Can anyone stop the Carolina Panthers? It’s a question asked every week and as the months go by it’s becoming more and more doubtful.
The Giants take their shot at the NFL’s last unbeaten with hopes of staying alive in the NFC East title race.
NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
New York Giants +6
Carolina Panthers -6
Over/Under 47
ODDS ANALYSIS
The over is trending in this one. The Giants have gone over in four of their last five home games, while the Panthers have gone above the final total in four of their last five road games. The total spiked a point to 47. Carolina is at the top of the league in covering with a 10-3 ATS record and is 5-1 ATS in its last six. The line was wagered to Carolina -5.
KEY INJURIES
Jonathan Stewart – The NFL’s third-leading rusher will sit out Sunday’s game with a sprained left foot suffered in last week’s win over Atlanta. Fozzy Whitaker will likely take a majority of snaps in his place.
Bene Benwikere – Was lost with a fractured leg last weekend. He had been starting at cornerback in place of Charles Tillman, who has missed the last four games with a sprained knee. Tillman returned to practice this week and remains a question mark. Robert McClain or Cortland Finnegan will start if Tillman isn’t able.
Dwayne Harris – Injured his shoulder in practice and sat out team drills Thursday. New York’s return specialist and backup receiver is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game. Shane Vereen, Odell Beckham Jr. and Rueben Randle are all return options is Harris can’t go.
KEY MISMATCH
The Panthers have rushed for at least 100 yards in 24 consecutive games and that streak is likely to continue even without Stewart leading the charge. Fozzy Whitaker or fullback Mike Tolbert will start and rookie Cameron Artis-Payne will be active for the first time since Week 7. Along with Cam Newton chipping in, Carolina will hammer away at the Giants’ mediocre run defense to set up vertical shots against their last-ranked pass defense. If the running game stalls, no problem. Newton can take over with his arm. Over his past seven games he’s thrown 19 touchdown passes with just three picks. He’s tossed 20 touchdowns with no picks in the red zone and has been nearly flawless in the fourth quarter, owning a league-best 115.0 passer rating in the final 15 minutes.
KEY STAT
31.6 – Carolina’s NFL-best points per game average. The Panthers explosive offense goes up against New York’s 20th-ranked scoring defense.
BETTING ANGLE
On paper, the Giants appear to be overmatched against the undefeated Panthers, but the rival coaches don’t see it that way. Fresh off a thrilling win that snapped a three-game slide and revived their playoff hopes, the Giants are now looking to upset the NFL’s last unbeaten team. The Giants are tied with Washington and Philadelphia for first in the sub-par NFC East and desperately need wins, but Carolina coach Ron Rivera knows they are a dangerous opponent. The Panthers may be the most underrated 13-0 team the NFL has ever seen, slow to win accolades despite being the first this season to clinch an opening-round bye in the playoffs. Still, Rivera said there would be no let-up from his team, still in pursuit of home field advantage through the playoffs.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
It’s hard to picture the Giants pulling off the upset against the best team in the NFL. But the G-Men have done it before, several times in fact. Three times the Giants ended a team’s 13-0 start and, of course, they knocked off the unbeaten Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl. The Giants can’t run the football and they’ve had a terrible time stopping people – a terrible combination against the powerful Panthers. Eli Manning has Beckham to throw to ball to, but against a fierce pass rush and with cornerback Josh Norman in lockdown mode, don’t expect many big plays, if any, from that combination. Newton and the Panthers are focused and they end New York’s hopes of winning the NFC East title with a cover win.
Carolina 31, New York 20
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