Coming off a rough loss last week to the Baltimore Ravens, the Carolina Panthers will be turning to their third quarterback of the season in Sam Darnold against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
So for Darnold to provide a much-needed offensive spark and the Panthers to come away with their fourth win of the campaign, here are four matchups that’ll be key in making it all happen.
Panthers QB Sam Darnold vs. Broncos DC Ejiro Evero
In his first piece of action this season, Darnold will have to step up from what we saw in 2021—especially with one of the campaign’s best defensive coordinators staring him down.
Evero has been a huge bright spot in an otherwise abysmal season, as he has shown the potential to be amongst the top play callers on the defensive side of the ball. He will be key in targeting all the weak spots Darnold has shown.
For Darnold, the hope is that Carolina’s improved offensive line will do wonders for his play. He’ll likely have more time to focus and process his work—perhaps leading to fewer mistakes and more splash plays in what’ll probably be a low-scoring affair. He will need to avoid bad habits from last year to avoid being taken advantage of.
Panthers WR DJ Moore vs Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II
There are not many corners in the league having a better season than Patrick Surtain II. Heck, he’s even in the Defensive Player of the Year conversation.
Before a pretty rough Week 11, the young corner allowed just 156 yards and zero touchdowns over 41 targets. Moore will be key for Darnold to get going, so he’ll have to shake off the talented Surtain—much like Davante Adams did last Sunday.
Adams bested Surtain on a double move to secure a walk-off touchdown for the Las Vegas Raiders—a matchup where the 2021 ninth overall pick was charged with 106 yards and a pair of scores. Perhaps Moore can make some of Surtain’s inexperience show.
Panthers RB D'Onta Foreman vs. Broncos RB Latavius Murray
In a game that is all about the defensive side of the ball, it pays to be able to control the offensive side of it. So with both offenses struggling through the air, the ground games will be of great importance.
Both Foreman and Murray, who were far from atop their respective depth charts at the beginning of the season, have been given an opportunity to take over as the lead dogs.
Foreman has become the workhorse in Carolina, as he’s posted 413 rushing yards and four touchdowns in five games following the trade of Christian McCaffrey. And while Murray hasn’t had the same type of success, he’ll probably get an extensive crack starting this week following the release of Melvin Gordon.
The winner of this game may ultimately come down to who can run the ball better and control the clock. The Panthers have to feel pretty good about their chances to do just that and push for a win.
Panthers DE Brian Burns vs. Broncos QB Russell Wilson
The Broncos haven’t seen the dream season they envisioned when they traded a boatload of assets for Wilson. He’s near the bottom of the league in nearly all statistical categories for the quarterback position—with career-lows in completion percentage, touchdown percentage, passer rating and quarterback rating.
Wilson is also struggling under pressure, something Burns is certainly adept to taking advantage of. He’s now one sack off a single-season career-high and has posted 45 pressures thus far—the fifth-most amongst all defensive ends.
If he can keep up his production and bring some heat into the pocket of Denver’s signal caller, he may be able to force a mistake and allow the game to swing in favor of Carolina.
