In all my years of reading the sports page, I’m not sure that I’ve ever noted a sportswriter describing a loss as ‘innovative.’ Then again, the Panthers’ loss to the Vikings was —shall we say— a special occasion:
At least Sunday’s loss was innovative. For the fifth time in NFL history – and the first since 1990 – a team blocked two punts and returned them for touchdowns.
The first blocked punt came with seven minutes left in the first quarter. Adam Thielen rushed at punter Brad Nortman from the middle of the line between snapper J.J. Jansen and Mario Addison and suffocated the ball with his stomach.
Thielen picked up the ball and went 30 yards for the longest blocked punt returned for a touchdown in Vikings history.
The record didn’t make it to halftime.
On Carolina’s next punt attempt, in the second quarter, Jasper Brinkley slid past Ben Jacobs and blocked Nortman’s punt. Everson Griffen collected it and ran 43 yards for a score.
Coach Ron Rivera was “adamant” that the consecutive blocked punts for touchdowns were not symptomatic of larger special teams issues. If failing to adjust after the first blocked punt is “innovative,” then I’d hate to see a total breakdown.
