--RB Pierre Thomas, the Saints' leading rusher, was sidelined for the season finale against the Carolina Panthers with back and wrist injuries.

--DT Kendrick Clancy, who strained a hamstring against the Chicago Bears on Dec. 11, was sidelined for a second straight game on Sunday.

--TE Jeremy Shockey was inactive for the Panthers' game after spraining his right ankle one week earlier against the Detroit Lions.

--DE Jeff Charleston is scheduled to undergo surgery this week after breaking his hand against the Panthers.

--RB Lynell Hamilton was signed from the Saints' practice squad to provide depth at the position with Thomas out.

--LB Tearrius George was waived to open up a roster spot for Lynell Hamilton.

REPORT CARD VS. PANTHERS

PASSING OFFENSE: A -- Drew Brees had a big day against the Panthers in hitting on 30 of 49 passes for 386 yards and four touchdowns. Going into the game, the Panthers had allowed just one 300-yard passer this season, but the Saints got into a groove after falling behind 30-10 in the third period. Brees was sacked twice and threw one interception but still finished with a passer rating of 104.6. Wide receivers Marques Colston and Lance Moore were his main targets as Colston caught seven passes for 123 yards and a TD, while Moore had eight grabs for 91 yards and two scores.

RUSHING OFFENSE: C -- The Saints, who had to play without leading rusher Pierre Thomas, out with back and wrist injuries, were forced to abandon the running game after falling behind by 20 points with 10 minutes left in the third period. They finished with 50 yards on 11 carries, but they still netted 4.5 yards per carry. Deuce McAllister led the way with 40 yards and a long gain of 11 yards on eight carries.

PASS DEFENSE: C -- The good news is that Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme completed passes to just three receivers. The bad news is the Saints were burned for some big gains. Delhomme, who was 14 of 20 for 250 yards and one TD, had five completions of 25 yards or longer. That list was topped by throws of 54 and 39 yards to Steve Smith, who also had a 25-yard grab among five catches for 134 yards. The 39-yard catch was a beauty as he snatched the ball between two defenders with the reception setting up the game-winning field goal. Muhsin Muhammad caught seven passes for 79 yards as Delhomme, who was sacked just once, had a passer rating of 129.2.

RUSH DEFENSE: F -- The Saints ended the season the way they started it, by giving up a lot of rushing yards. The Panthers went off for 234 yards and averaged 5.6 yards per carry on 42 attempts against a Saints defense that had stopped a number of good running backs during the course of the season. Carolina's DeAngelo Williams motored for 178 yards on 25 carries, averaging 7.1 yards per try with a long of 30. Backup Jonathan Stewart added 56 yards on 17 attempts with a long of 16 and a 2-yard TD burst.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C-plus -- The Saints were good on coverage, limiting the Panthers to 6.5 yards on two punt returns and 22.4 yards on five kickoffs. But they were average on the other end. Skyler Green returned a kickoff 42 yards to set up a drive that ended with a field goal, but he also fumbled a kickoff, which the Panthers returned for a touchdown and a 23-3 lead late in the second quarter. Glenn Pakulak averaged 54.7 yards on three punts with a net of 43.7 and a long of 61 yards, and kicker Garrett Hartley booted a 21-yard field goal to make him 13-of-13 since joining the Saints at midseason.

COACHING: A -- With no hope at making the playoffs in their season finale, the Saints could have folded after falling behind 23-3 and 30-10 to a team that was fighting for the NFC South title, No. 2 seed in the playoffs and a first-round bye. But Sean Payton would not let his team quit, and the Saints continued to fight for a victory that would have given them a winning record. After battling back to grab a 31-30 lead with just more than three minutes left, they fell on a last-season field goal.