Panthers 27, Rams 13: St. Louis Loses Pace, Jackson Loses Ball

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It wasn't just the fact that Steven Jackson fumbled twice. When you look at the numbers, you see that Carolina Panthers running backs fumbled twice, too.

It was what happened after those fumbles that made the difference. As soon as DeAngelo Williams dropped one on the 50 yard line early in the 3rd quarter, the Panthers defense made Jackson cough the ball right back up, and two plays later, Jake Delhomme hit Steve Smith on a 68-yard bomb for a touchdown. From that point on, the defense did the rest, taking advantage of Orlando Pace's shoulder injury late in the first half to stop the high-powered St. Louis Rams' offense dead in its tracks.

Jackson finished the day with only 58 yards on 18 carries, a mere 3.2 yards per carry. He missed Pace more than anyone. Meanwhile Williams and DeShaun Foster combined for 156 yards on 32 carries. That's 4.875 yards per carry. For all the talk about Carolina's new offense, John Fox still wants to run the ball and stop the run.

Not that it was all done on the ground. Delhomme finished the day 18 for 27 for 201 yards and 3 TDs, including two to Drew Carter, who only seemed to be open in the end zone. Smith finished with 7 catches for 118 yards and 1 TD. More importantly for Carolina, however, tight end Jeff King had 5 catches for 35 yards, and he proved to be a reliable target in the passing offense -- something Carolina hasn't had at that position in a while.

Carolina's offensive line did a fine job as well, holding Jim Haslett's defense without a sack and keeping pressure off Delhomme. Marc Bulger wasn't so lucky. While he was only sacked once, he was pressured all day, and it hindered his accuracy. He completed only 22 of 42 passes for 167 yards and an early TD to Torry Holt.

Pace's injury was described by head coach Scott Linehan as "a pretty bad sprain." How long he'll be out remains to be seen, but Jackson is probably hoping it won't be too long. Then again, he's probably just hoping he doesn't have to see Carolina again for a while. In the last three games, the Panthers have outscored the Rams 62-20.

Would things have been different if Pace had not gotten hurt? Maybe, but judging by the way St. Louis' defense played in the second half, the result might not have been much different.