The Detroit Lions take on the Carolina Panthers on "Sunday Night Football" in Charlotte in Week 4.
The Lions (2-1) are looking to put together consecutive wins, including their first road win of the season. The Panthers (1-2) suffered a disappointing loss to the Browns last week and are hoping to get back on track.
Here are three key stats that should tell the story of this game:
Panthers have allowed a league-high 580 rushing yards this season
The Panthers' defense currently ranks last in the NFL in rushing yards given up through the first three weeks of the season.
They gave up a whopping 291 rushing yards in their Week 1 loss to the Bears, but also gave up 157 rushing yards in a lopsided win over the Falcons in Week 2. For good measure, they allowed 132 yards against the Browns last week en route to their 21-18
loss.
The Lions' offensive line is the healthiest its been so far this season, and is coming off a dominant performance in their win over the Jets last week. If that trend continues, Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs could be in for another big day on the ground.
Lions allowing a league-high 299.3 passing yards per game
The Lions have shown that they're susceptible to surrendering yardage and points, and the Panthers have shown they can score in bunches. Carolina ranks seventh in total offense (392.7 yards per game) and fifth in scoring offense (29.7 points per game).
The Lions' defense ranks last in the NFL in both passing yards allowed per game (299.3) and scoring defense (31.7 points per game). The Panthers bring the best passing offense in the NFL into this contest, averaging 295.7 passing yards per game.
The secondary for the Lions is its Achilles heel, and though they found some short glimpses of hope from the play of Ennis Rakestraw Jr. and Christian Izien last week, the sample size is too small to expect significant change from the norm on Sunday night.
40-60% chance of rain in Charlotte
Depending on your favorite Charlotte area forecast, Sunday night's game is expected to be impacted by a 40-60% chance of rain.
For all of the talk about the passing game for both teams, and quarterback Jared Goff's fabled struggles in the elements, the running games for both teams should play a significant role if the rain becomes a factor.
The Lions and Panthers rank 10th (4.4) and 11th (4.3) respectively in average rushing yards per attempt.
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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions vs Panthers: 3 key stats to know for 'Sunday Night Football'
