Someone might've forgotten to tell the Carolina Panthers that Halloween is on Oct. 31, not Oct. 25.
This past Sunday, the reigning NFC South champs put on a horror show with a division rival in town—as they were eaten alive, 43-13, by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
. Carolina couldn't get anything going on offense, couldn't stop anything on defense and threw in a few egregious follies on special teams for good measure.But with a quick turnaround this week, the Panthers will have to flush that terrifying loss and shift their focus to the Green Bay Packers.
Here are our top storylines for tonight's bout at Lambeau Field . . .
Something's gotta give
As we alluded to, Carolina was bowled over by a one-dimensional Tampa offense in Week 7. With quarterback Baker Mayfield playing
through a dislocated thumb on his throwing hand, the Bucs were almost completely grounded—as they, minus a scramble and two kneel-downs, ran for 260 yards and three touchdowns on a whopping 46 attempts.
That performance stunted the progress of a Panthers defense that was playing relatively well. But now, going into Week 8, they're allowing the most rushing yards per game (153.2) and the most yards per carry (5.2).
Conversely, the Packers head in with the worst running game in the NFL—by a mile. They're averaging 59.9 rushing yards per contest, nearly 15 yards fewer than the next closest offense.
While they did get star rusher Josh Jacobs back last Sunday, Green Bay's problems in this department largely stem from poor blocking. Their line, by the way, will be missing starting right guard Travis Glover and center Sean Rhyan.
So, something—one way or the other—may have to give.
Love in the air
If Green Bay doesn't care to establish the run, they'll have no problem airing it.
Quarterback Jordan Love has been absolutely slinging the rock around—having thrown for 1,958 yards, 13 touchdowns and five interceptions on the fifth-most attempts (271) in the NFL. He's also chucked for league-highs in intended air yards (2,466), completions of at least 20 yards (30) and completions of at least 30 yards (eight).
Carolina, for a fourth straight game, will be without cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson. One of their backups, Akayleb Evans, is sidelined as well—which now forces the Panthers to reach even further into the depth chart.
That, obviously, isn't great news—especially considering the growing chemistry between Love and his two downfield demons in Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. Even if Golden—who is questionable with shoulder and foot injuries—is inactive, this one may end up being quite an aerial display.
Shorthanded on a short week
With a short week comes a shorter amount of time to recover. And that's evident on Carolina's injury report—as they'll be missing Evans, left guard Damien Lewis (knee) and outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips (hamstring).
Between those setbacks and the mortifying defeat they just experienced, tonight is gut-check time for head coach Dave Canales and his Panthers. Much of the goodwill they earned with their wins over the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles was lost with that debacle versus Tampa, and they must prove that they still belong as playoff contenders.
The Panthers will begin play with a half-game lead atop the NFC South, so we're not entering do-or-die territory just yet. But playing on a prime-time stage against a media darling will give Carolina a great opportunity to show some urgency and reestablish their path to the postseason.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Biggest storylines for Panthers vs. Packers in Week 8
