The Carolina Panthers left Lincoln Financial Field with a 25-14 win on Sunday, and Dave Canales spent much of his postgame press conference on the one number that bothered him. Carolina drew 13 flags that cost 149 yards, a single-game club record for penalty yardage, and the head coach called it “outrageous.”
Canales did not blame the officials. He said he had little issue with the calls and had been given explanations for why the flags went so heavily one way. The responsibility, in his telling, sat with his players and his staff. “We have to clean that up,” he said.
Dave Canales Live Press Conference https://t.co/qJ0GiWh9MW
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) October 18, 2026
Where the flags came from
Canales singled out two kinds of fouls as the easiest to fix: offensive linemen drifting too far downfield on screen passes, and grabbing with the hands. Three of the 13 penalties came on special teams. Against a healthier opponent, he made clear, that many free yards would not be survivable.
On Sunday they were. Carolina still gained 399 yards. Bryce Young threw for 281 yards and two touchdowns, both to tight end Tommy Tremble, and Chuba Hubbard carried 28 times for 120 yards and a score. Ryan Fitzgerald added field goals of 47 and 52 yards.
The defense did the rest. Philadelphia, without Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley, finished with 222 yards and converted 6 of 15 third downs. Tanner McKee completed 26 of 45 passes for 215 yards, with his one touchdown a 19-yarder to DeVonta Smith. The Eagles lost their fourth straight and fell to 2-4; their injury toll from the afternoon is in our Eagles injury story.
Why it matters for Carolina
The win was the kind Canales has wanted his team to string together: a road result built on a steady quarterback and a run game that controlled the clock. The message from the podium was that the penalty count has to come down before a division opponent arrives. The full box score is in the Panthers-Eagles Game Center.
What comes next
The Panthers host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, beaten in overtime by Pittsburgh on Sunday, on Sunday, October 25, at 1:00 p.m. EDT (Game Center). The Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night, October 26.
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