Rhule wasn’t left with many good choices on fourth-and-17 from the New Orleans 47, especially considering he had one timeout left. Punting may have pinned the Saints deep, but it wouldn’t have left much time for the offense had the defense gotten a stop. But frankly, the Panthers hadn’t stopped the Saints all day.

“We don’t have a lot of those (offensive play) calls we feel good about,” Rhule said. “(W)e felt (Slye) would have a chance. Our odds with fourth-and-17, we felt like, were less than that. Obviously, it was not ideal.”

So Rhule turned to Slye, the kicker who had been on the reserve/COVID-19 list all week while self-isolating. Slye stayed ready by kicking on an empty field with his swing coach, taking special precautions to stay socially distanced. He also worked out at a local gym at 1:00 a.m. so that no