backup quarterback took over at midfield with 2:56 left and showed remarkable poise.

Weinke connected with Proehl on a third-and-3 from Detroit's 41 and threw the TD pass to the second-string receiver one play after Proehl dropped the ball in the end zone. Weinke completed 5 of 7 passes for 47 yards and threw his first TD pass since his rookie year.

The 2000 Heisman Trophy winner started 15 games for the Panthers in 2001 and threw for 2,931 yards, trailing only Peyton Manning's rookie record, and was a seldom-used backup the next year.

The past two-plus seasons, he hadn't taken a snap.

''You don't really know if you're ready until you get the opportunity,'' Weinke said. ''But I felt as comfortable as I've ever felt playing quarterback in this league.''

The Lions (2-3) got the ball back at midfield with 24 seconds left, but couldn't complete a pass. On their previous possession, a first down might've sealed the victory.

''I didn't like the way we finished the game,'' Detroit coach Steve Mariucci said. ''We played hard, but when we needed a first down up six, or needed a stop, we couldn't get it.''

Safety Mike Minter made a play that allowed Carolina (4-2) to win its third straight game.

Marcus Pollard caught a pass from Joey Harrington and was caught by Minter, stopping an 86-yard gain at Carolina's 5. The Lions had to settle for Jason Hanson's 25-yard field goal and a 20-14 lead with 5:08 left.

''If I didn't catch him from behind, we wouldn't have had an opportunity to win,'' Minter said. ''That definitely ranks up there for me with the big plays I've made.''

The Lions returned two interceptions for scores in the first half and Hanson made two field goals in the second half.

Delhomme and Harrington had three turnovers apiece early in the third quarter. With Carolina receiver Keary Colbert's fumble and Detroit receiver Mike Williams' fumble, the teams combined for eight turnovers through three quarters.

''It was a game like no other,'' Carolina coach John Fox said. ''Our defense did a great job keeping us in the game. We hung around and luckily, offensively we were able to come out with that last drive.''

Delhomme was 15-of-25 for 236 yards with two TDs and three interceptions. Fox said Delhomme was ''shaken up'' by Kennedy's hit, which drew a penalty.

Harrington, who was booed constantly, finished 17-of-28 for 201 yards with an interception and two fumbles.

''To boo Joey here, that's tough on him and tough on all of us,'' Pollard said. ''At the same time, I can sympathize with the fans, too.''

Steve Smith caught six passes for 123 yards, including an 80-yard TD. Rod Gardner had four receptions for 32 yards, including a 4-yard TD.

Pollard had three catches for 105 yards, but came up short on a reception that would have put the Lions ahead by two scores late in the game.

''That is one that I have to get in,'' he said.

The stingy defenses limited the ground games: Detroit's Kevin Jones had 21 yards rushing and Carolina's Stephen Davis had 27 yards.

''Usually, the best defense wins. Today, the luckiest defense won,'' Panthers defensive tackle Brentson Buckner said. ''Their defense played better than ours.''

It was tied at 14 at halftime after both teams blocked a field goal.

Detroit's offense finally scored with 40 seconds left in the third quarter, taking a 17-14 lead on Hanson's 52-yard kick.

Scott's Game Commentary:

Can the Offense be any worse??? After the Defense played their hearts out by running two interceptions back for a touchdown and also forcing another two, they still found themselves needing to make some big plays late in the game. The Defense held strong as Carolina gambled on 4th and 1 midway through the 4th quarter. Marcus Pollard had a 86 yard reception on the next possession - but he did not get into the endzone. The Offense did not score one touchdown and was the sole reason why the honolulu blue and silver lost the game! Even as pathetic as they played - Harrington and the offensive line were horrid - all they needed was a few first downs to seal the game. After they quickly went three and out, Carolina's backup Chris Weinke, who had not thrown a ball in years, got the go ahead touchdown with under a minute to go. After R.W. McQuarters ran the ball back to midfield, you would think the Lions had a good chance to win the game given Hanson already made a 52 yard field goal - WRONG! Four straight incomplete passes pretty much spelled another heart breakening loss. Even though the Lions are 2-3 and tied for first with the Bears, they deserve to be in last place given how pathetic the Offense is. It really is ashame given they have a Defense that makes plays.

Grades:

Offense: --- F-. This could be if not the worst Offense I have ever seen in my life time. I am counting the days until Jeff Garcia is ready to get back into action. It is simply amazing to watching Harrington get worse and worse as the season goes on. Against the Panthers he only committed three turnovers and once again did not throw a touchdown pass. Besides Harrington being a utter first round flop, Guard Jeff Backus is inching ever so closer to that label - he committed four penalties and has had one horrendous year so far - good riddance to him after this season! The rest of the offensive line was atrocious as the Panthers dominated the line of scrimmage from start to finish. Kevin Jones has regressed so much it isn't even funny - 12 carries for 21 yards??? Mike Williams had only two catches including a fumble loss. As bad as the Offense played, all they needed to do was burn four minutes off the clock which meant to pickup a few first downs. They went three and out. With less than 30 seconds left, all they needed was FIFTEEN yards to setup a game winning field goal - four incomplete passes later, the game was over. Only six weeks ago, everyone was so giddy about how great this offense could be. Today we see that they are if not the worst offense in the NFL with the last four first round draft picks doing squat!

Defense: --- B+. What more could the Defense do? For the first time in thirty years they scored two touchdowns and forced four turnovers. They had some key sacks and also had a great stand when Carolina went for a first down on the four yard line. Boss Bailey and Shaun Rogers each had big games but it wasn't enough. Just like the Tampa Bay game, they gave up a 80 yard touchdown reception to Steve Smith. After that play, they were dominant. Midway through the 4th, the Defense had a great stand which should have been enough to cement a victory - wrong! With an inept Offense the Defense was asked again to shut the door shut on Carolina's chances of winning - and they failed. After Jake Delholme got knocked out of a game by a boneheaded helmet to helmet call on Kenoy Kennedy, backup Chris Weinke led the Panthers down the field for the game winning touchdown. At the beginning of the year, I would have thought the Defense would be the reason the Lions would struggle this year - it has been nothing but the opposite. Hopefully they can keep play like they have been since they definitely will get no help from the pitiful Offense.

Special Teams: --- B. Hanson had a field goal blocked but nailed a 52 yarder. Harris had some good punts and McQuarters run back to the 50 late in the game should have given the Offense a great shot of winning the game. In the first half the special teams had back to back holding calls that ended up costing the Lions 20 yards in field position - that is inexcusable.

Coaching: --- F. Nice job wasting three time outs in the third quarter Mooch! The play calling is getting so conservative i'm going to throw up. Just about 75% of the time, I could foresee what was going to transpire. Late in the game when the Lions were up six, once again we saw Mr. Conservative run three plays for no yards. It is quite obvious that either Mariucci is the worst play caller in the NFL or he has absolutely no faith in Joey - i'll take the latter. He was given Harrington which i'm sure he can't wait to bench soon as Garcia is ready - hopefully that will be in a few weeks.

Overall: --- F. The Lions had a chance to separate themselves from the Bears in the NFL's worst division - but failed. If they had a mediocre offense, the Lions would be 4-1 instead of 2-3 right now. Next up is another team that struggles to score - the Cleveland Browns. At the beginning of the year, I thought this would be an easy road victory - but not anymore. I was so excited to make the trip for this game a month ago, but now envision another wasted day coming up - I already burned a day of my life watching that crap in Chicago and it better not happen again. It should be a boring, low scoring game and we all better hope the Defense makes some plays or else the Lions will be 2-4 heading back to Ford Field to face the Bears. As crappy as the honolulu blue and silver have played, they are somehow still in first place and have a favorable schedule. Unfortunately, that does not mean much when you have the worst Offense and QB in the NFL!

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