It was announced this morning from various sources that both RB Jonathan Stewart, and WR Steve Smith will play today against the New Orleans Saints after recovering from injuries sustained over the past few weeks. Stewart had been struggling with a sprained ankle from the New York Jets game, while Smith was banged up last week.

The Saints' defense is bad, the Panthers' defense is bad. The Saints' offense is great, the Panthers' offense is great.

Better get the popcorn ready because this game is poised for a shootout. It was of vital importance that Carolina got back their full complement of weapons in order to hang with a offense of New Orleans' caliber. Now the game will truly be an offensive tour de force, provided the offensive line game hold their assignments.

On the other side of the ball the Panthers could be significantly weaker, with both DE Greg Hardy, and DT Frank Kearse listed as 'questionable' after missing much of the week due to illness. Hardy practiced on Friday, but we still haven't heard anything regarding his status.