Carolina (1-2) at New England (1-2)
Sunday 1 p.m. EDT, FOX
Against the spread: Panthers 2-1; Patriots 1-2
Series record: Tied 4-4
Last meeting: Patriots beat Panthers 24-6 in Charlotte, N.C. on Nov. 7, 2021.
Last week: Panthers beat Atlanta 30-0 at home; Patriots lost to Pittsburgh 21-14 at home.
Panthers offense: overall (24), rush (25), pass (23), scoring (19t).
Panthers defense: overall (21), rush (25), pass (12), scoring (8).
Patriots offense: overall (11), rush (19), pass (7), scoring (21t).
Patriots defense: overall (17), rush (2), pass (29), scoring (18t).
Turnover differential: Panthers minus-1; Patriots minus-3.
WR Tetairoa McMillan. The No. 8 overall pick in this year's draft has made an immediate impact for the Panthers, quickly developing into Bryce Young's favorite option with 14 receptions for a team-leading 216 yards through two games. But McMillan, who had 26 touchdown receptions in three seasons at the University of Arizona, is still waiting to get into the end zone for the first time. There is a chance that could be this week as the Patriots come into the game 29th in the league in pass defense.
TE Hunter Henry. He caught eight passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns last week in the loss to Pittsburgh. Henry is again one of quarterback Drake Maye's top options thus far — tied for the team lead with 13 catches for a team-best 165 receiving yards.
Panthers K Ryan Fitzgerald vs. Patriots kick returners. Carolina's rookie kicker has excelled on kickoffs, delivering some knuckleballs that Atlanta returners found difficult to handle. The ball would regularly bounce off the hands of an Atlanta returner, thus ruining the tempo and timing of the return. The Panthers took advantage, holding the Falcons to an average field goal position of the 19-yard line after seven kickoffs. Twice the Falcons started at their 10.
Panthers: TE Ja'Tavion Sanders is expected to be out a while with a high ankle sprain, which means Tommy Tremble will likely get the start. WR Xavier Legette is hopeful to return this week after missing the Falcons game with a hamstring injury.
Patriots: CB Christian Gonzalez ramped up his participation this week and could make his season debut after missing the first three games with a preseason hamstring injury. ... LB K’Lavon Chaisson (knee) and LG Jared Wilson (ankle/knee) both sat out the first practice of the week.
Carolina is 4-3 against New England in the regular season, but it lost a big one during the 2003 season to New England. The Patriots knocked off the Panthers 32-29 in Super Bowl 38 after Adam Vinatieri kicked a winning field goal from 41 yards with 4 seconds left.
QB Bryce Young is 7-24 as an NFL starter. Young had five turnovers in the first five quarters of the season, but has not had any in the seven quarters since. ... RB Chuba Hubbard could have his work cut out for him against the league's No. 2-ranked run defense. Hubbard has two TD receptions through the air, but is still looking for his first score on the ground after getting 10 last season. The Panthers scored a late TD rushing in the fourth quarter against the Falcons, but it was backup Rico Dowdle who delivered. ... The Panthers defense forced three turnovers last week against the Falcons and earned their first shutout since Nov. 22, 2020. ... Panthers CB Chau Wade-Smith had an 11-yard interception return for a score last week. ... The Patriots have held their first three opponents to under 65 yards rushing. If they hold Carolina under 100 yards it will be the second time in history they've held an opponent under the century mark in the first four games. They also did it in 1964. ... Since 2000, the Patriots have a winning record against every NFL team except Carolina (3-3), Green Bay (3-3), San Francisco (3-3), Kansas City (6-6) and Seattle (2-4). ... Henry entered the week with 2,370 receiving yards, ranked fifth among New England tight ends all time. He is 118 yards shy of moving past Jim Whalen for fourth place on the Patriots list. ... RB Antonio Gibson rushed for 95 yards in his most recent game against Carolina (Nov. 21, 2021, while with Washington). ... WR Kayshon Boutte has 100 or more receiving yards in two of his past three games at home.
There's a good chance Henry could get into the end zone this week. He has a TD catch in two of his three games against Carolina.
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