Panthers Discover That There’s No Stopping Allen This Season Either

It’s looking like 1996 all over again for Washington Redskin running back Terry Allen. The Carolina Panthers wish they could say the same thing.

Allen, who set a franchise record with 1,353 yards rushing last year and led the NFL with 21 touchdowns, ran for 141 yards and two scores, powering the Redskins to a 24-10 victory over error-prone Carolina on Sunday night.

“Teams are going to have to key on Terry because he is going to be a force,” quarterback Gus Frerotte said after Washington handed Carolina its first loss in 10 games at Ericsson Stadium.

“It wasn’t easy,” said Allen, who had 25 carries. “Once you get up on a team, then you’re able to come out and run the ball more, and that’s what we wanted to do--finish the game running the ball.”

Washington converted three of Carolina’s four turnovers into 17 points.

“We weren’t as sharp as we need to be,” Carolina Coach Dom Capers said. “The key is always how you respond to these things.”

Carolina had the third-best turnover differential in the NFL last year, helping the Panthers win their last seven regular-season game en route to the NFC West title and advance to the NFC championship game in only the franchise’s second year.

But turnovers have been a big problem this year for the Panthers. They had 11 in an 0-4 exhibition season.

Carolina also was penalized 10 times for 101 yards Sunday, compared to three Washington penalties for 19 yards. It marked an end to the Panthers’ NFL-record streak of 20 consecutive games in which they were penalized for fewer yards than their opponents.

Steve Beuerlein, subbing as Carolina’s quarterback while Kerry Collins recovers from a broken jaw, completed 12 of 26 passes for 108 yards, was intercepted twice and had several other passes tipped by defenders.