There is life left in the Carolina Panthers after all.

On a night that figured to belong to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings, the Panthers turned in a resilient performance that belied their record and injury-depleted roster to gain a resounding 26-7 win Sunday at Bank of America Stadium.

Granted, the Vikings hardly looked sharp after they clinched the NFC North Division championship earlier in the day when Green Bay lost to Pittsburgh.

But that shouldn't take away from Carolina's inspired performance.

Julius Peppers and the defense ferociously went after Favre, sacking him four times and holding him to 224 yards passing and no touchdown passes.

Just as impressively, Carolina limited running back Adrian Peterson to a mere 35 yards rushing on 12 carries.

The Vikings (11-3) suffered their most lopsided loss of the season and were held under 17 points for the first time.

The win improved Carolina's record to 6-8, one day after the Panthers were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

The Panthers' offense battled through early doldrums before breaking loose with three fourth-quarter touchdowns to steal away the victory.

On the first two scores, Carolina accomplished something that has been sorely missing most of the season, getting the ball into the play-making hands of Steve Smith in position for him to break loose.

With Minnesota leading 7-6 early in the fourth quarter, Moore launched a long pass to Smith and hit him in stride for a 42-yard touchdown pass to give the Panthers a 12-7 lead.

That score held after Moore was unable to hit an open Kenny Moore in the back of the end zone for a two-point conversion.

Later, Moore threw a short pass that Smith turned into a 45-yard gain by cutting, weaving and zooming threw Minnesota defenders to advance the ball to the Vikings' 3.

Running back Jonathan Stewart took over from there and scored the TD, his eighth of the season.

Stewart was forced into almost full-time duty after starter DeAngelo Williams left near the end of the second quarter with a left ankle injury.

Stewart also scored on a 2-yard pass and became the first back to run for more than 100 yards against the Minnesota defense in 36 games. He finished with 109 yards on 25 carries.

It was an impressive performance for the Panthers' offensive line, especially considering the fact that right tackle Jeff Otah was lost for the season last week with a knee injury. He was replaced Sunday by Geoff Scwhartz, who was making his first start.

And what about Moore? He threw for a career high 299 yards on 21-of-33 passing, with three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Carolina's fast finish stunned a Minnesota team that was a heavy favorite.

The Vikings led 7-6 at halftime, as both teams scored touchdowns. The difference was a blocked extra point.

Minnesota had a chance to open the scoring with a 39-yard field goal, but Ryan Longwell's kick hit the right upright and missed.

After starting the game with three consecutive punts without a first down, the Panthers drove 71 yards in 15 plays for a touchdown.

Moore got the possession going with completions of 15 and 14 yards to Smith and Muhsin Muhammad, respectively.

The score came on a 1-yard pass from Moore to fullback Brad Hoover with 10:55 remaining in the first half. It was Hoover's first touchdown reception in more than five years, since a Nov. 7, 2004 home game against Oakland.

The Panthers' next possession start at its 4, for, a field position disadvantage that set up Minnesota's first-half TD. The Panthers couldn't gain a first down and had to punt.

The Vikings took over at the Carolina 41 and took only six plays to score. Running back Adrian Peterson scored on a 4-yard run, but only after breaking tackle attempts by defensive backs Chris Harris and Richard Marshall.