The Carolina Panthers lost and they have nobody to blame but themselves. Here’s a few who helped this team almost pull it out.Christian McCaffery125 yards rushing and 114 yards receiving Shaq Thompson Color Rush Jersey , coupled with 2 TDs should be enough to win a game from your running back. McCaffery was consistent and probably destroyed a lot of fantasy football games today. McCaffery is good, he can win from any position on the field.Luke KuechlyKuechly played like a man possessed today, with 12 total tackles. He was all over the field and very clearly called audibles on defense that led to negative plays for Seattle. Some may call this a “down” year for Kuechly, but he demonstrated why he’s an elite defender. One linebacker simply cannot make an entire defense elite.D.J. Moore and Curtis SamuelWe all feared that this coaching staff would limit their snaps with the return of Torrey Smith. We were wrong. D.J. Moore had 8 receptions for 91 yards, where Curtis Samuel had 43 yards and a TD on 3 touches. This offense has some great pieces moving forward with thesetwo. Moore reminds me of Steve Smith with his aggressive approach to the game.LosersWay too many to break down here. Cam Newton had a good day on the stats, but he and the offense struggled consistently to score any points in the redzone. We see two TDs instead of nothing? This is a blowout as Carolina rides off with momentum rather than being pushed way down the playoff ladder. The offensive line struggled to keep him upright during big moments. The defense showed up for the most part but fell off the nwagon in the second half, forcing the offense into a shootout. Graham Gano missed a field goal that would have given this team a late lead. Oh, and for those saying Corn Elder should play over Captain Munnerlyn? Yeah, Elder isn’t good, and this defense struggled without Jackson.The Panthers came out and made some great plays, but they couldn’t finish, and it cost them. Now they must go on a tear to even consider the playoffs. Right now, I’m not sure that’s plausible. Welcome back to the 2018 edition of Step UP or Step OUT, a series on CSR that is intended to look at players who are playing well and highlight a few that need to step their game up. Think of it as a heat index for the Carolina Panthers; guys who are playing well are stepping up and those who aren’t need to improve their game or. . . step out.This week we’ll look at some guys that were a big part of the huge comeback last week against the Philadelphia Eagles. The others mentioned, need to play better or maybe just step out of the way and let someone else take over before we play the Baltimore Ravens.Steppin’ UPCam Newton“Drip” Level: Lindley Falls after Hurricane FlorenceYour reigning NFC Offensive Player of the Week absolutely has to be in this category this week. After essentially fitting an entire football game into less than one quarter statistically and leading a three score comeback, Cam Newton could not be hotter right now if they literally had him do player intros on fire. This past week was yet more proof why the coaches need to trust Cam to be more aggressive Kawann Short Jersey , and potentially use the up tempo offense a lot more, as his success rate in the those situations continues to be astronomical.Eric ReidHeat Rating: Atomic Fireballs marinated in actual hot sauceNote to other opponents. Please make Eric Reid mad. It makes him an incredibly dangerous football player, both in the sense of literal danger and skillful danger. Just ask Zach Ertz:A lot of people are debating Eric Reid’s conduct this week, but no matter which side of that issue you land on, you cannot deny he played brilliantly on Sunday, and was robbed of a game ending interception in a shady replay scenario. I’m not saying the booth was ordered to ensure Eric Reid couldn’t win the game for Carolina on a knee, but I am saying the whole thing went down pretty fishy. From a pure football standpoint, there is no question this team is better now with Reid in the house.Torrey SmithHeat Rating: Two piping hot pop tarts right out of the toasterTorrey Smith caught a lot of flak preseason for a salary that many people thought hard to justify. We still aren’t seeing many field stretching plays for the Panthers, and that is something we would like more of, but in the meantime, Smith is making himself very useful. This week was the second week in a row that he played a major part in a team comeback, making a crucial catch and run to extend the Panthers chances to do the improbable.Steppin’ OUTMike AdamsCold Rating: Get your cryogenic freezer ready.Mike Adams has been the definition of an up and down player for the Panthers this season, and while I would say anything at all that the team gets out of him that is positive at his age is very welcome, we need more reliability. Right now, the Panthers are getting cremated by every tight end in the league, and the combination of Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz was just the latest to punish us. Things are definitely better when the linebackers get to stick on them Vernon Butler Color Rush Jersey , but if you see Adams in coverage, you know he’s probably about to get out-muscled. He also dropped a would be game sealing interception after Eric Reid was robbed of his.Chris ClarkCold Rating: A warm reception that gets chillier as the evening wears onChris Clark has cooled down from his early season point of “better than we could have expected” to “pretty much what we expected.” That’s still good enough when you’re talking about a guy who didn’t have a team in week 1, but he is definitely part of the reason why we are having a hard time taking deep shots. Clark is mostly getting out-muscled on a down to down basis, and though he is doing a good job getting himself between Cam and a rusher, he routinely gets pushed right back into Cam. This was his second straight game with at least five pressures, and really, Matt Kalil would be an upgrade to his current play. I know that is an unpopular opinion, but it’s true.Dontari PoeCold Rating: Getting a batch of not so fresh fries at McDonald’sThe Panthers signed Dontari Poe to be more than just a Star Lotulelei replacement. They paid him as if they were going to get an impact player. Right now, they’ve just got Star Lotulelei in a different wrapping paper. It’s just like the above analogy... you want fries, you got fries, but you’re not getting the ideal thing you ordered. Dontari Poe has been perfectly serviceable as a space eater, but I’m simply not seeing the athleticism that is supposed to be a hallmark of his play. He has been awful in terms of disengaging from blocks, even one on one blocks, and has yet to make a single splash play that I can remember. It’s bad enough that the team is starting to write “it’s coming” articles about him, and I don’t have to tell you that is an awful sign.