Inside the Numbers: Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions

The Carolina Panthers (3-7) are looking to end their current five-game losing skid this Sunday vs the Detroit Lions (4-5) at home. Although they have a lot of work to do, Detroit could still magically find their way into the postseason. The Panthers on the other hand, will be without the services of RB Christian McCaffrey and potentially starting QB Teddy Bridgewater. Who has the advantage in this week 11 matchup? Let's get to it!

When the Panthers have the ball

Panthers Offense	Stats	Lions Defense
351 (21st)	Total YPG/Yards Allowed	400 (27th)
105.4 (22nd)	Rushing YPG/Allowed	141.6 (30th)
4.36 (14th)	Rushing Yards Per Att/Allowed	4.67 (24th)
245.6 (17th)	Passing YPG/Allowed	258.4 (24th)
21 (18th)	Sacks Allowed/Sacks	13 (T-25th)
41.4 (20th)	3rd Down Efficiency	47.8 (26th)
23.3 (21st)	Points Per Game/Allowed	29.7 (29th)

To be completely honest, I'm not sure that it will matter if Bridgewater can't play in this game because the Lions defense is just that bad. They can't stop the run, they can't stop the pass, they can't stop anything. If the Panthers were at full strength, this matchup would heavily favor Carolina. Since they're not at full strength, it makes things a little more interesting. RB Mike Davis is going to have to play like the Mike Davis that we saw earlier in the season that can get you up to and possibly over 100 all-purpose yards. Robby Anderson, DJ Moore, and Curtis Samuel are going to present a difficult matchup for this young secondary for Detroit. Couple that with the fact that the Lions don't get much pressure on the quarterback, this makes you think Carolina can put up almost 30 points regardless of who is taking the snaps under center.

Advantage: Panthers offense

When the Lions have the ball

Lions Offense	Stats	Panthers Defense
360.4 (17th)	Total YPG/Yards Allowed	380 (22nd)
101.6 (25th)	Rushing YPG/Allowed	124.5 (20th)
4.15 (20th)	Rushing Yards Per Att/Allowed	4.77 (28th)
258.9 (12th)	Passing YPG/Allowed	255.5 (22nd)
22 (19th)	Sacks Allowed/Sacks	11 (T-27th)
41.1 (21st)	3rd Down Efficiency	55.3 (32nd)
25.2 (16th)	Points Per Game/Allowed	27.2 (21st)

Just as I said with the Lions, the Panthers can't seem to stop anything and have especially hurt themselves on third down situations where they rank dead last in the NFL. Statistically, Detroit has not ran the football with much success, but both Adrian Peterson and rookie D'Andre Swift are guys that can cause problems for Carolina. Typically when you get a bad run offense vs a bad run defense, it favors the bad run offense. Just look at last week for example. The Buccaneers rank near the bottom of the league in rushing yards per game, yet totaled over 200 yards on the ground, including a 98-yard touchdown run.

Starting cornerback Donte Jackson (toe) is not expected to play this week, which puts a lot of pressure on Corn Elder and Troy Pride Jr. to step up in his absence. Rasul Douglas will have to play big on the opposite side, but Detroit has a ton of weapons and I don't know how the Panthers are going to go about having an answer to stop them or slow them down. This could be a really big day for Matthew Stafford if he gets into a rhythm early and doesn't appear to be bothered by his injured throwing hand.

Advantage: Detroit offense

Score Prediction: Lions 30, Panthers 27

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