The Panthers will have a new play-caller this year in offensive coordinator Thomas Brown, and the model projects their pass/run mix to tilt 4.9% more towards passing than it did last year (adjusted for context).
The Panthers are a massive 9.5-point underdog this week, likely creating an extreme passing game script.
The leading projections forecast the Carolina Panthers to be the 8th-most pass-heavy offense among all teams this week with a 59.9% pass rate, given their underlying strategic approach and matchup dynamics.
The predictive model expects the Panthers to be the 5th-fastest paced defense in the NFL (adjusted for context) right now, leading opposing offenses to average 27.46 seconds per play.
Opposing offenses have averaged 41.0 pass attempts per game vs. the Lions defense this year: 4th-most in football.
Cons
The Carolina Panthers O-line profiles as the worst in the NFL this year in pass protection, which has a negative effect on all pass attack metrics across the board.
With a feeble 4.95 adjusted yards-per-target (3rd percentile) this year, Bryce Young places as one of the worst per-play quarterbacks in the league.
This year, the formidable Lions defense has yielded a puny 67.8% Adjusted Completion Rate to opposing teams: the 9th-lowest rate in the league.
The Lions defense has been quite strong when opposing pass-catchers have gotten into space, yielding an average of 4.25 yards-after-the-catch this year: the 2nd-fewest in football.
The Detroit Lions safeties grade out as the 4th-best group of safeties in the NFL this year in defending receivers.