Five things to watch as Atlanta Falcons host Carolina Panthers in Week 8 matchup
FLOWERING OF BRANCH, Ga. — Both the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons are getting into this Week eight divisional matchup on Sunday with some thing to show.
For the Atlanta Falcons, they`re out to show they are higher than what they confirmed every week in the past in opposition to the Cincinnati Bengals. For Carolina, they are trying to do the contrary: They’re looking to show they may be the crew that beat Tampa Bay 21-three on Sunday.
A week in the past, possibly the narrative round this sport isn’t what it’s far now. Before Atlanta misplaced to Cincinnati and earlier than Carolina beat the Bucs, possibly each groups input into this sport feeling pretty distinctive. However, it is due to what is transpired withinside the ultimate week that this sport among department combatants is a massive deal withinside the grand scheme of the NFC South department.
With all of that being stated, let’s dive into this week’s installment of your “Five matters to watch” because the Falcons host the Panthers on Sunday.
- Cornerback of carousel
Casey Hayward is on injured reserved, and A.J. Terrell has been dominated out of Sunday’s sport with a hamstring damage. The Falcons have been with out their beginning cornerback duo in opposition to the Bengals and Joe Burrow ultimate week.
And with Ja’Marr Chase, Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins gambling contrary them every week in the past, the Falcons secondary became simply outmatched through the Bengals’ explosive offense.
Playing in vicinity of Hayward and Terrell ultimate week became Darren Hall and Cornell Armstrong, who became multiplied from the exercise squad previous to the Falcons loss in Cincinnati. If Armstrong is once more multiplied this Saturday, the probabilities of him beginning contrary Hall are robust with Dee Alford being given the sport designation of questionable. He, too, has a hamstring damage that has lingered, however he is been restricted at some point of the exercise week this week.
Granted the Panthers aren’t the Bengals, and P.J. Walker isn’t Joe Burrow, the Falcons secondary is searching out redemption no matter opponent. And that consists of the safeties, too…
- Safety transfer up
Like the cornerback position, new starters will take over at safety, too, with Jaylinn Hawkins in concussion protocol. Arthur Smith dominated Hawkins out early withinside the week, and it is very probably Dean Marlowe will play along Richie Grant at the location with Isaiah Oliver performing because the protection’s number one nickel.
In that case, Erik Harris and Mike Ford will be the Falcons function gamers and intensity portions of the secondary.
Week eight is every other week wherein this Falcons shielding intensity could be tested. How distinctive that appears after every week of prep understanding it could be? That’s the query for the secondary as an entire with out Hayward, Terrell and Hawkins.
three. Putting stress on P.J. Walker, preventing the run
The Carolina run sport has taken pretty the hit in latest weeks. The Panthers have traded Christian McCaffrey to San Francisco. Meanwhile, Chuba Hubbard has formally been dominated out of Sunday’s sport in Atlanta.
This leaves D’Onta Foreman because the Panthers’ number one going for walks lower back.
The Panthers ran is the ball properly in opposition to the Bucs ultimate week with a 173-dashing backyard day. That’s a season excessive for Carolina. It became an afternoon that noticed Foreman surpass the one hundred-yards dashing mark with Hubbard leaving the sport with the ankle damage so one can sideline him on Sunday. He had 118 yards on sixteen carries, averaging a whopping 7.three yards a carries.
Earlier withinside the week, Panthers period in-between head train Steve Wilks stated this kind of dashing overall performance is some thing he hopes this crew can construct on.
“That’s the attitude I desired to create upfront, simply blue-collar, hardworking, pushing the pile; I concept we did that,” Wilks stated thru a document from Panthers reporter Augusta Stone this week. “What we did in that (Tampa Bay) sport goes to assist us win video games down the road.”
Snuffing out a brand new flame of dashing capacity with the Panthers could be pretty critical for the Falcons on Sunday.
However, of even greater significance, could be an apparent and planned transformation in passing situations. It’s now no longer sufficient to in reality prevent the run, we have got visible what offenses can do to this protection thru the pass, and one ought to argue it is been a subject matter in all the Falcons losses this season.
Walker is coming off a stable overall performance, too, having linked on sixteen of his 22 passes on Sunday for 177 yards and touchdowns. The Falcons should discover methods to position stress on him, and a going for walks lower back center this is lacking Hubbard.
four. Falcons in want of long, efficient drives
Atlanta’s offense left some thing to be favored in opposition to the Bengals every week in the past. Though they did rush for over one hundred yards ultimate Sunday, it wasn’t sufficient in opposition to a fire-electricity Cincinnati offense that scored greater regularly than now no longer while it had the ball.
The Falcons are at their first-class while they are stringing long, six- or seven- or maybe eight-minute drives together. If they lead to touchdowns? Even higher. It’s of the upmost significance that the Falcons get lower back to this method of sustained offensive manufacturing after a 2d 1/2 of in Cincinnati that noticed Atlanta handiest acquire 18 general plays.
The Falcons should be greater efficient offensively in some thing manner that manufacturing comes.
- The NFC South standings
Let’s get one issue directly here: It’s handiest Week eight. No one is handing out trophies to the crew who sits atop their department in Week eight.
Right now, though, that crew is Atlanta.
What’s thrilling is that the Falcons are the handiest crew in stated department with out a divisional win. And yet, they discover themselves on the pinnacle.
They’ve misplaced to the Saints and Bucs, yes, however they are nonetheless three-four at the year, a file highlighted with wins over the Seahawks and 49ers.
The Falcons have a risk to earn their first divisional win of 2022 on Sunday, final on the pinnacle of the department for every other week longer. The Panthers, on the alternative hand, are searching out their 2d directly divisional win. It have to make for a aggressive Sunday among the .
“You’ve were given to create extremely of a lead in our department, you need to create separation,” Marcus Mariota stated on Wednesday. “This is in which it
