by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Dec 08, 2021
Game time: 1 p.m. ET
Venue: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Where to watch: FOX
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Panthers -2.5
BetMGM: Panthers -2.5
Caesars: Panthers -2.5
Season record
Falcons: 5-7 (T-2nd, NFC South)
Panthers: 5-7 (T-2nd, NFC South)
Jim Feist hit both the side and total on Monday night with the Patriots and the UNDER. Start your week 14 of the NFL the same way Jim finished week 13, with a winner. It's Thursday Night Football as the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Vikings in Minnesota. Catch Jim’s plays available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers.
Falcons - Panthers preview and analysis
Last week
Falcons: lost 30-17 vs. Buccaneers
Panthers: Bye (lost 33-10 at Dolphins in Week 12)
Another matchup this week where you're forced to pick a winner. Give me the Atlanta Falcons on the road against the Carolina Panthers with the points.
There is nothing good coming from Carolina right now. Christian McCaffrey is officially done for the year; offensive coordinator Joe Brady is out of a job; and the Cam Newton experiment is no longer fun for the Panthers faithful.
The Falcons are coming off a 30-17 loss at home to the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite a solid day from Matt Ryan (297 yards). The former MVP needs 86 yards for his 12th straight 3,000-yard season.
"When you're playing against a really good football team ... you know you have to come away with touchdowns," he said. "That was disappointing for sure."
The best way to figure out if you're getting offense in this matchup is flipping a coin. The Falcons, who have lost three of four, have scored a combined 20 points in those three losses. In the win against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Nov. 28, Atlanta put up 21 and benefitted from facing said Jaguars.
The Falcons were 11-point dogs last week against Tampa before failing to cover, the third time in four games and fourth in six.
Carolina too has not covered in three of four, but it's a 2-7 stretch against the spread and outright that has pushed the Panthers to obscurity. Carolina, off a bye week, is also coming off a 23-point loss to the Miami Dolphins on the road that resulted in a horrendous offensive display.
Newton went 5 of 21 for 92 yards and two interceptions against the surging Dolphins, with DJ Moore reeling in 103 yards on four receptions.
"Nothing that they did was out of the ordinary," Newton said. "It wasn't like we weren't prepared. It just comes down to execution."
Sounds like much of the Panthers' season to this point.
Prediction
The road team is 5-1 against the spread in the past six meetings, but this is overall just a better of two evils. The Panthers were awful when trying to run the ball without McCaffrey, but now that he's out for the year, Chuba Hubbard gets the distinction of trying this again. At the end, it won't matter. Falcons by 14
Betting trends
The Falcons are 6-1 ATS in their last seven road games against a team with a losing record at home.
The Falcons are 5-1 ATS in their last six after allowing 350 total yards or more the previous week.
The over is 8-0 in the last eight following a Panthers bye week
The Panthers are 0-4 ATS in their last four as a favorite.
Players to watch
Falcons: Running back Cordarrelle Patterson reached 1,000 yards from scrimmage for the first time in his career last week. His 518 receiving yards and 489 rushing yards are career-highs.
Panthers: Wide receiver DJ Moore has at least 50 receiving yards in six of seven games all-time against the Falcons.
Statistical leaders
Falcons:
Passing: Matt Ryan – 2,914 yards, 16 TD, 11 INT
Rushing: Cordarrelle Patterson – 489 yards, 4 TD
Receiving: Kyle Pitts – 709 yards, 1 TD
Defense: Dante Fowler – 3.5 sacks
Panthers:
Passing: Cam Newton – 289 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Chuba Hubbard – 427 yards, 3 TD
Receiving: DJ Moore – 854 yards, 4 TD
Defense: Haason Reddick – 10.5 sacks
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
