Seattle Seahawks - Oct. 18th
After an intro of four very winnable games, beginning with the Jags on Sept. 13th and ending with the Bucs on Oct. 4th Carolina goes into one of its earliest byes in team history. Following the short break they return Oct 18th to face the Seattle Seahawks for the third straight season. This time the game will be played at Century Link Field in front of the much heralded (and maligned) 12th man. Historically Carolina is 0 - 4 against Seattle in their last four consecutive meetings. They are a dismal 2 - 7 all time. ON the face of it there's very little chance the Panthers walk away from this one with a W, but can they? Surprisingly yes and it wouldn't be that big a shocker. Barring the second half breakdown that led to a travesty of a playoff game this past January the Seahawks have beaten Carolina by a score of 16 - 12, 12 - 7 and 13 - 9 in their three previous meetings. These are all the games under the Newton/Wilson era. Each one decided by less than a touchdown. Each one lost on the tail of a blown play or bad call. While there will always be the chance of a DeAngelo Williams style fumble with 2 minutes to go or a Brenton Bersin slip that leads to a pick six, these two teams are very similar ball clubs that compete at a high and comparable level. Last season the addition of Kelvin Benjamin was enough to overcome one of the nastiest secondary double teams in the league. This year with the addition of Devin Funchess and hopefully a more competent O line to free up Greg Olsen, the Legion of Boom will have a lot more to contend with than they're used to from the Cardiac Cats.
Difference Maker: The Secondary
These two teams are very closely matched, a timely turnover could swing things back in Carolina's favor for once.
Philadelphia Eagles - Oct. 25th
The Philadelphia Eagles handed down a massive dose of humility last season with a very convincing 45 - 21 win against a then 3 - 5- 1 team. In the throws of a terrible start to a lackluster season Carolina dropped the ball and Vinny Curry picked it up in a Prime time showdown. The Panthers secondary looked like they forgot to show up against Mark Sanchez and the 2014 Philadelphia squad. Chip Kelly's no huddle on steroids gave the defense fits trying to maintain that kind of pace. This year a whole new set of challenges faces the the team on it's 1st prime time bout of the season, starting off at Bank of America Stadium. While Mad scientist Chip will assuredly be working up a host of gimmicks and bizarre formations to keep defenses off his scent and offenses struggling it's the QB situation which poses the biggest challenge. Namely teams have no idea who will actually be under center come game time. Will it be Ballin' Brad, Dirty Mark Sanchez or Tebow time? Could be a committee of all three given Sam's inability to record a 16 game season, Mark's tendency to play for both teams and the extra point rule change which makes Friar Tim a legitimate weapon again. The good news, by week 5 Carolina should have enough tape to formulate a decent plan, the bad news, Philly also picked up DeMarco Murray beside Darren Sproles and former Panther Kenjon Barner. So while it's a different team than the one that embarrassed Panthers nation on national television, it looks to be an improved squad that will either bust in spectacular fashion or blow up the competition.
Difference Maker: Run Blocking
With questions marks all over the field for the QB, keeping last years top performing RB contained is a top priority.
Indianapolis Colts - Nov. 2nd
It goes without saying that Carolina receives very little love in the media. This could and likely is partially due to a tendency to experience polar opposite shifts from season to another. Going from a Super Bowl contender to vying for top draft pick in 12 short months doesn't inspire much confidence. Neither does the unfortunate fact that the Panthers rarely deliver on the big stage. When the lights come on and the whole world is watching, Carolina suddenly looks like a clinic on how to be mediocre. Including last year's blowout to the Eagles, the Panthers are now 7 - 5 on Monday Night, those winds came mostly outside of the Rivera era, the losses, not so much. Looking back to last season and the 45 - 21 thumping this squad received is there any hope of pulling one off for the ages in the big time? Homerism says yes, realism says, maybe. What's easy to forget is Carolina is up against the Colts this time, a team defined by a young talented, a restructured offense and a little benefit from a weak division. Even more, if we look back to the 2013 season, A very similar Panthers team took down the Brady helmed Patriots in route to a division winning season. The Colts are boasting some big names T.Y. Hilton, Frank Gore, Andre Johnson and even young upstart Duron Carter. Add on top that last the Colts had one of the best Offensive Rankings in the league according to Pro Football Focus and things get dicey. Where things start looking up is the unanswered question, which team will take the field on Monday night? The floundering patchwork unit Ron and Dave cobbled together last offseason with a couple nickle and dime contracts or the elite number 2 defense from the 2013 season, many of which includes players still on the roster. The loss of Greg Hardy had a lasting impact on this lineup, which was noted by Rivera mid-season. Once the season got going, the group seemed to find their groove and perhaps an heir apparent in young standout Kony Ealy. With Charles Johnson, Thomas Davis an even more experienced Luke Kuechly and the addition of first rounder Shaq Thompson this season's Defense has all the potential in the world, waiting for the chance to be tested. If this team is going to bring one home on Monday night, it's going to take a lights out performance by the defense while Cam and Luck slug it out on the offensive side. Plus there's one more thing, this is a home game.
Difference Maker: D-Line
If Carolina can get some pressure they can disrupt Luck's passing attack, taking away the Colt's biggest weapon. No easy task but also not impossible. The Patriots pulled it off in January to the tune of a 45 - 7 Victory. Cue the game tape.
Green Bay Packers - Nov. 8th
It didn't take long for it to go from bad to worse in Green Bay last October. Like so many times before Carolina started out looking strong only for the wheels fall completely off before half time. The Panthers defense had Aaron Rodgers backed up to his own 28 yard line on 3rd and 12. The defense made its stand against one of the best offenses in the league and looked to come out with an early victory, then it started. Wes Horton gets called on a neutral zone infraction, 5 yards. With an obvious passing play on deck Roman Harper steps up and makes a timely interception which looks to set Carolina up for an early lead except...Luke gets called on a rare off side call and just for added security Thomas DeCoud commits a hold that gets declined. Now Green Bay is out of the hole what do they do next? What championship teams do, they find a weakness and exploit it. Two plays later Aaron Rodgers finds Jordy Nelson matched up against soon to be ex-panther Antoine Cason who promptly slips and allows Nelson room, who then proceeds to sidestep an off balance Roman Harper and scamper into the end zone. The ugly truth is Carolina looked like they had no idea what was going on for most of that game and after the 21 points scored in the first quarter, it was becoming obvious this was a team that was unprepared to face this kind of challenge.
"It's a well-developed offense. They have great communication," Rivera said. "That's what Aaron Rodgers has developed with his players."
So what is there to be done when Green Bay makes its visit to Bank of America stadium after a long stretch of trying games against the NFL's elite? Simply put, communication. In their last match-up Rodgers and Co. took full advantage of Carolina's disorientation, utilizing the no huddle and shotgun offenses to keep the defense off balance and force costly mistakes. This time around the Panthers have their hands full against a squad that hasn't changed much from its previous incarnation. It's going to be a tough row against a tough opponent where every mistake will be magnified. The good news is this won't be a prime time affair which will hopefully play into Carolina's tendency to perform well at home as long the lights aren't on. Seeing how every phase of the game was dominated by a focused, well lead team last time, there is no one thing that is going to provide the leg up Carolina needs this go around, hopefully the team can learn to play together and Ron will preach discipline in the weeks leading up to this one.
Difference Maker: Discipline
Rodgers is a field commander capable of capitalizing even without mistakes. This team will need to be focused to have a chance.
Dallas Cowboys - Nov. 26th (Thanksgiving)
It's not like the Panthers to admit they have a particular game circled on their calendar but if there is one date with a big red circle in the Carolina locker room you can bet it's Thanksgiving. Not just because most of the D-Line could throw back enough turkey and mashed potatoes to feed a small village, but because it represents a number of firsts. The Panthers took the least direct route into the playoffs last year avoiding an away game at Dallas. This year the team that fielded one of the best running attacks in the league gets its first chance to match up against one of the league's scariest defenses.
More importantly, this will be the Panther's first appearance on Thanksgiving day, the entire country and various military bases around the world will be tuned in to watch 'America's Team' on America's designated football day. As if that wasn't enough, this will also be the Panthers first time lining up against their former teammate and all around scary dude Greg Hardy. The league recently decreased Hardy's suspension to four games, meaning this won't be his first game back, which may take a little of the fire out of his gut but it will also allow extra time to adjust to the defense. The Panthers haven't had the best track record with revenge games. See Steve Smith with the Ravens for an example. While I don't think Greg harbors near as much animosity over his dismissal, this game will be filled with emotions for everyone involved.
Looking past the off-field issues, Dallas has traded in its prize work horse RB for Darren McFadden. It remains to be seen whether the production experienced was a product of the right system with the right players or a rare talent. Either way stopping the run is going to be high on Ron's list for this game. Romo has been criticized extensively for his ability to choke like that time Grandma accidentally swallowed a bone. If Carolina can produce enough pressure it is very likely he drops the ball, or throws it to the wrong team more than once. As of now Dez Bryant may not even be suiting up in the big D next season but if he does (and he probably will) that leaves at least one elite weapon that needs to be accounted for by an untested secondary. IN short it's not going to be easy sledding but of all the games making Panthers fans nervous this is probably the one most likely to become a pleasant surprise with the right game plan.
Difference Maker: Pack on the LBs
I'm putting this one of the Linebackers. There's a lot of moving parts bringing down a division champion but if Luke and Co. get in Romo's face there should be at least one interception for the taking, tack on a solid gap performance and D-Mac stays in the backfield, leaving a disoriented Romo to make the best of it on his own.