Andy Dalton was just trying to dump it off minutes into the Carolina Panthers’ matchup with the Washington Commanders on Sunday afternoon.
Instead, what should’ve been a simple throwaway turned into a remarkable pick 6 for linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. that put the Panthers into a hole immediately at Northwest Stadium.
Dalton was pressured on a long third down on their first drive of the game and tried to toss it to running back Miles Sanders a few feet in front of him instead of taking a sack. The ball, however, went behind Sanders’ back directly to Fowler, who had a clear path to run it back 67 yards for the touchdown.
Dalton is making his fifth start for the Panthers this season after replacing starter Bryce Young, who went a brutal 2-16 to start his NFL career after a dominant run at Alabama. Though Dalton led the Panthers to a win immediately, they had lost three straight entering Sunday’s contest outside of Washington D.C.
Dalton went 26-of-38 for 221 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in last week’s 38-20 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Dalton, who threw another interception later in the first quarter, has now thrown six interceptions in his last four starts.
The day didn’t get any better for the Panthers, either. The Commanders, despite losing starting quarterback Jayden Daniels in the first quarter to a rib injury, cruised to a blowout 40-7 win with backup Marcus Mariota at the helm. Mariota went 18-of-23 for 205 yards with two touchdowns in the win for the Commanders, who now sit at 5-2 on the season. Brian Robinson ran for 71 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries and Terry McLaurin racked up 98 receiving yards on six catches.
Dalton finished throwing just 11-of-16 for 93 yards. Young came in to replace Dalton late in the fourth quarter. Chuba Hubbard led the Panthers with 52 yards on 17 carries. He scored their only touchdown of the game, too.
While the Panthers’ issues go well beyond Dalton, he certainly didn’t help on Sunday afternoon. Dalton and the Panthers, now 1-6 on the season, will attempt to snap their losing skid next week against the Broncos.