EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – On a day that he threw for five touchdowns and led a game-winning drive to put the Carolina Panthers two wins away from a perfect season, Cam Newton ended up a sideshow.
Nastiness took center stage as the Panthers (14-0) pushed the Giants (6-8) closer to a fourth straight year out of the playoffs.
People aren’t going to remember either Graham Gano’s decisive 43-yard field goal as time expired or the Giants rallying from a 35-7 third-quarter deficit to tie the game on Eli Manning’s fourth touchdown of the game, a 14-yarder to Odell Beckham Jr. with 1:46 to play.
All that people are going to remember are the frequent run-ins between Beckham and Panthers cornerback Josh Norman. Time and again the two tangled in the contest at MetLife Stadium, and it was ugly: pushing, shoving, swinging, late hits, helmet-to-helmet contact and a lot of trash talking.
The worst was Beckham charging from his own sideline to hit Norman with a diving, head-to-head block attempt.