The third quarter of the Carolina Panthers begins with a couple of division opponents and a couple of 2024 powerhouses that suffered a slight fall from grace in 2025. Let’s take a look at who they are and take our best guess at the outcomes.
Week 10: @ New Orleans Saints
The Saints decided to go all in on Tyler Shough this offseason, loading up on offensive weapons to surround the young – but still kind of old – quarterback with playmakers. In free agency they brought in two former first round picks in running back Travis Etienne,
Jr and tight end Noah Fant. Then the team added a receiver by taking Jordyn Tyson in round one and tight end Oscar Delp in the top half of the third round. Thankfully, the Saints parted ways with Demario Davis who was the Panthers kryptonite during his tenure, but Kaden Ellis is no slouch and provides the roster with a worthwhile replacement.
Frankly, what this match-up looks like on paper doesn’t matter. The Panthers were viewed as the better team by most accounts in 2025, and yet were still swept by their NFC South rivals. The Panthers will have their work cut out for them if they’d like to take down the Saints on their home turf.
Final: Saints 30 – Panthers 24
Week 11: vs Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens have had an interesting offseason. They parted ways with longtime and super bowl winning head coach John Harbaugh in favor of the new and shiny Jesse Minter. They lost starting center Tyler Linderbaum and playmaking tight end Isaiah Likely in free agency, but added a stud pass rusher in Maxx Crosby Trey Hendrickson to bolster their defensive unit to support Minter’s scheme. The Ravens added some beef in the trenches on both sides of the ball in the form of Olaivavega Ioane at guard and Zion Young as an outside linebacker.
The Ravens still have a ton of talent and the Panthers of old have seemingly always struggled against teams considered the class of the AFC. Lamar Jackson will keep the defense up the night before, but on their home field and in desperate need of a win, the Panthers have everything they need to come through.
Final: Panthers 27 – Ravens 17
Week 12: @Tampa Bay Buccaneers (MNF)
After facing off in Week 7, the losing team will not have to wait very long for the rematch. Just to add to the ambience, the Panthers and Bucs will be facing off on Monday Night Football in one of their three scheduled primetime games. The Panthers last appearance on MNF was last year’s debacle against the San Francisco 49ers, so they’ll look to redeem themselves in front of the nation.
Yesterday, Daniel gave the Panthers the win at home. While I would normally say these two teams will split, it does seem as though the Bucs have a potential to struggle and Todd Bowles’ seat might be a little too hot to handle at this point.
Final: Panthers 30 – Buccaneers 20
Week 13: @ Minnesota Vikings
In contention for the most odd offseason of any NFL team in 2026, the Minnesota Vikings have quite a few key differences compared to the 2025 iteration. For one, they are still without a General Manager after letting go of the incumbent and neglecting to replace him prior to the draft. Without a single figurehead, the Vikings went on to make some other headline-grabbing moves such as bringing in Kyler Murray to quarterback the offense, and trading away their top defensive player Jonathan Greenard. Hopefully, the Panthers secondary will be to focused on keeping Justin Jefferson in check and can refrain from making more… let’s call it unnecessary contact… with Jauan Jennings, who joined the Vikings roster after the draft ended.
While the Vikings have had an odd offseason including a fairly milquetoast draft, they still employ Jefferson, and a number of other offensive weapons led by a former coach of the year and stud play caller Kevin O’Connell. Couple that with the hyper-aggressive Brian Flores calling the shots on defense and you understand why they are no easy win.
Final: Panthers 21 – Vikings 20
