Atlanta (4-5) at Carolina (2-7)
When: Thursday, November 10th 2022
Where: Bank of America Stadium,
Charlotte, NC
Time: 8:15 ET | TV: Prime
Opening Odds: Atlanta -1.5/40
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For the second time in less than two weeks, the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers will lock horns in a key NFC South matchup on Thursday Night Football. If this game is anything like the wild Week 8 contest, we’re in for a treat. Atlanta pulled out a 37-34 overtime thriller on Oct. 30 after the Panthers tied it up on a 62-yard touchdown pass from PJ Walker to DJ Moore with just 12 seconds left. Moore then took his helmet off to celebrate and was penalized 15 yards. Eddy Pineiro missed the long PAT and Atlanta won an OT field goal. The Falcons, who were predicted to be terrible this season, are in first place at 4-5 thanks to the underachieving Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite a 2-7 record, firing their head coach and trading away their two best offensive players, the Panthers are just two games out of first.
The Falcons lost to the Chargers last week on a Cameron Dicker 37-yard field goal three days after being signed as a free agent. Marcus Mariota was held to just 129 yards passing, as the offense is struggling to find yards through the air. Top running back Cordarrelle Patterson returned after missing four games and had 13 carries for 44 yards and two touchdowns. The Falcons rushed for 201 yards led by Tyler Allgeier’s 99. Starting guard Chris Lindstrom left with a knee injury, while offensive lineman Matt Hennessy will miss the game with a knee injury after going down Sunday. In the first meeting with Carolina, Mariota had three touchdowns and two picks. The Falcons ruled out starting cornerback A.J. Terrell (hamstring), safety Erik Harris (foot) and tight end Feleipe Franks (calf) for Thursday’s game.
The Panthers trailed 35-0 at halftime last week and recorded just 228 yards and 13 first downs. Walker had just 9 passing yards and two interceptions in the first half, giving way to Mayfield in the second half. Interim head coach Steve Wilks said the short week and Walker’s big game in the first meeting with Atlanta played a factor in his decision to start him again on Thursday. Mayfield was 14-of-20 for 155 passing yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions. Running back D’Onta Foreman only had 23 rushing yards on seven carries, but had 118 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries in the first meeting. The Panthers listed running back Chuba Hubbard (ankle), defensive tackle Matthew Ioannidis (back) and right tackle Taylor Moton (elbow) as questionable for Thursday.
This game could go either way, but I’ll lean towards the Falcons in this rematch. Carolina is still the worst team in the league and rank near the bottom both offensively and defensively. The Falcons should be able to run all over them with Patterson back in the fold. I’ll lay the points.
Pick: Falcons -3
