The NFC South is still not very good, plus more legal problems for the Commanders

Good morning to everyone but especially to…

THE CAROLINA PANTHERS

It would be easy for the Carolina Panthers to mail it in. Short week. Awful weather. 2-7 record. Coming off a blowout loss. Interim head coach. Wholesale changes coming soon.

Instead, they delivered one of their best performances of the year, beating the Falcons, 25-15, to somehow remain in the NFC South race.

• D’Onta Foreman continued his strong play with 31 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown. It’s his third game with 100+ rushing yards in the last four weeks.
• Laviska Shenault ran in a 41-yard touchdown on a backwards toss from P.J. Walker, who performed solidly just four days after being benched at halftime.
• Marquis Haynes had two sacks late in the fourth quarter to thwart any potential Atlanta comeback. Prior to those plays, he had zero sacks all season.

Now 3-7, the Panthers are only one game back in the win column of the Buccaneers, who lead the woeful NFC South at 4-5. Of course it’s still quite unlikely for Carolina to make the playoffs, but Steve Wilks has done a terrific job keeping the team engaged, especially on a short week after a rough loss. You saw it in how hard Foreman ran and how viciously the pass rush pursued Marcus Mariota, sacking him five times.

Sometimes, in an otherwise turbulent season, going out and playing hard and competently is a win in and of itself. Actually winning the game is a testament to the coaches and players. The Panthers did just that and can head into their mini-bye with their heads held high.

Honorable mentions

And not such a good morning for…

DAN SNYDER AND THE WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

On Thursday, D.C. attorney general Karl Racine announced his office is filing a consumer protection lawsuit against the Commanders, team owner Dan Snyder, the NFL and league commissioner Roger Goodell.

• The lawsuit accuses those parties of colluding to deceive and mislead customers about the investigation into the team’s workplace misconduct in order to avoid losing revenue from the fan base.
• This springs from the NFL not releasing the Beth Wilkinson report to the public. This lawsuit doesn’t necessarily mean those findings will become public, writes NFL insider Jonathan Jones.
• The lawsuit alleges that the Commanders and the NFL violated the District…