D.J. Moore became public enemy No. 1 in Carolina on Sunday, with the Panthers wideout going from hero to zero in a split second.
The Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons matched up Sunday with first place in the NFC South on the line. As is the case with most divisional matchups, it turned into a slugfest that came down to the wire. Atlanta held a six-point lead with the clock running down in the fourth quarter, with Carolina marching down the field in an attempt to steal a victory. With 12 seconds left in regulation, Panthers quarterback P.J. Walker threw up a prayer to the end zone where wide receiver Moore was waiting to catch a 62-yard touchdown to tie the ball game.
All good news, right?
Wrong.
Moore, for some odd reason, decided that a tie ball game with a chance to move to first place in the NFC South was the time for him to rip off his helmet to celebrate and get some all-important face time. What he may have forgotten is the fact that taking off your helmet in the field of play is a 15-yard penalty in the NFL, which had some severe consequences for Carolina.
The penalty was enforced on the Panthers' extra-point attempt, in which Eddy Pineiro missed from 48 yards out to send the game to overtime. Roughly two minutes of game time later, Moore was lucky enough to help march Carolina back down the field for another winning attempt by Pineiro. Unlucky for Moore, Pineiro missed -- again.
Atlanta got the ball back and marched right down the field, with Younghoe Koo nailing a 41-yard field goal to sink the Panthers... and Moore.
They will look to respond when they take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9.
