The Carolina Panthers will face off against the Atlanta Falcons at 1:00 ET on Sunday, January 5th. This matchup is being played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The Panthers and Falcons will face off at 1:00 ET on Sunday, January 5th at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Falcons are the heavy favorite with a money line of -433, and they are favored by -8 on the point spread. This week 18 matchup between the NFC South rivals is being televised on CBS, with the over/under line set at 48 points.

• Date: Sunday, January 5th
• Time: 1:00 ET
• Location: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
• TV: CBS

Panthers vs Falcons

Heading into week 18, the Panthers sit at the bottom of our power rankings and have a 4-12 record. Carolina is 1-6 on the road and 3-6 at home, and they are 4th in the NFC South with a 1-4 division record. Their playoff chances are officially at 0.0%.

Against the spread, the Panthers are 7-9, including a 7-8 record as underdogs. Their O/U record is 12-4, with the over hitting in three straight games. Their games have averaged 49.6 points, compared to an average line of 43.6.

Atlanta heads into week 18 with an 8-8 record, giving them a 13.9% chance of making the playoffs. They are 4-1 in the NFC South, but their conference record of 7-4 leaves them 2nd in the division and 9th in the NFC. The Falcons are 19th in our power rankings and have an average scoring margin of -1.8 points per game.

Against the spread, Atlanta is 6-9-1, with a 5-4-1 record as a favorite and a 1-5 record as an underdog. Their O/U record is 6-10, with their games averaging 45.6 points compared to an average line of 46.1.

Panthers Injury Report

• Taylor Moton – Knee (Questionable)
• Shaq Thompson – Achilles (Out)
• Lonnie Johnson – Shoulder/neck (Questionable)
• Miles Sanders – Ankle (Questionable)
• Austin Corbett – Bicep (Out)
• Josey Jewell – Concussion (Questionable)
• Ian Thomas – Calf (Out)
• Derrick Brown – Knee (Out)
• Stephen Sullivan – Knee (Out)
• Chuba Hubbard – Calf/knee (Out)
• Jaycee Horn – Hip (Questionable)
• Claudin Cherelus – Toe (Out)
• Trevin Wallace – Shoulder (Out)
• Jonathon Brooks – Knee (Out)
• A’Shawn Robinson – Neck (Questionable)
• Robert Hunt – Knee (Questionable)
• Amaré Barno – Shoulder (Questionable)
• Xavier Legette – Hip/wrist (Probable)
• Popo Aumavae – Undisclosed (Out)
• Chau Smith-Wade – Illness/chest (Out)

Falcons Injury Report

• Bralen Trice – Knee (Out)
• DeMarcco Hellams – Ankle (Out)
• Troy Andersen – Knee (Out)
• Rondale Moore – Knee (Out)
• Ta’Quon Graham – Pectoral (Out)
• Jase McClellan – Knee (Out)
• Harrison Hand – Knee (Out)
• Micah Abernathy – Knee (Out)
• James Smith-Williams – Tibia (Out)
• Younghoe Koo – Undisclosed (Out)
• Kevin King – Concussion (Questionable)
• Antonio Hamilton Sr. – Quad (Out)

Panthers Offense Breakdown

Heading into week 18, the Panthers rank 24th in our offensive power rankings, averaging 18.6 points per game, which is also 24th in the NFL. They are 31st in passing yards per game (182.4), despite ranking 17th in passing attempts. On the ground, Carolina is 20th in rushing yards per game (107.7) and 22nd in rushing attempts. They rank 27th in the NFL in 3rd-down conversion percentage (34.7%) but are 11th in red zone conversion percentage.

In week 17, the Panthers struggled in the 2nd half, failing to score after putting up 14 points in the first half. Bryce Young threw for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns, completing 15 of 28 passes. He was sacked 5 times. Adam Thielen led the team with 5 catches for 110 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Raheem Blackshear had 20 rushing yards on 8 carries.

Falcons Offense Breakdown

Heading into week 18, the Falcons are 15th in our offensive power rankings. They rank 16th in the NFL in points per game (21.9) and 10th in yards per game (359.4). Atlanta is 14th in passing attempts and 8th in passing yards, averaging 234.9 per game. On the ground, they rank 9th in rushing attempts and 12th in rushing yards, with 124.5 per game. The Falcons are 18th in 3rd-down conversions, with a 37.4% success rate, and they rank 12th in red zone conversion percentage.

In week 17, Michael Penix Jr. threw for 223 yards, completing 19 of 35 passes, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Bijan Robinson rushed for 90 yards on 17 carries, scoring twice, while Drake London had 7 receptions for 106 yards. Atlanta scored 7 points in the 1st quarter, 10 in the 2nd, and 7 in the 4th, but were shut out in the 3rd. They converted 3 of 3 red zone opportunities but struggled on 3rd down, going 2 for 10.

Panthers Team Defense

In their most recent game, the Panthers’ defense gave up 551 yards and allowed the Buccaneers to complete 84.4% of their passes for 349 yards. Carolina’s defense struggled to get off the field, as Tampa Bay converted on 71.4% of their third down attempts. The Panthers gave up five passing touchdowns and allowed big plays in the passing game, with the Buccaneers averaging 10.9 yards per attempt.

On the ground, the Panthers gave up 202 rushing yards on 40 attempts, with a tackles for loss differential of -3. Despite recording two sacks, Carolina’s defense was unable to slow down the Buccaneers’ high-powered offense, resulting in a 48-14 loss.

Falcons Team Defense

Despite forcing five sacks and coming up with one interception, the Falcons’ defense struggled to stop the run in their 30-24 overtime loss to the Commanders. Washington rushed for 216 yards on just 36 attempts, averaging 6.0 yards per carry. Atlanta’s run defense will need to improve going forward to avoid similar outcomes.

Against the pass, they allowed 196 yards and three touchdowns while offensively, the Falcons had 412 total yards. They also allowed the Commanders to convert on 46.2% of their third down attempts.

Panthers vs Falcons Trends

• In their last ten games away from home, the Panthers have a straight up record of 1-9 while going 3-7 vs the spread. The team’s offense averaged 13 points per game in these contests.
• Across the Falcons last ten home games, the team averaged 20 points per game while allowing 29. Their record vs the spread in these contests was 3-6-1, while going 4-6 straight-up.
• Going back to their previous three games as the underdog, Carolina has an ATS mark of 2-1 while going 1-2 straight up.
• The last ten games that Atlanta was favored, they have an ATS mark of 5-4-1 while going 7-3 straight up.

Panthers vs Falcons Prediction

Our prediction for this week 18 matchup between the Falcons and Panthers is to take the Panthers to cover as the road underdogs. Even though the point spread has the Panthers at +8, we have the Falcons winning 23-19. This makes the Panthers our pick vs. the spread.

For the over/under, with the line sitting at 48 points, we have a projected combined score of 42 points, making the under a good bet for this one.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.