CHARLOTTE (BLACK & BLUE KICKOFF LIVE) — The Panthers are coming off of its bye week and welcome the defending Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs to Bank of America Stadium.
Going into this matchup, if I said one team was coming off of two straight wins and another lost the week prior, you’d probably guess it was the Panthers who lost. But guess again. The Panthers haven’t lost in nearly a month since facing the Denver Broncos on Oct. 27, and the Chiefs lost its first of the season in Week 11 to the Buffalo Bills.
Miles Sanders was put on injured reserve on Saturday, but not to worry as rookie Jonathon Brooks will make his NFL debut. The NFL’s fourth-leading rusher, Chuba Hubbard, still commands the backfield but it is unclear how the snap share will be divided moving forward. It’ll be hard to see less of Hubbard who just earned a contract extension. Through 10 games, he has 818 rushing yards and 4 rushing touchdowns.
The Chiefs on the other hand have one of the best rushing defenses in the NFL. They have given up the third least amount of yards on the ground (853) and are tied for the second-lowest yards per carry (3.6). It’ll be a matchup of an unstoppable force vs. an immovable object (to a degree).
It’s no secret that the Panthers’ defense is in for a real test against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense. The Chiefs have averaged only 22 points in its last three games, but this week could be somewhat of a ‘get-right’ game against the NFL’s worst defense that averages opponents to score 31 points per game. However, in their back-to-back wins, they have played some of their best defense of the season giving up 22 points to the Saints and then a season-low 17 points against the Giants in Germany.
Carolina is 2-5 all-time against Kansas City. The Chiefs won the last meeting 33-31 in Arrowhead Stadium in 2020.
Sunday’s game between the Carolina Panthers and the Kansas City Chiefs starts at 1 p.m. at Bank of America Stadium.
