Defensive end Julius Peppers had two more sacks on Sunday against the Detroit Lions, giving him five sacks in the past two weeks and nine for the season.

He also forced his fifth fumble of the season, repositioning himself for a fourth trip to Honolulu and the Pro Bowl in February.

Peppers had a sack on Detroit's first series and later stripped Daunte Culpepper in the fourth quarter, accounting for one of four takeaways by Carolina's defense.

But after Sunday's game Peppers was more concerned about the things the Panthers didn't do right on defense rather his personal accomplishments, saying there's plenty of room for improvement. Rookie Kevin Smith became only the second running back this season to run for more than 100 yards against the Panthers.

"We...

Jake Delhomme was eager to make up for the worst game of his career. He settled for handing off to his two dynamic running backs. Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams bolted through huge holes in a record-setting day on the ground for the Carolina Panthers, who needed that dominance to hold off the winless Detroit Lions 31-22 on Sunday.

It's been more than three decades since a quarterback played a game as poorly as Jake Delhomme did and still ended up on the winning side. That's what facing a team as bad as the Oakland Raiders will do. Delhomme threw a touchdown pass on the opening drive but completed only six other passes while throwing four interceptions in the Carolina Panthers' 17-6 victory over the Raiders on Sunday.