Carolina Panthers: 3 things we learned

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The undefeated Carolina Panthers can put "defeated the Cowboys in Dallas on Thanksgiving" on their ever-growing resume.

Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly intercepted two passes in the second quarter, part of a stifling effort by the Carolina defense in a 33-14 victory over the Cowboys on Thursday at AT&T Stadium.

Before Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo left in the third quarter with a clavicle injury after a sack, the Carolina defense helped tip the game in the Panthers' favor with two interception returns for touchdowns. Safety Kurt Coleman and Kuechly scored on pick-sixes in the first half to propel the Panthers to a 23-3 lead at halftime.

Carolina coach Ron Rivera said it's no accident that his team scored on those plays.

"One of the things we do work on is, 'Hey, we score with the ball,'" Rivera said. "We try to create that picket fence going down one side or the other. Kurt just made a great cutback and was able to put it in the end zone. Luke knew immediately where he was supposed to go and he picked up a row of blockers."

Carolina quarterback Cam Newton turned in a stellar performance, connecting on 16 of 27 passes for 183 yards and rushed for 45 yards and a touchdown.

Newton led the Panthers on a 14-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to ice the game late in the third quarter. He did a lot of handing off on the drive but converted a key third-and-17 with a 24-yard completion to wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery and a third-and-10 with an 11-yard connection with Cotchery.

Newton capped the drive with his 4-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds left in the quarter, putting the Panthers ahead 30-6.

The Carolina defense set the tone and put the Panthers (11-0) in command by halftime.

Coleman intercepted Romo on the game's third offensive play. Coleman eluded the Dallas offensive players in pursuit, crossing the field for a pick-six that gave Carolina a 7-0 lead with 14:15 remaining in the first quarter.

Late in the second quarter, Kuechly stepped in front of a Romo pass and returned it 32 yards for a score.

Romo's next throw didn't go much better. This time, Kuechly jumped to haul in a pass over the middle intended for tight end Jason Witten. Kuechly returned his second interception to the Dallas 29 with 2:19 left in the second quarter.

Although the offense was sputtering slightly in the first half, Rivera said he wasn't going to take too many chances.

"I figured, 'Why put (the defense) in a bad spot and I really do mean that," Rivera said. "A couple times, I did consider going for it, but again, with the way we're playing on the defensive side, that over-weighed it."

Now Carolina can enjoy their perch atop the NFC a little bit longer than usual. The Panthers will watch the rest of the weekend still knowing they're the only unbeaten team in the conference.

"It's nice to be in our situation, it really is," Rivera said. "But the truth of the matter is we've got to take it one at a time. The 24-hour rule is going to be extended to about 72 hours and we will take advantage of it."

What we learned about the Panthers:

1. Carolina can get by on its defense and kicking game. The Panthers held the Cowboys to 210 total yards and kept Dallas out of the end zone until the fourth quarter. Even more impressive were the Panthers' two interceptions returned for touchdowns in the first half by safety Kurt Coleman and middle linebacker Luke Kuechly. And Carolina kicker Graham Gano booted field goals of 49, 43, 25 and 50 yards, almost outscoring the Cowboys by himself.

2. Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is comfortable salting away a victory. With a 17-point lead in the third quarter, Newton led an 80-yard touchdown drive that drained more than seven minutes off the clock. Newton did a lot of handing off on the drive but converted a key third-and-17 with a 24-yard completion to Jerricho Cotchery and a third-and-10 with an 11-yard toss to Cotchery. Newton capped the drive himself with a 4-yard touchdown run.

3. Panthers cornerback Josh Norman can handle himself against the very best. Noman covered Dallas WR Dez Bryant most of the night and held Bryant to two catches for 26 yards. Bryant's first catch came five minutes into the third quarter, too late to have an impact on the game because of the work the rest of the Carolina defense put in to that point.

Etc.

--LB Luke Kuechly picked off two passes by Cowboys QB Tony Romo late in the second quarter that put the Panthers in control at halftime. Kuechly's 32-yard interception return for a touchdown gave Carolina a 20-3 lead. On Romo's next pass, Keuchly jumped to grab the ball before Cowboys TE Jason Witten could get his hands on it. Kuechly's second interception in two passes set up the Panthers' field goal on the final play of the second quarter.

--QB Cam Newton managed the game with aplomb. He ran when he needed to, converted third downs at critical moments and, most important, kept the ball away from the Dallas defense. Newton completed 16 of 27 for 183 yards and rushed for 45 yards and a touchdown. But his intangibles were even better.

--WR Jerricho Cotchery was the most dynamic player for the Carolina offense, with the possible exception of Newton. Cotchery had his best game of the season with five catches for 73 yards. His two third-down catches on Carolina's third-quarter touchdown drive helped give the Panthers a series on which to hang their hat on an otherwise lackluster day.