After two long weeks, the Carolina Panthers will play football again this Sunday. It won’t be the glitz and glamour of Sunday Night Football this time around, but rather a 1 pm trip to Philadelphia to challenge the Eagles.
Entering the season, a trip to the Linc would’ve been a near-lock to be a defeat. Now, with how the Panthers opened their year prior to the bye week, things are different.
Carolina has been one of the best offenses in the NFL to start the season. Bryce Young has arguably been the league’s best passer - something few could’ve imagined a month ago.
Philadelphia is also dealing with major injuries, including their star skill players and an offensive line that has imploded very quickly. The Eagles also have the misfortune of coming back from London without a bye week, while Carolina is fresh off of their own.
These circumstances have culminated in the Carolina Panthers shifting to be the road favorite over the course of the week. Carolina being favored in any game is a sign of respect from the markets, but a road game in Philly might mark a change in how the Panthers are perceived.
Being favored does not automatically guarantee a win. Even with Philly facing some adverse conditions, the Panthers will have to take care of their own business. Let’s take a look at what Carolina needs to do in order to be worthy of being favorites on the road.
Keys to Victory
1) Get healthy
One of the benefits of the early bye week was Carolina’s ability to get healthy. Not only were the players who became banged-up over the first month of the season granted an extra week of recovery, but the already-injured players were given an extra week to acclimate.
No team had more significant (starters) injured players entering the season than Carolina. Now, with a month of the season elapsed, some of those players are returning.
OT Taylor Moton, DL Turk Wharton, and returner Trevor Etienne have all been practicing this week and could all give this team huge boosts if they were able to suit up on Sunday.
Moton in particular would be a massive help for the league’s worst offensive line through four weeks, especially with Monroe Freeling getting injured at the end of the Lions contest.
Along with these players, guys like WR Jalen Coker, OL Damien Lewis, EDGE Jaelan Phillips, and the aforementioned Freeling have all gotten an extra week to prepare.
If the Panthers can return even one or two of the laundry list of injured players this week, their chances of winning improve tremendously.
2) Attack Cooper DeJean
Since drafting them in 2024, one of the strongest parts of the Eagles roster has been the secondary, particularly the corners. Both Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean have been excellent in coverage throughout their first two seasons, and the room added Riq Woolen in free agency to complement those two.
However, to start the 2026 season, DeJean has been a major weakness in the Philly secondary. According to PFF, no player has missed more tackles than Cooper DeJean.
The usually-sound nickel corner could be the point in the armor of Philadelphia’s defense to attack. With how Tetairoa McMillan played against Detroit’s (albeit worse) secondary, Carolina should be looking to move him into the slot, forcing DeJean into one-on-one scenarios.
Finding any weakness in Vic Fangio’s defenses is rare. For Carolina to continue their high-scoring offense, forcing DeJean to cover will be essential.
3) Communicate better in the secondary
In the first game without Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson, there were a lot of errors in the defensive backfield. Yes, the Lions have some of the best skill players in the league on offense, but the big plays given up were the result of Carolina’s blunders.
Communication must improve so that 50-yard bombs aren’t a regular occurrence for this defense to be allowing. One of the strengths of starting safety Nick Scott’s game is that he is supposed to ensure high-level communication on the back end of the defense.
If Carolina doesn’t do a better job talking in the secondary and playing their assignments well, backup Tanner McKee can beat them deep. McKee will be filling in for Hurts this week, as Hurts is dealing with a superficial blood clot.
AJ Brown isn’t there anymore, and DeVonta Smith may miss another game, but Hurts has still found targets deep down the field. Second-year receiver Darius Cooper has been the recipient of those passes, already bringing in four touchdowns this year.
4) Keep Pounding the rock
Let’s not pretend that this is a good matchup for Carolina’s offensive line. The worst unit in terms of pass protection to start the season is facing maybe the best interior defensive line, and even if everyone were healthy, this particular position matchup would favor Philadelphia.
An easy way to take the pressure off of the offensive line in pass protection is an effective run game. Early in the season, Carolina struggled to produce a viable run attack, but against Detroit, the Panthers finally were able to break through.
With a week of self-scouting and identifying what has gone right and wrong as it pertains to the run, Carolina should have a more adept plan for a successful run game in Philly.
While it may bring Bryce Young’s passing totals down, having a strong run game helps balance the offense, and if the offense is balanced, Carolina should be able to put up points against anyone.
Despite all the spots where Carolina has advantages, this team has still struggled on the road outside of Mercedes-Benz “Bryce Young” Stadium. If the Panthers want to win as road favorites, they’ll have to take care of business.
This game is pivotal for the Panthers. In the Dave Canales era, the team is 0-2 after the bye week and hasn’t boasted a winning record after five weeks since 2021. With tougher matchups on the schedule the rest of the season, Carolina needs to find a way to pull this one off.
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