Testaverde leads Panthers over Cardinals

GLENDALE, Ariz. - The Carolina Panthers won a matchup that came down to a couple of familiar old quarterbacks.

At age 43, Vinny Testaverde came out of semiretirement to lead the Panthers to a 25-10 victory Sunday, while Arizona's 36- year-old Kurt Warner was knocked out with a sprained left elbow in the first quarter.

''The reality is neither one of us had our starters, and we played with who we had,'' Carolina coach John Fox said. ''Vinny is the consummate pro.''

The Panthers were glad they had Testaverde. Early last week, he turned down a job offer from Arizona, then accepted one from Carolina.

Testaverde hit Steve Smith for a 65-yard touchdown pass as the Panthers scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

Testaverde became the oldest starting quarterback in NFLhistory to win a game, and the third-oldest to start one. His touchdown pass gives him at least one in 21 straight seasons, extending his own NFLrecord.

Testaverde stole the headlines on a day DeAngelo Williams ran for 121 yards and a touchdown for the Panthers (4-2), who are 4-0 on the road this year. John Kasay kicked four field goals for Carolina.

The Cardinals contacted Testaverde last week after learning starter Matt Leinart would miss the rest of the season with a broken collarbone. The plan was for Testaverde to back up Warner.

Testaverde said he was ''on my way'' to Arizona before talking to his family and deciding the desert was too far away.

''At this point in my career, I didn't want to go without seeing my family for as long as I thought I would be away from them,'' he said.

The Panthers called Testaverde last week because starter Jake Delhomme is out for the season with an elbow injury, and because backup David Carr has a sore back.

Testaverde arrived in Charlotte about 10 minutes before practice on Wednesday, introduced himself to his new teammates and began learning the offense.

''Our guys rallied around him,'' Carolina coach John Fox said. ''I think they saw some of the things he's capable of during the week in practice.''

Carr said he was thrilled to meet Testaverde. Carr was eight years old when Testaverde made his NFLdebut with Tampa Bay in 1987, and Carr said Testaverde was always one of his favorites.

''It was kind of weird telling him that at the beginning of the week,'' Carr said. ''I'm like, we're playing together, so I don't know if he's going to take that as an insult.

''I've got his rookie card,'' Carr said. ''He's going to have to sign it for me this week.''

Testaverde said he'd happily oblige. ''Hey, I'll sign as many as he has,'' Testaverde said.