CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Michael Vick scanned Carolina's sideline and saw heads hanging -- an unmistakable sign of defeat. He pointed this out to his Atlanta teammates and told them it was time to pounce.
The Falcons did, racking up eight sacks and forcing six turnovers Sunday in a 41-0 victory over Carolina -- the Panthers' eighth consecutive loss.
"It was like 21-0, and the Panthers had this empty look in their eyes, like they knew it was over and hopeless, and they weren't coming back," Vick said. "We were in the huddle and I said, 'Let's go out and finish these guys.' "
The Falcons (7-3-1) proved their dominance over Carolina (3-8) by beating the Panthers for the sixth consecutive time and ninth time in the last 10 meetings. Atlanta outscored Carolina 71-0 this season.