CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -Jake Delhomme helped the Carolina Panthers to a perfect 8-0 mark at home this season with nearly flawless play.
With the season on the line in the playoffs, he fumbled deep in Carolina territory.
Then he threw an interception on the goal line.
Then another, and another, one in the end zone, and then another.
All told, Carolina’s quarterback turned the ball over six times Saturday night and Arizona converted his errors into 23 points en route to a 33-13 victory over the Panthers in the NFC divisional playoffs.
Not really the way Delhomme envisioned playing on his 34th birthday.
Delhomme entered as the top rated postseason quarterback in this year’s playoffs, with a 95.0 passer rating and just five interceptions in seven previous games. And he was playing in the cozy confines of Bank of America Stadium, where he’d thrown just five interceptions all year as the Panthers were the only NFL team to go undefeated at home.
cess in franchise history and a penchant for falling apart in games played on the East Coast, Delhomme simply had to be average to move the Panthers into their third NFC championship game since the 2003 season.
But Delhomme was terrible instead. He overthrew his targets, found star receiver Steve Smith only twice the entire game, and tossed the ball into double coverage more times than he’ll care to remember.
He finished 17-for-34 for 205 yards with five interceptions and a fumble, and buried his face in his hands in humiliation as the errors mounted up. He didn’t celebrate a bit when he connected on an 8-yard TD pass to Smith with 50 seconds left in the game.
The last player to throw as many as five interceptions in the playoffs was Oakland’s Rich Gannon in the 2003 Super Bowl against Tampa Bay.
Although Delhomme moved the Panthers quickly downfield to a touchdown on their opening possession, he unraveled shortly after when he fumbled on a sack deep in Carolina territory.
On first-and-10 at the 20, Antonio Smith broke through the line and swatted the ball out of Delhomme’s hands, then threw his body on it for the recovery. Two plays later, Edgerrin James scored his first touchdown since Oct. 5 on a 4-yard run that gave the Cardinals a 14-7 lead they never relinquished.
minique Rodgers-Cromartie on the goal line on the first play of the second quarter.
That set up the first of Neil Rackers’ four field goals and put the Cardinals well on their way to just their fourth playoff victory in franchise history.
Delhomme was intercepted again in the first half when Gerald Hayes picked off a pass intended for Muhsin Muhammad.
His third pick ended a scoring opportunity set up by Jon Beason interception of Kurt Warner that gave the Panthers the ball at the Arizona 31. But Delhomme tried to force the ball into Smith two plays later, and it instead bounced off Rodgers-Cromartie’s fingers, through Smith’s hands, and into Antrel Rolle’s arms.
Interception No. 4 was another look to Smith in the end zone that was grabbed by Ralph Brown early in the fourth quarter, and pick No. 5 came on the next possession when Roderick Hood hijacked a short pass intended for Muhammad.
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