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CHARLOTTE -- The autumn wind began to blow through the NFC South again Sunday. Carolina caught an updraft, and the Falcons flew home.

Muhsin Muhammad and the stars came out for the Panthers in a game that suggested an early pecking order in the division, but it might've been costly in the short run. Injuries to three starters, including one that left tackle Jordan Gross knocked out cold, could hamper Carolina in the coming weeks.

With resurgent Kansas City coming in next Sunday and the other two division rivals lined up after that, Carolina will now enter the first crucial tests of the season.

It was thought that Atlanta might provide something of a test, too. But the Falcons struggled against the big-play Panthers and wilted in the biggest moments of a game Carolina won 24-9.

"These are the fun games," quarterback Jake Delhomme said.

He threw for 294 yards and two touchdowns, one to Muhammad and the other to Steve Smith, as Carolina showed its strength for the first time all season. "This was one of those games where the passing game set up the running game," Muhammad said.

And the offense set up the defense and saved the special teams, who were so exuberant they sent out 12 men to stop an Atlanta field goal in the second quarter. It wasn't a perfect game for Carolina.

The full effect of the win might not be known for several days as Gross will be evaluated today and Tuesday before being allowed to return. Also injured Sunday were right tackle Jeff Otah (ankle), defensive tackle Maake Kemoeatu (elbow) and Delhomme, who limped off with a slight quad injury. "It was nothing," the quarterback said.

Actually, it did hamper the Panthers late, especially with both tackles out. A reorganized offensive line gave Delhomme enough time, however, to find his big-play receivers when he had to and created enough room for the running backs to run out the clock. Carolina ran off the field with a second home win, matching last year's total, and immediately started watching the scores from around the league.

New Orleans won, and Tampa Bay won and Kansas City won.

"It never gets easy," Muhammad said.

He caught eight passes for 147 yards and 36-yard touchdown that electrified the crowd and burned the Falcons for edging their safeties away from Smith on the other side of the field. Smith caught six passes for 96 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown that put the game away. No. 89 left the building without comment.

That was long after he'd thrown the ball into the stands after his touchdown catch, then pleaded for a fan to throw it back to him. Smith then took the ball to the sideline and presented it to cornerback Ken Lucas, whom Smith slugged in preseason, earning himself a two-game suspension. Carolina went 2-0 without their biggest star and is now 1-1 with him. "Now we are friends," Lucas said.

Muhammad said Smith is still the centerpiece of the team, and deflected the praised when asked how he felt about being the key to the Panthers' receiving corps.

"I'm the co-host," Muhammad said. "I'm not the guy by any means. He's the guy, and I'm fine with that."

A lot of the guys played well Sunday. Julius Peppers and the defensive front, Lucas and the entire Carolina secondary, even the 12-man special teams unit played strong in the first division game of the year. The big games all come later, and no one will remember the 3-1 start by the time the winter winds roll in. But at least it's a start, John Fox said.

"That was our goal," the Panthers coach said. "It was a division game, a conference game, and we expected a fight. It's always important when you get a win, especially the first one."

The first one came against the Falcons. The big ones await fall and then winter. But for one day at least, Carolina looked as if it would play in a lot of big games this season as the Panthers left the ground and took to the skies for the first time all year.

Contact Ed Hardin at 373-7069 or ed.hardin @news-record.com