Carolina Panthers defeat Atlanta Falcons, 23-16

The Panthers moved to 3-2 and into a tie for the NFC South Division lead with their 23-16 victory over winless NFC South foe Atlanta.

Panthers quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, going 27-for-37, threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns, and Juston Burris made a key interception in the end zone.

The victory moves the Panthers into a tie with the Tampa Bay Bucs for the division lead. The New Orleans Saints (2-2) will host the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night.

The Falcons dropped to 0-5 for the first time since 1997, turning up the heat even more on embattled coach Dan Quinn, whose firing could come Monday or Tuesday, The Athletic reported.

Carolina, winning its third straight since McCaffrey went out with a high ankle sprain, built a 20-7 halftime lead behind Bridgewater's touchdown passes of 57 yards to D.J. Moore and 3 yards to Mike Davis, drawing boos that could be heard even from a sparse, socially distanced crowd of 6,656 at 75,000-seat Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“The first two weeks, we were just trying to figure out who we are," said Davis, who rushed for 89 yards and hauled in nine catches for an additional 60 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown. “We just want to be the toughest team you play.”

Bridgewater, turning in the eighth 300-yard game of his career, has completed 75 of 102 (73.5 percent) for 824 yards with five touchdowns and one interception during Carolina's winning streak. He has also run for a TD, while being sacked only two times.

During that same span, Davis has rushed for 219 yards on 45 carries, with one TD, and caught 22 passes for 132 yards and two scores.

Not bad for a guy who has played on four teams and was claimed off waivers by the Panthers last season.

“I want it,” Davis said. “I love being on this team. I'm not just out there playing for myself. I'm also out there playing for my teammates. I'm out there thinking about my guys and their stories.”

Atlanta, which this season became the first team in NFL history to squander fourth-quarter leads of at least 15 points in consecutive games, tried to turn the script in the second half. Younghoe Koo booted two field goals and the Falcons drove into position for a tying score in the fourth quarter.

But, on third-and-4 from the Panthers 5, Matt Ryan badly underthrew a pass to Russell Gage in the back of the end zone, allowing the strong safety Burris to make the interception with 8:49 remaining.

Burris figured the Falcons would single him out.

“A safety on a slot receiver. They thought they had a mismatch," he said. "The coaches have faith in me to cover a slot receiver, and I wanted to prove them right.”

With the Falcons clearly deflated, Carolina drove nearly the length of the field — taking 7:39 off the clock — to set up Joey Slye's third field goal of the game, a 22-yarder with 1:10 remaining.

“For us to do what we did at the end of the game, that goes back to our physicality, our toughness mentally and physically,” Bridgewater said. “It was huge for us down the stretch.”

Ryan blamed himself for letting the chance slip away. Playing without top receiver Julio Jones, the Falcons quarterback was held to 21 of 37 for a season-low 226 yards.

“I know I’d like to play better than I did today,” Ryan said. “Late in the game, you’ve got to find a way to punch it in.”