Carolina Panthers vs. New Orleans Saints: 2010 Week 4 Recap

Game story

In Week 4 of the 2010 NFL season on 2010-10-03, the New Orleans Saints took care of business against the Carolina Panthers, pulling away with a 16–14 final that came down to the wire.

The highest-scoring period was Q2 with 17 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

D. Brees (New Orleans Saints) paced the passing game, with +4.19 total EPA, and -0.9% completion percentage over expected.

On the individual side, J. Stewart (Carolina Panthers) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +5.68 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (+25.5% win probability) landed in the fourth quarter when Carolina Panthers changed the game: (1:53) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 12-D.Gettis ran ob at NO 38 for 16 yards. Pass 16, YAC 0

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 J. Stewart · Carolina Panthers · Receiving · +5.68 total EPA · 1 snaps · +5.68 EPA/play
2. 2 D. Brees · New Orleans Saints · Passing · +4.19 total EPA · 52 snaps · +0.08 EPA/play
3. 3 J. Shockey · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +2.76 total EPA · 8 snaps · +0.35 EPA/play
4. 4 D. Rosario · Carolina Panthers · Receiving · +2.74 total EPA · 2 snaps · +1.37 EPA/play
5. 5 D. Williams · Carolina Panthers · Rushing · +1.89 total EPA · 13 snaps · +0.15 EPA/play
6. 6 D. Thomas · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +1.89 total EPA · 6 snaps · +0.32 EPA/play
7. 7 D. Henderson · New Orleans Saints · Receiving · +1.85 total EPA · 9 snaps · +0.21 EPA/play
8. 8 J. Clausen · Carolina Panthers · Passing · +1.07 total EPA · 26 snaps · +0.04 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• New Orleans Saints — L. Moore (D. Brees pass) (Q2 45:00)
• Carolina Panthers — J. Stewart (J. Clausen pass) (Q2 42:26)
• Carolina Panthers — D. Williams (Q3 24:52)

Field goals

• New Orleans Saints — J. Carney (Q2 31:17)
• New Orleans Saints — J. Carney (Q3 19:41)
• New Orleans Saints — J. Carney (Q4 4:00)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The second quarter: New Orleans Saints won the period 10–7. New Orleans Saints found the end zone from the CAR 4 (Q2 45:00) — (15:00) (Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short right to 16-L.Moore for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass -5, YAC 9; New Orleans Saints added 1 points from the CAR 2 (Q2 44:55) — 3-J.Carney extra point is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel.; Carolina Panthers found the end zone from the NO 55 (Q2 42:26) — (12:26) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 28-J.Stewart for 55 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass 30, YAC 25; Carolina Panthers added 1 points from the NO 2 (Q2 42:15) — 4-J.Kasay extra point is GOOD, Center-44-J.Jansen, Holder-7-J.Baker.; New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the CAR 14 (Q2 31:17) — (1:17) 3-J.Carney 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel..

The third quarter: Carolina Panthers won the period 7–3. Carolina Panthers found the end zone from the NO 39 (Q3 24:52) — (9:52) 34-D.Williams left end for 39 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Carolina Panthers added 1 points from the NO 2 (Q3 24:42) — 4-J.Kasay extra point is GOOD, Center-44-J.Jansen, Holder-7-J.Baker.; New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the CAR 14 (Q3 19:41) — (4:41) 3-J.Carney 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel..

The fourth quarter: New Orleans Saints won the period 3–0. New Orleans Saints connected on a field goal from the CAR 7 (Q4 4:00) — (4:00) 3-J.Carney 25 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Carolina Panthers (Q4 1:53) — (1:53) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 12-D.Gettis ran ob at NO 38 for 16 yards. Pass 16, YAC 0 [WPA +25.5% · EPA +2.02]
• New Orleans Saints (Q3 22:39) — (7:39) 6-T.Morstead punts 50 yards to CAR 16, Center-57-J.Kyle. 41-C.Munnerlyn to CAR 29 for 13 yards (57-J.Kyle). FUMBLES (57-J.Kyle), RECOVERED by NO-15-C.Roby at CAR 29. 15-C.Roby to CAR 29 for no [WPA +21.1% · EPA +4.78]
• Carolina Panthers (Q4 0:08) — (:08) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass incomplete deep right to 80-D.Jarrett (33-J.Greer). [WPA -18.8% · EPA -0.18]
• Carolina Panthers (Q2 42:26) — (12:26) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 28-J.Stewart for 55 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass 30, YAC 25 [WPA +16.6% · EPA +5.68]
• Carolina Panthers (Q4 0:51) — (:51) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen sacked at NO 44 for -4 yards (27-M.Jenkins). [WPA -15.5% · EPA -0.61]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• Carolina Panthers (Q2 42:26) — (12:26) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 28-J.Stewart for 55 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass 30, YAC 25 [WPA +16.6% · EPA +5.68]
• New Orleans Saints (Q1 49:25) — (4:25) (Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short middle to 16-L.Moore to CAR 1 for 11 yards (23-S.Martin). FUMBLES (23-S.Martin), RECOVERED by CAR-50-J.Anderson at CAR 0. Touchback. Pass 1, YAC 10 [WPA -14.7% · EPA -4.97]
• New Orleans Saints (Q3 22:39) — (7:39) 6-T.Morstead punts 50 yards to CAR 16, Center-57-J.Kyle. 41-C.Munnerlyn to CAR 29 for 13 yards (57-J.Kyle). FUMBLES (57-J.Kyle), RECOVERED by NO-15-C.Roby at CAR 29. 15-C.Roby to CAR 29 for no [WPA +21.1% · EPA +4.78]
• New Orleans Saints (Q2 38:40) — (8:40) 29-C.Ivory left end to CAR 23 for 13 yards (31-R.Marshall). FUMBLES (31-R.Marshall), RECOVERED by CAR-50-J.Anderson at CAR 21. 50-J.Anderson to CAR 21 for no gain (29-C.Ivory). [WPA -11.3% · EPA -4.33]

Quarterback report card

D.Brees led all passers in efficiency for New Orleans Saints, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• D.Brees (New Orleans Saints) · 52 dropbacks · 63.5% completion · -0.9% CPOE · +0.08 EPA/play · +4.19 total EPA
• J.Clausen (Carolina Panthers) · 26 dropbacks · 42.3% completion · -3.5% CPOE · +0.04 EPA/play · +1.07 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Both offenses finished within striking distance on EPA per play (Carolina Panthers +0.05, New Orleans Saints +0.04) — a true toss-up on the analytics sheet.

• Carolina Panthers: 9 drives, +3.04 total EPA, 2 scoring drives
• New Orleans Saints: 11 drives, +3.79 total EPA, 4 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• New Orleans Saints leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• One-score margin — fantasy managers should double-check garbage-time stats before drawing conclusions.
• J. Stewart (Carolina Panthers) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.
• J. Clausen (CAR) finished below expected efficiency — volume may have masked accuracy issues.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. New Orleans Saints TD (+6) — Q2 45:00 · CAR 4 · Score 0-6
   (15:00) (Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short right to 16-L.Moore for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass -5, YAC 9
2. New Orleans Saints XP (+1) — Q2 44:55 · CAR 2 · Score 0-7
   3-J.Carney extra point is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel.
3. Carolina Panthers TD (+6) — Q2 42:26 · NO 55 · Score 6-7
   (12:26) (Shotgun) 2-J.Clausen pass deep right to 28-J.Stewart for 55 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pass 30, YAC 25
4. Carolina Panthers XP (+1) — Q2 42:15 · NO 2 · Score 7-7
   4-J.Kasay extra point is GOOD, Center-44-J.Jansen, Holder-7-J.Baker.
5. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q2 31:17 · CAR 14 · Score 7-10
   (1:17) 3-J.Carney 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel.
6. Carolina Panthers TD (+6) — Q3 24:52 · NO 39 · Score 13-10
   (9:52) 34-D.Williams left end for 39 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
7. Carolina Panthers XP (+1) — Q3 24:42 · NO 2 · Score 14-10
   4-J.Kasay extra point is GOOD, Center-44-J.Jansen, Holder-7-J.Baker.
8. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q3 19:41 · CAR 14 · Score 14-13
   (4:41) 3-J.Carney 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel.
9. New Orleans Saints FG (+3) — Q4 4:00 · CAR 7 · Score 14-16
   (4:00) 3-J.Carney 25 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-57-J.Kyle, Holder-10-C.Daniel.