The Carolina Panthers’ dwindling playoff hopes suffered a major blow on Sunday after losing to the division-rival Atlanta Falcons. After a 29-21 home defeat, the Panthers (5-8) fell to 12th place in the NFC standings. They lost to multiple of the teams ahead of them in the playoff picture—including the Washington Football Team (6-7), owners of the seventh seed in the conference and the final playoff spot, the Minnesota Vikings (6-7) and the Philadelphia Eagles (6-7).

After losing their fifth consecutive contest at Bank of America Stadium, the Panthers have reached their low point of the season to date. Let’s break down three takeaways from the loss to the Falcons and what it means moving forward for the franchise.

Panthers Week 14 Takeaways

1. Cam Newton is not the long-term, or short-term, solution at quarterback

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton had another uninspiring performance on Sunday against the Falcons. While he rushed for a team-best 47 yards with a touchdown, he competed just 15-of-23 passes for 178 yards and an interception. Falcons linebacker Mykal Walker picked off Newton in the second quarter and ran it back for a touchdown.

Newton fell to 0-3 as the starting quarterback this season. Dating back to his first stint with the club, he has lost 11 consecutive games as Carolina’s starting QB. Newton has been benched in back-to-back games. Including his one-year stay with the New England Patriots, Newton has been benched a whopping five times his past 14 starts.

The 32-year-old Newton is not the answer at quarterback for the future. In fact, he is barely passable as a starter this year, hence why he went unsigned for half of the 2021 NFL season.

2. Matt Rhule is on the hot seat

In addition to losing five straight at home, the Panthers are 2-8 since starting the season 3-0. The Panthers, at the guidance of head coach Matt Rhule, fired offensive coordinator Joe Brady before Sunday’s defeat to Atlanta. Jeff Nixon, previously the senior offensive assistant, took over the play-calling duties. Nixon’s debut did not go as planned, however, as the offense sputtered.

As for Rhule, his tenure in Carolina may be coming to a close if the Panthers continue to struggle down the stretch. Rhule has a 10-19 record as Carolina’s head coach and the franchise appears headed in the wrong direction.

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Rhule and the Panthers were unable to get serviceable production out of former quarterback Teddy Bridgewater in 2020. Aside from a three-game stretch, they failed to develop Sam Darnold in 2021. They brought in Newton as a last-ditch effort to save their season, but so far that experiment has not worked out.

Ultimately, the Panthers’ failures will fall on Rhule, who was hired prior to the 2020 campaign to revamp a stagnant offense. The offense has made not made improvements and the team as a whole is undisciplined—having committed the fourth-most penalties (93) across the league.

With four games remaining in the season, Rhule might need at least two more victories to retain his job for 2022.

3. Carolina’s defense is losing steam

For much of the year, the Panthers have played solid defensively. But in recent weeks, the defensive unit has underwhelmed, yielding 26 or more points in each of the past three contests.

On Sunday, the Panthers failed to produce a sack. While they did recover a fumble, they dropped multiple (potential) interceptions thrown by Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.

Things won’t get easier for the Panthers. They play the Buffalo Bills in Week 15 and then face the Tampa Bay Bucs twice over the final three weeks of the season. The Bills and Bucs are offensive juggernauts, both of whom could shred the Panthers’ declining defense.

The Panthers are suddenly not a formidable defense and it’s hard to envision the unit returning to form in the closing weeks of the season.