CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) -- Jack Del Rio had his heart broken in his return to Carolina.
Jake Delhomme threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Proehl on a 4th-and-11 with 16 seconds remaining, rallying the Carolina Panthers to a dramatic 24-23 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, spoiling Del Rio's coaching debut.
Signed as a free agent in the offseason, Delhomme replaced an ineffective Rodney Peete to start the second half and led his team back from a 17-0 deficit. Delhomme threw three touchdown passes in the second half, but none bigger to Proehl, who made a leaping catch on the left side of the end zone.
"We needed to do something to spark our offense and I thought Jake did an outstanding job," Panthers coach John Fox said. "We struggled offensively and as it usually goes, the quarterback gets more credit or more blame than he deserves. We needed a spark and I made the decision at halftime to go with Jake."
Delhomme finished 12-of-22 for 122 yards and also threw two interceptions. Peete was 4-of-10 for 19 yards in the opening half before being benched.
"Coach (offensive coordinator Dan Henning) told me at halftime I was going in," Delhomme said. "We couldn't make up 17 points in one play, so we took it one play at a time. Our guys made plays.
After Delhomme's TD pass to Proehl, Mark Brunell tried to give Del Rio a thrilling victory. He completed two quick passes, getting the Jaguars a chance at a winning field goal.
But Seth Marler had a 55-yard field goal attempt blocked by Mike Minter as time expired.
"They deserved to win," Del Rio said. "We'd let them back in the game in the second half. It shows this is a sixty minute game."
In his first game as a Panther, Stephen Davis carried 21 times for 109 yards.
"It was yardage where you just grind it out the whole game," Davis said. "Everyone on the team played hard today. Brad Hoover did a great job blocking for me. It was nice to have a fullback for him."
Del Rio was making his return to Carolina after serving as the Panthers' defensive coordinator last season. He improved the Panthers' defense from 31st to second in the NFL.
It was not looking like Delhomme would have to work his magic in the game's final minute after he tossed a 24-yard touchdown pass to Steve Smith with 6:10 remaining to give the Panthers an 18-17 lead.
The score came two plays after Delhomme had a 26-yard TD pass to Muhsin Muhammad reversed by instant replay.
But Brunell, who enjoyed a huge came, needed just two plays before finding Jermaine Lewis down the right sideline for a 65-yard touchdown pass.
Brunell, reportedly on the trading block during training camp, completed 23-of-27 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns. He also was sacked four times.
"They got a spark for their offense," Brunell said. "They have a good front seven and stopped the run. What matters is getting the win. We let them back in and they did what they had to do to win. We didn't execute well enough. It was a roller coaster. It shows every play counts. If you let one slip you can lose."
Brunell also received little help from his running game as Fred Taylor rushed for 71 yards on 22 attempts.
Following Brunell's TD pass to Lewis, Delhomme was intercepted by linebacker Akin Ayodele in Jaguars territory on the Panthers' next possession.
But the Jaguars went three-and-out on their next possession, giving Delhomme one last chance.
Smith helped set up the Panthers' final drive, returning a punt 36 yards to the Jaguars 46 with 3:34 remaining.
Delhomme did the rest on the drive, with completions of 11 yards to Smith, eight yards to DeShaun Foster and an 11-yard connection to Kris Mangum to the 11.
Five plays later, Delhomme found the reliable Proehl - one of the game's top possession receivers - for the winning score.
Delhomme rescued the Panthers' after the 37-year-old Peete was completely ineffective in the first half. Carolina managed just one first down and 36 total yards in the first half.
"I don't know, but it's hard to discount what Jake did in the second half," Peete said. "He played extremely well. I still have all the confidence in what I can do and in what I can do for this football team. But at the same time, you've got to go with what happens. The decision is up to Coach Fox."
Meanwhile, Brunell was nearly flawless in the opening half, when he completed 15-of-16 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown. His TD was a 33-yard scoring strike to Matthew Hatchette on the final play of the first half for a 14-0 lead.
Fullback Marc Edwards capped a 10-play, 80-yard drive by plowing over for a two-yard touchdown earlier in the second quarter.
Marler kicked a 40-yard field goal on the Jaguars' opening possession of the third quarter before the Panthers got rolling with Delhomme.
On his first drive, Delhomme took the Panthers 64 yards in four plays, capping the march with a 13-yard TD pass to Muhammad with 6:42 left in the third quarter, pulling the Panthers within 17-7.
The Panthers scored again on their next possession, needing nine plays to move 26 yards. John Kasay capped the march with 49-yard field goal five seconds into the fourth quarter.
Things continued to unravel for the Jaguars after they were forced to punt on their next series. Chris Hanson had his punt blocked by Rod Smart and the Jaguars recovered in the end zone for a safety that pulled the Panthers within 17-12.
