Moore has a day to remember, both good and bad

ATLANTA (AP) – D.J. Moore had a day to remember.

Both good and bad.

Carolina's first-round pick had her first touchdown and landing in her all-new NFL career. He scored a 51-yard Cam Newton pass with just over 2 minutes behind the Atlanta Falcons.

But with a chance to send the game overtime, Moore could not hold on.

Newton's last uprising in the end zone went into the hands of the rookie, allowing the home team to escape with a 31-24 win over the Panthers.

"Really frustrating," Moore said. "In the end, you want to play every time."

Trying to come back after two 14-point losses in the second half, the Panthers had a chance after Atlanta pushed back the ball with 1:48 to play. From her own 16, Carolina drove into the Falcons territory and had one last chance on the 31 with 5 seconds remaining.

Newton threw one from Moore on the left side of the end zone. The receiver managed to eliminate cornerback Robert Alford, although linebacker De'Vondre Campbell was still at his side.

Campbell somehow failed to tip the ball, giving Moore a chance.

But the rookie let it slip, thus ending the game.

"It was there for us and I knew the linebacker was in front of us," Moore said. "He sort of dropped, so I had to go under him. I just tried to get it back.

No chance.

"I had a good shot," said Moore, "but he just fell too fast in his arms that I reacted."

Newton was hit when he pitched by Grady Jarrett, but managed to put the ball in the right place.

"I was just trying to give someone an opportunity to make a game," the quarterback said. "After what I saw before I was hit, it was as close as possible. I was just trying to give him a chance.

A few minutes earlier, the kid was celebrating his first take of the NFL.

It was definitely a to remember.

Moore took over the Atlanta 34, put safety in motion Jordan Richards, escaped an attempt by linebacker Duke Riley and managed between two defenders to reach the end zone by cutting the Falcons' head.

"We never give up, no matter what the opponent," Moore said.

Newton made a strenuous effort after suffering a hard blow from the Falcons Damontae Kazee early in the second quarter.

In showing his ability to run, Newton earned a 10-yard margin in fourth and fourth place in Atlanta.

Knowing that he had plenty of yards to extend the run, the quarterback slipped. Kazee threw in Newton's head, delivering a helmet hit that left the Panthers star on the grass as skirmishes broke out all over the field.

Receiver Torrey Smith gave Kazee a retaliatory shot, sending him off the field and making a personal foul. The safety of Falcons Ricardo Allen jumped on his teammate, protecting him from any other blow.

Kazee was kicked out of the match, but Carolina did not win additional yards because of penalty penalties.

"It's probably not the most mature answer, but in the heat of the moment, I'm going to defend one of my guys," Smith said.

Newton let out an emphatic cry as he left the field to quickly check into the medical tent. He was not seriously injured and was able to return to the field for the next game after the referees settled the penalties.

Six times later, the Panthers scored on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Newton to Jarius Wright for a 10-3 lead.

Newton, who has had a lot of hard times over the years, did not seem too upset by Kazee's cheap shot after the game.

"It sounded worse than he was," he said, "I'm just lucky that nothing has happened. This game is not suitable for low shots like this one, but in the end you can not blame him. He plays as hard as he can, I play as hard as I can. That's what this football game brings. "