Panthers PFF grades: Tetairoa McMillan & Derrick Brown on top, Andy Dalton flops

It was a disgusting affair on Sunday for the Carolina Panthers. 40-9 doesn't even quite describe how bad the game really was. What could have gone wrong did, and it's probably best to flush this one and move on. That said, there are still some positives and things we can learn from the PFF grades.

Andy Dalton was absolutely horrific

Though not quite the worst player on offense (Yosh Nijman in 25 snaps), Andy Dalton was horrendous on Sunday. His 42.6 grade only edged Nijman by 0.1. If the eye test didn't tell you that Dalton played one of the worst QB games all year, then this should reinforce it. He was downright pitiful; taking sacks, throwing interceptions, missing passes, and fumbling.

Tetairoa McMillan shone once again

Maybe the one bright spot was how good Tetairoa McMillan was yesterday. Seven catches for 99 yards is good, but he had to do it with the above terrible QB play and a pass-heavy gameplan since they were trailing. Buffalo's defense knew the Panthers were passing and knew they were going to McMillan, but he still played well and earned a team-high 85.9 grade.

Princely Umanmielen crashes out

The pass rush was pretty disappointing against Josh Allen, but Princely Umanmielen takes the cake as both the worst of it and the worst of the entire team. The rookie had an astonishing 28.3 grade. Most of that came from abysmal run defense (28.9), but he was just not good at all on Sunday.

Derrick Brown tops defense by default

For Derrick Brown's lofty standards, Sunday was a disappointment. Yet, he still led the defense with a 70.2 grade. His tackling was an abysmal 28.6, which is what held him back, but even on a pretty rough outing, he was still this defense's best player.

Jaycee Horn has a dud

One week after a dominant outing, Jaycee Horn came crashing back down to earth and then some. If not for Umanmielen, Horn would've been the worst player on the field yesterday. His PFF grade was 41.9, and he struggled in coverage, tackling, and run defense.

Ikem Ekwonu, Damien Lewis star on the offensive line

Coincidentally, Damien Lewis and Ikem Ekwonu are the lone offensive linemen still standing, it seems like. Not only did they survive the onslaught of injuries up front, but they actually played well. Lewis was second only to McMillan on the entire team with a 83.3 grade, while Ekwonu earned an 81.1 grade. Ekwonu was solid in both run and pass blocking, while Lewis was much better on run plays.

Rico Dowdle, Chuba Hubbard inexplicably similar

The eye test and the generic box score would say that Rico Dowdle far outplayed Chuba Hubbard on Sunday, but PFF grades paint a different picture. Both were solid, with Dowdle earning a 67.4 and Hubbard a 64.9. In fact, according to the run grade portion, Hubbard was 0.1 better, though both were above 70. Perhaps these grades are why Dave Canales insists on the alternating possessions.

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