Falcons vs. Panthers Inactives: OT Jake Matthews to Play for Atlanta?
The Atlanta Falcons (4-5) will hit the road to take on the Carolina Panthers (2-7) on Thursday Night Football, their lone primetime game of the season.
The two teams met just 11 days ago, with the Falcons pulling out a 37-34 overtime victory at Mercedes-Benz Stadium after a chaotic end of regulation and extra period.
Now, the NFC South rivals will see each other inside Bank of America Stadium, and while the short turnaround leaves few secrets between them, there's an added twist to volume two: the weather.
With the forecasting projecting rain throughout, the game is likely to turn into a run-heavy slugfest, a far cry from the 71-combined point shootout in Atlanta.
Another element to Thursday night's game is the plethora of injuries that have stacked up in the short week, particularly for the Falcons. Safety Erik Harris (foot) and all-pro cornerback A.J. Terrell (hamstring), both of whom were out last Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers, didn't practice, with the three-day break providing little time to heal.
The same is true for tight end Feleipe Franks, who sustained a calf injury in the Chargers game. Harris, Terrell and Franks were all ruled out Wednesday.
Atlanta will also be down to its third string left guard, as starter Elijah Wilkinson and replacement Matt Hennessy are both on injured reserve with knee injuries.
Regardless, the two teams will brave the conditions for an inner division battle, with all eyes around the league fixated on them.
Between injured players and healthy scratches, here are the Falcons inactives ...
- CB A.J. Terrell
- S Erik Harris
- TE Feleipe Franks
- DL Matt Dickerson
- OL Jonotthan Harrison
- LB Nate Landman
- TE Anthony Firkser
While Harris and Franks haven't been impact players on their side of the ball, both have played key roles on special teams, the former in punt protection and the latter in punt block. Defensively, with Harris out of action, the Falcons will be down to Jovante Moffatt as their third safety behind Richie Grant and Jaylinn Hawkins.
Harrison was elevated from the practice squad for the first time this season but will have to wait to make his team debut.
The Falcons received a boost Thursday afternoon when left tackle Jake Matthews was able to make the trip from Charlotte to Atlanta and back again after the birth of his first child. Should Matthews have missed the game, Atlanta would be playing backups at both spots on the left side of its offensive line.
Carolina had a few injury questions throughout the week, mainly centered around running back Chuba Hubbard and right tackle Taylor Moton, who were officially listed as questionable.
With final verdicts in, here are the Panthers inactives ...
- S Justin Burris
- WR Rashard Higgins
- QB Sam Darnold
- LB Arron Mosby
- OT Larnel Coleman
Hubbard was a full participant Tuesday and Wednesday, so him being active isn't necessarily a surprise. He'll partner with D'Onta Foreman to give Carolina a one-two punch in what's likely to be a run-centric game.
Burris started the first matchup against Atlanta and recorded three tackles before leaving due to a concussion. He missed the team's loss to the Cincinnati Bengals last Sunday, didn't practice throughout this week and was officially ruled out Wednesday.
The Falcons and Panthers will kick off at 8:15 p.m. on Amazon Prime.
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