Fresh off first loss, the Panthers open as favorites over the Philadelphia Eagles
The Las Vegas sportsbooks say bettors expect a Carolina bounce-back win in Week 5.
The Panthers (3-1), fresh off their first loss in 2021, opened as four-point favorites against the Philadelphia Eagles (1-3), who will travel to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte for a 1 p.m. Sunday kickoff.
As of 7 p.m. Sunday:
- Vegas Insider’s Consensus Line reads that the Panthers are four-point underdogs. The over/under for the game is 46.5.
- Action Network has the Panthers as three-point favorites with a 47.5 over/under.
- FanDuel has the Eagles as 3.5-point underdogs.
- And Fox Sports has the Panthers as four-point favorites.
Despite their losses, the Panthers and the Eagles can be encouraged by their performances in Week 4.
Yes, Carolina — a team that boasted 14 season sacks going into its road contest against the Cowboys — ran into a buzz saw of sorts in the Dallas offensive line.
And yes, the Panthers struggled to protect quarterback Sam Darnold, who was sacked four times and was pressured into making mistakes that had defined his tenure as a New York Jet. Two of those mistakes were interceptions. (The Panthers lost the turnover battle 2-0 on Sunday.)
But there were positives. Among them: Darnold and his Christian McCaffrey-less offense quietly orchestrated a comeback against the Cowboys using a balanced attack, scoring 14 unanswered points to pull within eight with four minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles proved something in their 42-30 loss to the Chiefs, too. After all, they kept Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes largely at bay. And quarterback Jalen Hurts had another big day — completing 32 of 48 passes for 387 yards and two touchdowns.
Carolina Panthers news you may have missed Sunday
+ Fowler: Don’t give up hope with the Panthers. Loss to the Cowboys shows how good they can be
+ Analysis: Panthers loss to Cowboys exposed all the problems we feared Carolina had
+ Dallas 36, Carolina 28: Instant analysis as Panthers allow 23 straight in second half
+ Grading the Carolina Panthers in their Week 4 loss to the Dallas Cowboys
+ What Panthers coach Matt Rhule said about game-changing blown fumble call vs. Cowboys
+ Sam Darnold just achieved something no QB in NFL history had ever done
This story was originally published October 4, 2021 at 4:59 AM with the headline "Fresh off first loss, the Panthers open as favorites over the Philadelphia Eagles."
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