Panthers still boiling from Saints' disrespect

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First they ran up the score in a lopsided game, then a bounty on Newton?

Panthers’ players said the Saints showed no respect last season when they let quarterback Drew Brees and the rest of their starters play into the fourth quarter in pursuit of records in New Orleans’ 45-17 win in Week 17. Further fanning the flames was the offseason revelation that the Saints targeted Panthers quarterback Cam Newton in their bounty program.

“It’s a philosophy. It’s an attitude. And that’s what his is,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said of Payton. “So he coaches that way and they play that way. My attitude and my philosophy is win the football game, and then be smart about the next week. That’s just the way I look at it, a difference in philosophy.”

“When you’re going for it on fourth-and-1 when you’re up by 50,000 points, it’s what you’re supposed to do. But it’s not what you’re supposed to do, at the same time,” defensive end Greg Hardy said. “So I’m not happy about that.”

“I knew they were going for the records when Drew Brees was still in the game and it was like 42 to whatever,” Johnson said. “But hey, it’s all good. If we were in that position, we’d do that to them, too.”

“They broke a lot of records. I think they broke like 10 records against us. I’m fired up about that,” Munnerlyn said. “It’s in my mind still and I know some guys on defense, we don’t like that.”

“Hopefully, they changed their ways,” wideout Brandon LaFell said. “If they want to still play like that, let them play. But we’re going to come out and play smart and physical.”

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