Panthers-Redskins Postgame Notes

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The Series: With the 20-17 victory, the Panthers defeated the Redskins for only the second time in nine meetings. Of the nine games between Carolina and Washington since the series began in 1995, eight have been decided by four points or less.

For Starters: Safety Chris Harris made his first start of the season after missing the first three games with an injured knee. Hollis Thomas started at defensive tackle - his first start for the Panthers since being signed as a free agent on Oct. 1. Linebacker Na'il Diggs and fullback Brad Hoover returned to the lineup after being inactive at Dallas (9/28/09) with rib and back injuries, respectively.

Inactives: The following eight players were inactive for the Panthers: defensive tackle Antwon Burton, quarterback A.J. Feeley (third quarterback), running back Mike Goodson, guard Duke Robinson, running back Tyrell Sutton, defensive end Hilee Taylor, tackle Garry Williams and cornerback C.J. Wilson.

Rally Cats: After trailing 17-2 in the third quarter, the Panthers rallied from the 15-point deficit to win 20-17, the third-biggest comeback in team history. The largest deficit Carolina has ever overcome to win is 17 points - achieved on two occasions, most recently at San Francisco (11/4/04).

Jungle Net: The Panthers' defense surrendered season-lows in rushing yards and points allowed and produced season-bests in sacks and third-down efficiency. Below are their totals in some key defensive categories against the Redskins compared to their averages in the first three games of the season.

Sacked Out: The Panthers collected five sacks against the Redskins and have gathered nine this season. Defensive end Julius Peppers registered two quarterback takedowns - his 17th career outing with at least two sacks. He leads the team with three sacks this season and ranks as the Panthers' all-time leader with 73.5. Defensive end Everette Brown victimized Redskins quarterback Jason Campbell for his first career sack and forced a fumble on the same play. Linebackers Jon Beason and Thomas Davis also notched one sack each.

Safety Dance: Linebacker Thomas Davis tackled Redskins running back Clinton Portis in the end zone for a safety in the second quarter. It marked the Panthers' first safety since Mike Rucker sacked quarterback Marc Bulger in the end zone versus St. Louis (11/19/06).

Takeaway/Giveaway: Carolina forced one turnover on a muffed punt recovery by cornerback Dante Wesley. The Panthers turned it over twice on an interception and fumble to finish with a minus-one turnover ratio. The one takeaway resulted in seven points for Carolina, and the two giveaways led to 14 points for Washington. It represented the Panthers' first win when having a negative turnover ratio since being minus-two and defeating Tampa Bay (12/8/08). The Panthers have a negative-nine turnover ratio this season, compiling an 0-1 record when being even in turnover margin and a 1-2 record when having a negative turnover margin.

Delhomme Boy: Quarterback Jake Delhomme completed 16-of-25 passes for 181 yards and one touchdown with one interception to produce an 82.3 quarterback rating. He threw a 17-yard touchdown to tight end Jeff King in the third quarter. Delhomme has completed 70-of-116 passes for 782 yards and three touchdowns with eight interceptions this season.

Double Trouble: Running back DeAngelo Williams rushed a team-leading 40 yards on 18 carries, while running back Jonathan Stewart gained 39 yards and one touchdown - scoring on an eight-yard run in the fourth quarter - on 10 attempts. Williams leads the Panthers with 220 yards and two touchdowns on 59 carries this season, and Stewart ranks second with 138 yards and one touchdown on 33 attempts.

Muhammad Catches Milestone: Wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad tied for the team lead with five catches for 39 yards to surpass 11,000 career receiving yards. In his 14th NFL season, he ranks fifth among active wide receivers with 826 receptions and 11,035 receiving yards and seventh with 61 receiving touchdowns. Muhammad ranks second on the Panthers behind Steve Smith, who has 20 catches for 255 yards, with 19 receptions for 178 yards this season.

The Specialists: Kicker John Kasay connected on his only field-goal attempt, converting from 43 yards, and his only extra-point chance. He has been successful on all four of his field-goal attempts and perfect on all five of his extra-point opportunities for a team-leading 17 points this season. Kasay ranks seventh in NFL history with 390 made field goals and 11th with 1,651 points scored - including a franchise record 1,310 for the Panthers - and has made a team-record 140 consecutive extra points.

Punter Jason Baker generated a gross average of 44.8 yards and net average of 44.0 yards with two punts inside the 20, no touchbacks and long of 52 yards on four punts. His gross average fell to 49.9 yards and his net average improved to 33.9 yards with three punts inside the 20, two touchbacks, one block and long of 61 yards this season.

Kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd placed all four of his kickoffs in the end zone with three touchbacks. He has reached the end zone on 12-of-14 kickoffs with seven touchbacks this season.

Claw Marks: Wide receiver Steve Smith caught a two-point conversion pass from quarterback Jake Delhomme in the fourth quarter. It marked Carolina's first successful two-point conversion attempt since running back DeAngleo Williams ran for one at Atlanta (11/23/08)...With running Mike Goodson inactive because of a concussion, wide receiver Kenneth Moore and running Jonathan Stewart shared kickoff-return duties. Moore had a 55-yard return, the team's longest since a 59-yarder by Mark Jones at Oakland (11/9/08)...Tight end Dante Rosario caught one pass for 22 yards, which resulted in a first down. Of his 31-career receptions, 23 (74.2 percent) have yielded a first down or touchdown.