Carolina Panthers’ Devin Lloyd wins NFL award after historic game vs. Falcons
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Cornerback Jaycee Horn called it “probably the most dominant performance I’ve ever seen.”
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Head coach Dave Canales said that he’s not sure he’s “seen a better performance out of a linebacker in 17 years of coaching in the NFL.”
And the movers and shakers in the league office?
They deemed it award-worthy.
Carolina Panthers inside linebacker Devin Lloyd was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday, after his stalwart performance against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2. Such an announcement was ceremonial after the day Lloyd put together: two interceptions (one of which he returned for a touchdown), nine tackles, one sack, one pass deflection (that turned into another INT) and two tackles for loss.
That stat-line is historic. According to Panthers communications, Lloyd is the first linebacker since 1982 — when the individual sack became an official statistic — to notch eight-plus tackles, two-plus interceptions, a sack and an INT returned for a touchdown in a single game.
More important, Lloyd’s presence lifted the Panthers (1-1) to their first win of the season, a 34-3 drubbing of their NFC South rival. Carolina needed such a performance from its defense after giving up a franchise-most 59 points the week prior against the Chicago Bears.
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That 59-point Week 1 output temporarily rattled the fan base’s belief in defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero. It also dampened some enthusiasm for Lloyd, the high-profile free agent the Panthers signed to a three-year, $45 million deal in March. (Lloyd recorded a team-leading 13-tackle performance in Week 1, but it’s tough to see the forest from the trees in a drubbing like that one.)
The intrinsic confidences of Evero and Lloyd didn’t flail, however. They didn’t even appear to change after Sunday, even — never getting too high or too low. That’s true for Lloyd, specifically. When asked if this was the best game of his career, the 27-year-old playmaker responded, “It’s definitely up there.”
Fortunately, his teammates were effusive on behalf of Lloyd postgame Sunday.
“He better win (NFC) Defensive Player of the Week,” defensive lineman Derrick Brown said Sunday.
And he did.
The Panthers saw some history in many other realms Sunday. Here are a few that stood out, courtesy of Panthers communications:
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This story was originally published September 23, 2026 at 12:00 PM.
