Carolina (3-3) at New York Jets (0-6)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, Fox.
BetMGM NFL Odds: Panthers by 1 1/2.
Against the spread: Panthers 4-2; Jets 3-3.
Series record: Panthers lead 5-3.
Last meeting: Panthers beat Jets
19-14 on Sept. 12, 2021, in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Last week: Panthers beat Cowboys 30-27; Jets lost to Broncos 13-11 in London.
Panthers offense: overall (18), rush (4), pass (27), scoring (19).
Panthers defense: overall (10), rush (9), pass (17), scoring (21).
Jets offense: overall (28), rush (5), pass (32), scoring (25).
Jets defense: overall (20), rush (23), pass (10), scoring (28).
Turnover differential: Panthers minus-4; Jets minus-7.
RB Rico Dowdle. He had a franchise-record 473 yards from scrimmage the past two weeks in his first two starts since taking over for the injured Chuba Hubbard. Hubbard could return this week from a calf injury, but Dowdle is still expected to start and see the majority of carries after leading Carolina to back-to-back wins. His challenge will be tougher this week as he faces a New York defense that held Denver’s J.K. Dobbins to just 40 yards on 14 carries last week in London.
QB Justin Fields. Coach Aaron Glenn is sticking with Fields as his starting quarterback even after a dismal performance during which he was 9 of 17 for just 45 yards and was sacked nine times by Denver. The Jets finished with a franchise-worst minus-10 net yards passing. It'll be interesting to see how long Glenn will continue to go with Fields if he struggles this week. Fields acknowledged this week he needs to be more aggressive in the passing game. If not, Tyrod Taylor could see some snaps.
Jets RB Breece Hall vs. Panthers' run defense. Carolina has allowed just 50 yards rushing — 19 to Miami and 31 to Dallas — in the past two games. Both games rank among the top 10 best rushing defensive performances in franchise history. Hall enters this week ranked 11th in the NFL in rushing with 410 yards and is averaging a career-high 68.3 yards rushing per game.
Panthers: Hubbard returned to practice this week after missing two games and should be ready to play. ... RT Taylor Moton (elbow) and DT Turk Wharton also returned to practice after sitting out last week. ... WR Jalen Coker (quadriceps) is expected to see his first action after missing the first six games of the season.
Jets: WR Garrett Wilson is uncertain to play after injuring a knee against Denver. ... WR Josh Reynolds didn't practice early in the week with a hip issue. ... LB Cam Jones and CB Qwan'tez Stiggers also sat out early in the week with hip injuries.
The Panthers have won the past three meetings. ... Carolina won the first matchup 26-15 for the first victory in team history during the Panthers' inaugural season in 1995. Carolina was 0-5 before the win, highlighted by Sam Mills' go-ahead 36-yard interception of Bubby Brister for a touchdown. ... The Jets won the second matchup 48-21 in 1998 behind two TD runs by Curtis Martin and Vinny Testaverde's two TD passes to Wayne Chrebet.
The Panthers are 0-3 on the road and have been outscored 95-45 away from home. ... If the Panthers win, it will mark the first time they’ve won three straight with QB Bryce Young since he arrived as the No. 1 overall pick in 2023. ... Rookie Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina’s most productive wide receiver, caught his first two touchdown passes last week. ... The Panthers have 455 yards rushing over the past two weeks, the most in the NFL. That's the second most over a two-game span in franchise history. ... Panthers rookie K Ryan Fitzgerald was selected the NFC special teams player of the week after making all three field goals, including a 55-yarder and a game-winner from 33 yards. ... The Jets are 0-6 for the third time in franchise history and look to avoid joining the 1996 and 2020 squads as the only teams to drop their first seven games. ... Glenn is the first Jets coach to begin his tenure with six losses. ... New York’s 82 net yards of offense against Denver were the third fewest in franchise history. ... The Jets are the first team to start 0-6 while averaging less than 150 net yards passing per game (144.2) since David Carr and the Houston Texans did it in 2005 (87.2). ... Fields has thrown no interceptions in his first five starts this season, but has only four touchdown passes and 799 yards passing. ... New York held Denver to 78 yards rushing last week — the first time the Broncos didn’t have 100 this season. Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams’ 11 run stuffs are the most in the NFL among players with at least 100 snaps against the run.
Jets rookie TE Mason Taylor had just one catch for 2 yards last week, but should have a good chance to turn things around against the Panthers, who’ve allowed the most fantasy points to tight ends, per CBS Sportsline. The Panthers have allowed the past three tight ends they’ve faced — Hunter Henry, Darren Waller and Jake Ferguson — to score touchdowns.
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