What would "tener a verdugo" mean?

Question

I saw this in a sports report: "Dallas vino de atra's para vencer a unas Panteras de Carolina, que una vez ma's tuvieron en su propio mariscal de campo a un verdugo."

Answer 1

Un verdugo, the one who killed them.

Answer 2

It is "tener a un verdugo". It's not an idiom. They're just saying that they once again have an "executioner" in the person of their "field marshal." I don't get the entire context, I think this is from football news, right? I'm pretty sure though about how I understood it.

Answer 3

"Dallas came from behind to defeat the Panthers of Carolina who, once again, had their own quarterback as an executioner." (mariscal de campo - quarterback)