The Carolina Panthers will play their final home game of the 2019 season on Dec. 29 at the Bank of America Stadium when the New Orleans Saints come to town. Carolina will be looking to break a seven-game losing streak while New Orleans will be playing for positioning in the playoffs. Carolina leads the all-time series by one game, 25-24, but New Orleans has won the last five of six games against the Panthers and is heavily favored to win this matchup.
New Orleans Saints Notables
The Saints come into this week after a victory against the Tennessee Titans, 38-28, in Week 16. Drew Brees, who missed several weeks with a thumb injury at the beginning of the season, has completed 262 of 248 passes for 2,715 yards and 24 touchdowns, one of which gave Brees the lead for all-time touchdown passes in the league. Alvin Kamara has recorded 163 carries for 758 yards and three touchdowns while Michael Thomas leads with 145 receptions for 1,688 yards and nine touchdowns. Cameron Jordan has posted 14.5 sacks on the season, Marcus Williams leads with four interceptions, and Will Lutz has kicked 42 of 43 extra points and successfully put 32 of 36 field goal attempts through the posts.
Miscellaneous Notes and What to Look for
Despite Brees’s time off early in the season, he is the NFL’s leader in passing yards and touchdowns and leads the league this season in completion percentage with the likelihood of breaking his own record set in 2018. In the last six games, Brees has recorded 19 touchdowns and just one interception for an average of a 125.9 rating over the six weeks.
Kamara has recorded four rushing touchdowns in as many games against Carolina and in going for his fourth game in a row versus the Panthers with 100 or more scrimmage yards. Kamara broke a scoring slump last week and is likely to keep that momentum.
Thomas has posted 145 receptions, surpassing Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison for the most receptions in a single season and also leads the NFL with 1,688 receiving yards, needing 112 more yards to become the fifth player in history with 1800 or more receiving yards in a single season. Thomas has recorded 5,475 receiving yards since entering the NFL in 2016 and has surpassed Randy Moss for the most by receiving yards by a player in his first four seasons.
New Orleans #Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan needs 0.5 sacks today to earn a $500K bonus in 2019 and a $750K bonus in 2020. He needs 2.5 sacks to reach 17 on the season and earn another $500K on top of his previous earnings.
— Andersen Pickard (@AndersenPickard) December 29, 2019
The Saints can’t fall any lower than the No. 3 seed in the NFC, but there are several scenarios that could take place in the final week of the regular season moving the Saints into a higher seed with the potential for a first-round bye and significant home-field advantage.
Carolina Panthers Notables
The Panthers started the season with losses in their first games on the road and at home, then won five out of six games, losing every game since their last win on Nov. 3.
Christian McCaffrey has posted 278 carries for 1,361 yards and 14 touchdowns while DJ Moore leads the team with 87 carries for 1,175 yards and four touchdowns. Moore will miss his first NFL game on Sunday as he is in concussion protocol. Mario Addison has kept the team lead for sacks, recording nine-and-a-half on the season, and there are several players tied with three interceptions each. Rookie Joey Slye has kicked 30 of 34 extra points and 24 of 31 field goal attempts.
Miscellaneous Notes and What to Look for
Carolina played its third quarterback of the season last week when rookie Will Grier started the game for the first time all season. He recorded 27 of 44 pass completions for 224 yards, zero touchdowns, and three interceptions. Kyle Allen, who became the starting quarterback after Cam Newton was injured early in the season, was benched after the Panthers’ seventh consecutive loss. On Sunday, Grier will make his second career start.
McCaffrey has practically carried the Panthers’ offense all season in rushing and receiving and, despite losses week after week, McCaffrey continued to shine and break records. Last week, he joined Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk and Chris Johnson as the only players with nine or more games of 150 or more scrimmage yards in a single season. He has the most receptions by any in running back in a single season, is the first running back in NFL history with two seasons of 100 or more receptions, and needs to post 67 receiving yards to join Faulk and Roger Craig as the only players with 1,000 or more receiving and 1,000 or more rushing yards.
Luke Kuechly is aiming for his sixth game in a row at home versus New Orleans with eight or more tackles, Bruce Irving will be going for his third game in a row with at least one sack, and Gerald McCoy and Brian Burns are also aiming to continue recording sacks to stop the New Orleans offense.
Carolina #Panthers defensive tackle Gerald McCoy needs 1.5 sacks today to receive a $500K bonus.
— Andersen Pickard (@AndersenPickard) December 29, 2019
The Panthers are hoping to be the “spoiler” for the Saints, break their losing streak and winning their final home game of the season while the Saints attempt to secure a higher seed.
Game Information:
Date: Dec. 29, 2019
Time: 1:00 p.m. EST
Venue: Bank of America Stadium
Location: Charlotte, N.C.
TV: FOX
