Brandon LaFell

Panthers receiver Brandon LaFell initially threw the ball to an official Sunday after his touchdown catch against St. Louis, before retrieving it. LaFell nearly missed out on the keepsake of his first NFL touchdown.

It's all part of the learning process for the rookie from Louisiana State.

After a slow start, LaFell has caught 10 passes for 131 yards the past two games, including the 17-yard score against the Rams. He had three of his four catches on the Panthers' lone touchdown drive when they went to a hurry-up offense.

"What you're looking for is consistency. And he has put two good games together," Fox said. "I thought that was a great effort he made to score our only touchdown a week ago."

But LaFell said he had a mental lapse when he failed to convert a short route to a go against tight coverage on a key third down late in the first half. Quarterback Matt Moore threw incomplete to the spot where LaFell was supposed to be, and the Panthers settled for a field goal.