Can the Panthers end their losing streak vs. the Vikings? NFL experts predict the winner
That 3-0 start for the Carolina Panthers seems like a long time ago now.
Can the Panthers end their two-game losing streak at home against the Vikings? We took a tour around the league to find out what the experts think.
▪ CBS Sports’ Pete Prisco thinks the Panthers lose a second straight game at home and a third overall. He likes Vikings, 25-21.
▪ ESPN’s Courtney Cronin and David Newton are split on the game.
Newton picks the home team 27-24, despite noting that Carolina has allowed eight sacks and 19 QB hurries in the past two weeks -- and that the Vikings rank second in the league with 17 sacks.
“The Panthers likely will have back the left side of their line (tackle Cameron Erving and guard Pat Elflein),” he writes, “but even with them, teams were getting pressure on Sam Darnold.”
Cronin thinks that aforementioned Purple Pass Rush will be too much. She likes the Vikings 24-21.
“Darnold will notch his seventh career game with three interceptions, which will be the most by any quarterback since he entered the NFL in 2018,” she writes. “The Vikings’ pass rush ranks second with 3.4 sacks per game, and we saw how Darnold reverted back to his Jets form (i.e., holding onto the ball too long, making poor decisions) in Week 5 when he took blow after blow while facing pressure on 43 percent of his dropbacks.”
▪ Over at NFL.com, Gregg Rosenthal also sees the pass rush being a difference for the Vikings in a 27-23 win.
“The Panthers’ offensive line looks a little worse each week,” Rosenthal writes, “and the excellent Vikings pass-rush tandem of Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen should create some of the fumbles, sacks and interceptions marring Sam Darnold’s year.”
▪ Four of the six Bleacher Report experts pick the Panthers. Six of the 11 ESPN panelists also like Carolina. And, finally, Ryan Gosling of Pro Football Network thinks the Panthers win by a point, mainly because its defense will be too strong for the Vikings’ offense.
