Panthers up 7-3 as Jake hot early

Panthers QB Jake Delhomme threw for 308 yards against Atlanta in September, and he just led an excellent 80-yard drive to put Carolina up 7-3 midway through the first quarter.

Delhomme threw two passes for 43 yards to Muhsin Muhammad on the drive, as well as one to Steve Smith for 19 and another to tight end Jeff King for 13 that picked up a key third down. Carolina went no-huddle for the entire drive after going 3-and-out with a slower pace on its first possession. Jonathan Stewart finished it off with a 1-yard TD, which earned a big Jake fist pump.

Atlanta scored a field goal on its first drive, mainly because RB Michael Turner broke off a 40-yard run to set it up. Julius Peppers is playing sparingly because of his messed-up right hand, which is heavily bandaged. Peppers looks like he's going to be used mostly as a situational pass rusher today -- he only played one snap on Atlanta's first possession.

A Panther defense totally without Thomas Davis and largely without Peppers? That's a vulnerable D.