In the minds of the Carolina Panthers, last season's playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers began to slip away in part due a to a number of penalties, including two personal fouls against defensive backs.
It's a problem the Panthers intend to not repeat this year.
During the second quarter of Sunday night's preseason tussle with the Kansas City Chiefs, Panthers corner Josh Norman began jawing with Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe, and the two butted helmets.
Just then Panthers defensive leader Thomas Davis came flying in, tossing Norman aside and scolding the corner for almost picking up a penalty.
After the game, coach Ron Rivera said his team would not tolerate those sorts of reactions.
"We took him off the field," Rivera said. "What we want guys to understand is that we have to maintain our composure on the football field. That's why we lost in the playoffs. It started with me. I made the mistake of getting caught up in that emotion. We have to learn how to control that.
"If we're going to be a playoff team, we've got to do those things the right way and we've got to be able to handle it. When we see it, we pull guys to the side and try to get that corrected. We're not going to play that way. We're going to play smart football."
As for the personal foul penalty called against rookie Kelvin Benjamin, Rivera said he hopes the young receiver learns and grows from that mistake.
The latest "Around the League Podcast" talks quarterback battles and debates the gang's preseason power rankings.
