Live Commentary: New Orleans Saints 13-17 Carolina Panthers - as it happened

Good evening! It's around half and hour until the Panther and the Saints do battle in a bid to secure top spot in the NFC South. Let's start with a look at the inactives for both teams...

PANTHERS INACTIVES: King, McNutt, Norman, Stewart, Connor, Bond, Horton

SAINTS INACTIVES: Griffin, Bush, Cadet, Dawson, Toon, Hill, Johnson

The most notable absentee is Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart. After missing the first half of the season with a foot injury, it's a knee complaint that keeps the veteran out this evening. The good news for the home side though is that wide receiver Steve Smith is active, despite dislocating a finger during practice this week. He'll play with a special protective glove today.

It's just two weeks since the Saints ended Carolina's eight-game winning streak with a 31-13 thrashing in New Orleans. Tonight's hosts responded well though, beating the Jets last week to keep themselves level with the Saints at 10-4.

It was a different story for the Saints last week. After beating the Panthers to take control at the top of the division, Drew Brees and co faltered against the St Louis Rams last week to let their rivals back into the NFC South race.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has been in sensational form recently. This season he has 3,049 passing yards an 21 touchdown passes, as well as 507 yards on the run and six rushing touchdowns. The third-year quarterback is celebrating his performances, and no doubt earning himself a fine for breaking the NFL's uniform rules, with some rather eyecatching footwear today

#SuperCam pic.twitter.com/F7MOchOxqT

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 22, 2013

The Saints have had the stronger offense so far this season, averaging 397 yards per game, compared to the Panthers' 326. Carolina have the edge in the running game though, rushing for around 40 yards more per game.

If the Saints are to post figures like that today, they'll have to get the better of Luke Kuechly. The Panthers linebacker is among the favourites to be named the defensive player of the year, having already made 122 tackles, two sacks and three interceptions.

Unlike many of this evening's NFL fixtures, this game shouldn't be affected by the weather. It's currently dry and overcast of the Bank of America Stadium, and a relatively pleasant 21C.

PREDICTION! With just a few minutes until kickoff, let's make a prediction. The Saints will be marginal favourites, having beaten the Panthers earlier this month, but New Orleans are a different team away from home, and that should help the Panthers make it a closer contest today. I'm going to go for Carolina to win by a field goal.

One big change for the Saints this week has been the introduction of Shayne Graham. The kicker was brought in after Garrett Hartley was released following a poor game against the Rams last week. He'll be getting his Saints career underway in just a few moments, as the Saints won the toss and chose to defer, so it will be the Panthers to receive the opening kickoff.

KICKOFF! In fact, it's punter Morstead who gets the game underway, kicking the ball away to Ted Ginn, who takes the touchback, so Newton and the Panthers offense will start from their own 20-yard line.

DeAngelo Williams sprints for a nine-yard gain from the first play of the drive, before picking up the necessary yardage for the first down from the next snap. A stunning pass from Newton finds Steve Smith for a 44-yard gain, moving the Panthers into the red zone. It looks like Smith's injury isn't causing him too many problems.

INTERCEPTION! It all goes horribly wrong for the Panthers as Newton attempts a short pass for Ginn, but the wide receiver only gets his fingertips to the ball, tipping it into the hands of Jenkins for the interception at the New Orleans 10. That will be a big disappointment for the hosts after what had looked like a promising start to the game.

Drew Brees and the New Orleans offense come onto the field for the first time today. After throwing an incompletion in the direction of Jimmy Graham before Colston and Collins get the first down.

Colin Cole breaks up a Brees pass intended for Colston, but he's injured on the play. There'll be a short delay while the Panthers' medical team see to the defensive tackle.

SACK! Kuechly holds Colston up short of the first down, leaving the Saints two yards short, but the running back manages to clinch the first down on the next play. However, Brees takes too long to get the ball away with the fresh set of downs, and finds himself sacked for a loss of five by Munnerlyn.

The sack proved costly, as New Orleans come up short on third down, so Morstead will come on for the first punt of the game. Ginn takes a fair catch at the 11-yard line.

It's a quick three and out for the home offense, as Tolbert and Williams both pick up short gains before a deep pass intended for Steve Smith is incomplete. Perhaps more worryingly for the Panthers, Smith appeared to pull up with a hamstring injury while looking to make the catch. The punt will have to wait while the star wide receiver is treated.

Smith is up and walking on the sideline, so it might not be game over for the wide receiver, although he is still receiving attention from the physio.

Nortman punts the ball to the Saints, and Sproles returns it to the 41-yard line, so the Saints will start their drive from a strong field position.

A catch and run for Watson leaves the Saints 30 yards from the end zone, as he picks up 22. Brees targets him again on the next play for a further four yards. This should be at least a field goal attempt for the visitors.

SACK! On third down, Hardy manages to bring down Brees for a loss of 11, taking the Saints out of field goal range and ending their drive, so it will be another Morstead punt. That's a huge play from the Panthers' defense.

Ginn and Williams leave the Panthers two yards short of the first down, but the home side will have to wait for their next play as Kenny Vaccaro needs treatment for an apparent ankle injury. It's been quite a physical start to this game, with both team's medics being kept busy so far.

SACK! Cam Newton is sacked for a loss of 11 yards by Lofton, forcing Carolina to punt. Both teams have shown promise on offense so far, but the defenses are coming up with big plays at just the right time to keep this game scoreless.

INJURY UPDATE: Smith has gone into the locker room for further treatment on his injury, while Cole is doubtful to return with a calf problem.

Colston thinks that he's got the first down, but Armstead is penalised for a false start. However, Brees manages to find the wide receiver again on the next play with a deep pass, picking up 35 yards before Kuechly makes the tackle.

SACK! Hardy gets to Brees for the second time today, bringing the Saints quarterback down for a loss of nine. The Saints will need 17 yards on third down.

Colston manages to haul in an eight-yard pass to move the Saints closer to the end zone, but he can't get the first down, so Shayne Graham will come on for his first field goal attempt with New Orleans.

The kicker comfortably makes the 40-yard attempt with his first kick in a Saints uniform.

ONSIDE KICK! Morstead attempts on onside kick from the kickoff to restart the game and the Saints manage to recover it, so the New Orleans offense will come straight back out.

Still carries the ball for three yards to take the Saints to midfield, before a superb sprint from Ingram moves the Saints into the red zone.

SACK! Brees fakes a handoff to Colston, but he doesn't trick Mikell, who manages to bring the quarterback down for a loss of three.

On third down, Brees fails to get the ball to Jimmy Graham, so Shayne Graham returns for another field goal attempts, this time from just 24 yards, which is an easy conversion for the kicker.

INJURY UPDATE: It's good news for the Panthers, as Steve Smith is back on the field for the start of the hosts' next drive. It's worse news for the Saints though, as it's suspected that Kenny Vaccaro has a broken ankle

Newton completes a couple of passes for no gain, before throwing the ball away. It's the third consecutive three and out for the Panthers offense. Meanwhile, Smith has a noticeable limp, and wasn't targetted on that drive. That will be a concern for the stalling Carolina offense.

While the Panthers offense may be stuttering in this second quarter, the defense is picking up the slack, as Kuechly holds up Thomas for no gain before White stops Colston from hauling in a catch. On third down, Brees keeps the ball himself and scrambles, but comes up short of the first down so bring Morstead on for another punt.

The Panthers get their first first down in quite some time, as Newton tosses the ball forward for Olsen for an 11-yard gain. He looks for the tight end again on the next play, as Olsen goes deep down the centre of the field, but Lewis makes sure he doesn't get to it.

SACK! On third down, Newton holds onto the ball looking for an option for the remaining eight yards needed to move the chains, but Cameron Jordan brings him down for a loss of 17 yards.

INJURY UPDATE! Steve Smith's game is over. The Panthers have confirmed that he will not return after picking up a knee injury early on.

TWO MINUTE WARNING: Brees starts the Saints' drive with an incompletion intended for Sproles before Jimmy Graham picks up a gain of four just before the two minute warning timeout.

INTERCEPTION! Thomas Davis jumps up high to pick off a Brees pass intended for Stills to give the ball back to the Panthers.

It looks like the Saints defense completely forgot about DeAngelo Williams as he picks up the ball from Newton for running through the New Orleans defensively line unhindered before sprinting 43 yards for the opening touchdown of the game. Graham Gano's extra point kick is good to give the Panthers the lead for the first time today.

Stills and Sproles both pick up four-yard gains before Brees throws the ball for Moore, but the wide receiver can't make the catch because of Florence's coverage, but the cornerback is penalised for pass interference to give the Saints another chance a fresh set of downs.

SACK! Brees is sacked for the fifth time todays as Hardy and Addison both reach the Saints quarterback at the same time to bring him down for a loss of nine.

On third down, Brees can't get the ball to Stills, so Morstead will punt it back to the Panthers, who will have time for a couple of plays before half time.

However, Newton takes a knee to allow the clock to run down and end the second quarter.

So at half time, the Carolina Panthers have a one-point lead over their NFC South rivals thanks to a brilliant rushing touchdown from DeAngelo Williams.

The Panthers have their defense to thank for their lead. Saints quarterback Drew Brees has been sacked five times and superbly intercepted by Thomas Davis to set up the Williams touchdown.

Brees has really struggled to pick up the first downs against this Panthers defense. He's completed 17 of 24 passes for 124 yards at half time. Cam Newton has relied much more on the running game, with just five passes for 61 yards.

DeAngelo Williams leads the way for the Panthers with 56 rushing yards. Steve Smith managed 44 receiving yards before being forced off with a knee injury. Newton has mainly looked for tight end Greg Olsen since Smith's departure, but he's been well covered by the Saints.

Marques Colston has had some success against the well-organised Carolina defense, gaining 63 yards from five receptions. Mark Ingram has led the running game with 50 yards, including a 34-yard sprint early on.

KICKOFF! Gano kicks off the third quarter, and the Saints take a touchback.

Meachem picks up a nine-yard gain from the first play of the third quarter, before Ingram rushes to get the first down. Brees targets stills with a deep pass into midfield, and the rookie jumps up high to take the catch, moving New Orleans to the Carolina 45.

Moore collects a short pass from Brees and runs after the catch for 13 yards to move the visitors into field goal range, but they're moved back 15 yards after Strief is penalised for unnecessary toughness.

Brees comes under pressure in the pocket from Hardy, who is looking for his third solo sack of the day, but the quarterback just manages to get the ball away in time.

It looks like the Saints are going to go for another field goal, but backup quarterback Luke McCown, who acts as holder for Shayne Graham, goes for a pass to tight end Jimmy Graham instead, but his pass doesn't have the distance.

The Panthers offense come back onto the field, and Newton starts with a 13-yard pass to Brandon LaFell for an immediate first down, before Williams picks up three on the run.

Ted Ginn collects his first reception of the day, beating Galette to get out wide before sprinting down the sideline for a 29-yard gain.

SACK! The Panthers get into the red zone, but Newton is sacked on third down by Galette, so Gano will have his first field goal attempt of the game.

Graham Gano comfortable splits the uprights from 40 yards out to extend the home side's lead. Worryingly though, Cam Newton appears to have been shaken up by the Galette sack, as the medics give him the once over on the sideline.

WEATHER UPDATE! While this game started in good conditions, it's now started raining rather heavily, and some lightening could also hit. If there is lightening, the game may have to be suspended if it's judged to be a risk to the fans.

In utterly torrential conditions, Ingram picks up nine on second down, before Collins gains three for a fresh set of downs. Meanwhile, players are starting to come to the sideline to change their footwear of the playing surface starts to get rather slippery.

This shot, courtesy of the Panthers' Twitter feed, should give you and idea of the conditions in Charlotte at the moment. The field at the Bank of America Stadium is natural grass, so if will start to get pretty muddy as the rain continues.

The view from the press box. Some serious rain here at Bank of America Stadium. #NOvsCAR pic.twitter.com/PPe537VvRa — Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 22, 2013

INTERCEPTION! Brees needs to find 10 yards on third down, and thinks he has Jimmy Graham wide open, but Kuechly bursts in front of the tight end to secure the turnover for the Panthers.

The Panthers can't cash in on their turnover, as Williams gets a couple of short gains before Newton tries to take it himself for the remaining five yards, but can only reach the line of scrimmage so it will have to be a punt for the home side.

The good news for the Saints is that the rain has started to ease off, but a good punt from the Panthers has pinned them back to their own two-yard line. Collins has a couple of short carries, but New Orleans still need two from third down.

Thomas looks for the necessary two, but Thomas Davis holds him up short of the line of scrimmage. Morstead comes on for the punt, but an illegal formation by the Panthers gives New Orleans a five-yard penalty and a first down, so Brees comes back onto the field.

The Saints resume from their own 22-yard line, but Meachem is brought down for a loss of five before Thomas is held up by Kuechly, also for a loss to force the visitors to go for the punt again.

With the Panthers offense back on the field, DeAngelo Williams picks up four yards on the run, before Newton tries a short pass to Olsen, but the tight end is still being closely marked and can't get his hands to it.

Newton tries for Olsen again but still can't find his target, so Nortman comes on to punt. As with his previous effort, the Saints' returner loses track of it, allowing Jansen to down it deep in Saints territory. Brees will come back onto the field facing a lengthy drive to try and get New Orleans back into the lead.

Brees completes a high pass for Jimmy Graham, and the tight end dashes down field before being brought down by Davis at the Carolina 48. It's a huge gain of 46 for Graham and the Saints.

Two rushes from Robinson give the visitors another first down and moves the Saints towards field goal range, but being four points down they'll be hoping for a touchdown from this promising-looking drive.

Brees continues to turn to Robinson, who moves New Orleans to the Carolina 22, but the drive is halted after Blackburn picks up an injury.

Brees tosses the ball short to Thomas who gets the first down with a 13-yard gain. The running back gets the carry on the next play too to leave the Saints five yards short of the end zone, but he's shaken up on the play. It looks like he got some mud in his eye after hitting the field face first.

Jimmy Graham makes his size count in the end zone as he jumps up too high for Quintin Mikell to collect a five-yard touchdown pass from Brees to put the Saints back infront. Shayne Graham makes it a three-point advantage with the extra point.

Tolbert collects a three-yard pass from Newton before rushing for two on the next play, leaving the Panthers needing five yards on third down, but the quarterback can't make the thrown to Hixon, completing the home side's sixth three and out of the game.

SACK! Munnerlyn and Hardy share a five-yard sack on quarterback on third down to make it a three and out for the Saints as well. That's the sixth time that the quarterback has been sacked, but the first time since half time.

SACK! The Saints defense make a good play at the start of the Carolina drive, bringing Newton down for a loss of nine, but Olsen makes the yards back on the next play.

Newton gets the ball to Olsen again on third down, but he comes up short, so the Panthers will punt yet again.

Star Lotulelei makes a couple of big stops for the home side, restricting the Saints a just one yard from their three downs. Initially it looks like they're going to punt, but head coach Sean Payton calls a timeout before Morstead takes it.

Morstead does indeed punt it back to the Panthers, so Cam Newton and the offense will have just over a minute to save the same.

Ted Ginn shows impressive pace down the sideline to move the Panthers 37 yards down the field on the first play of the drive.

Olsen keeps the Panthers moving for a 14-yard gain, moving Carolina into the red zone.

Domenik Hixon dives onto a 13-yard pass into the end zone from Newton to give the Panthers the lead with just 23 seconds left to play. Gano's extra point is good, so the Saints need to find a late touchdown to stop the Panthers taking the lead in the NFC South.

Gano gets the Panthers off to a good start, his kickoff results in a touchback, so it'll be a long drive for the Saints.

Brees looks for Colston deep, but it's incomplete. However, he finds Moore on second down, who manages to get a fresh set of downs and get out of bounds to stop the clock.

Brees goes for a Hail Mary in the final seconds, but the Panthers get plenty of players back to make sure it doesn't find its target.

The Panthers clinch the win and a spot in the playoffs thanks to Hixon's late touchdown.

That'a all from this game, but stick around for live commentary from the Patriots' game against the Ravens coming up shortly. Until then, thanks for joining me this evening, goodbye.