Baltimore takes 17-9 lead

The Ravens just went ahead of the Panthers, 17-9, on an 8-yard quarterback draw for a touchdown by third-string Baltimore quarterback Troy Smith.

The Ravens had to go only 11 yards for the TD thanks to a spectacular punt return.

The Panthers are now on their third quarterback, too -- Hunter Cantwell's first drive was a three-and-out.

Jimmy Clausen ended 8-for-15 for 80 yards and an interception; Matt Moore was 4-for-7 for 32 yards. The Panthers have yet to score an offensive TD. It is still raining hard as the third quarter winds to a close.

Panthers pull within 1 on defensive TD

The rain has started pouring down again early in the third quarter and it's affecting everything.

The Panthers, however, have played better in it than Baltimore so far -- safety C.J. Wilson just returned a Baltimore fumble 31 yards for a TD. John Kasay shanked the extra-point attempt off the right goalpost, however, leaving Carolina behind, 10-9.

Just before that, Jimmy Clausen threw his first NFL interception. He tried to hit Dexter Jackson on a one-on-one sideline route, but Jackson was well-covered and, to make matters worse, fell down on his cut.

That left Baltimore's Cary Williams with a fairly simple catch, which he made.

However, Carolina reserve defensive end Eric Moore then made a great play, beating a block and knocking the ball out of Jalen Parmele's hands in the backfield. Wilson scooped it up and scored Carolina's first TD.

Also notable: Carolina rookie defensive end Greg Hardy had sacks on consecutive plays earlier this quarter. And the Panthers are giving a long look to Armanti Edwards as punt returner -- he had an 18-yarder earlier in the game.

Nearly a Panther TD, and then...

Jimmy Clausen nearly one-upped himself on his second drive by getting Carolina a touchdown rather than a field goal, but instead the Panthers got nothing. On his third, the Panthers missed a long field goal.

So Clausen has come fairly close to getting scores on all 3 of his possessions, but at halftime it's still Baltimore 10, Carolina 3.

Clausen's best chance at a TD came on his second possession. After a sack and forced fumble by Panther rookie Eric Norwood on Ravens backup QB Marc Bulger, Clausen and Carolina took over at the Baltimore 31.

Carolina moved the ball via run down to the Baltimore 4. On first down, Clausen threw a fade route to the corner for fellow rookie Brandon LaFell.

LaFell got both his hands on it, but Baltimore cornerback Cary Williams got one hand on it, too, and knocked it away.

On the next play, Carolina's Tyrell Sutton ran for 3 yards, fumbled at the 1 and lost the ball to the Ravens.

Baltimore then drove out of trouble and all the way into Panther territory but stalled and missed a long field goal. Clausen got a chance to run the 2-minute drill and threw one over-the-middle rocket to Dante Rosario to convert a third-and-11, but then he ran out of time. John Kasay was going to have a chance from 54 yards out on the final play of the half, but the play was aborted when the snap was fumbled.

Clausen gets Panthers on board

Panthers rookie QB Jimmy Clausen just had a nice NFL debut, leading Carolina to a field goal on his first pro drive to cut Baltimore's lead to 10-3.

Yes, it was against Baltimore's second-team defense, and yes, the drive ultimately fizzled and John Kasay had to boot a 37-yard field goal. But Clausen showed some poise and moved Carolina 61 yards in 10 plays.

His best play: a 25-yard rocket over the middle to Kenny Moore, who was in tight coverage but caught the ball after tipping it. Clausen also showed a little mobility and executed a couple of screen passes well before finally throwing the ball too far outside for Moore on third down when under a heavy blitz.

Late in the second quarter, the Panthers are down by a touchdown. Baltimore has also put in its second-string quarterback -- Marc Bulger.

Baltimore leads 10-0 on Flacco TD pass

Baltimore just completed a 96-yard touchdown drive, the final 30 coming at the expense of the Panther secondary on a Joe Flacco-to-Mark-Clayton touchdown pass.

It's early in the second quarter and the Panthers trail, 10-0.

On the touchdown pass, Captain Munnerlyn (starting in place of injured Chris Gamble) had Clayton singled up one-on-one on the right side. Charles Godfrey tried to help from his safety position, but got frozen briefly and got there too late. Munnerlyn fell down -- he thought there was contact -- and Clayton made the TD grab.

Now the Panthers are beginning their fourth offensive series, and rookie Jimmy Clausen is in the game for the first time.

A Gross beginning

At the end of the first quarter, Baltimore still leads Carolina, 3-0.

The Panthers looked like they were going to accomplish something on their third drive of the first quarter (and likely the last under Matt Moore). But Pro Bowl left tackle Jordan Gross was called for holding -- twice -- on the same drive.

Gross, in fact, piled up three penalties in the first quarter (he also got called for a false start). The second holding penalty was iffy, but there was no doubt about the first one. Both negated two of Moore's best throws of the game and made the Panthers' third drive end in a punt, just like the first two had.

Injury update: Panther defensive end Tyler Brayton probably had the best quarter of anyone on the team, sacking Joe Flacco twice on critical third-down plays. However, on the second sack, Brayton had his left ankle rolled on during the play's aftermath.

At first, he looked really hurt, but then he left the field under his own power. It's unlikely he will play again tonight, but initial reports don't seem to indicate this is a serious injury for the only returning starter on the Panthers' front four.

Baltimore leads Panthers 3-0

Baltimore got the better of the two teams' first drives, when each was playing at full strength. Each team has had the ball once, and Baltimore leads, 3-0.

The Panthers got the ball first. Carolina's first drive reached midfield after a run of about 20 yards by DeAngelo Williams before petering out in a hurry.

Matt Moore first overthrew an open Dante Rosario at the Baltimore 35. Then Moore had to throw the ball away on second down following a Ravens blitz, and another blitz on third-and-10 nailed him. Moore got hit by Baltimore's safety Tom Zbikowski, fumbled the ball and ended up losing 17 yards (although Carolina did recover).

Zbikowski did more damage to the Panthers on the ensuing punt return. He took it back 28 yards and drew a 10-yard penalty on punter Jason Baker for tripping, which let Baltimore start its scoring drive from its own 47.

Baltimore came out firing on its first possession, as Joe Flacco threw a 20-yard pass to Derrick Mason on the Ravens' first play. Baltimore moved mainly by the pass down to Carolina's 5, where a 5-yard illegal start penalty knocked the Ravens backwards.

Then, on third-and-8, Tyler Brayton sacked Flacco for a four-yard loss, and Baltimore needed Shayne Graham's 32-yard field goal to salvage something from the drive.

Baltimore 3, Carolina 0