The Washington Redskins need a victory to stay on the fringe of the playoff picture in the NFC, but the fireworks in this Week 15 matchup are likely to come from Josh Norman as he faces the team he helped lead to the Super Bowl last season. The Carolina Panthers dumped Norman during the offseason, likely to avoid an expected holdout by the star cornerback. And why the Panthers disappointing season isn’t directly related to Norman’s release, he’ll tell us otherwise.
This contest in Week 15 of the regular season will go down Monday, December 19, 2016, at 8:30 p.m. ET at FedEx Field.
NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Carolina Panthers +5
Washington Redskins -5
Over/Under 51.5
Odds Analysis
Washington opened as 4.5-point chalk and the line was wagered to Washington -5 soon after. The Skins have been a good bet this season with a 9-4 ATS record and covers in five of their last six games. Washington is also money for over bettors. The Redskins have cashed the over 11 times in their 13 games and the over is 6-0 in games played at FedEx Field. We saw a half point spike in the total from its opening and I wouldn’t be surprised to see more movement before kickoff.
Injury Report
Daryl Williams – One of three starting offensive linemen on the shelf, Williams missed another game with an ankle injury. The other two, Ryan Kalil and Michael Oher, are on injured reserve. The Panthers managed just 272 total yards against San Diego with their patchwork line.
Will Compton – Compton and Su’a Cravens both went down with injuries last weekend creating a big hole in the middle level of the Skins defense. The two are likely to miss Sunday’s game with Compton’s absence forcing a change to the defensive play-caller. Martrell Spaight will likely assume the role, like he did against the Eagles.
Key Stat
Kirk Cousins has an abundance of weapons in the passing game and he certainly enjoys using all of them. Cousins has helped the Redskins post the second-best passing offense in the NFL but he’ll face a Panthers defensive front that is the best in the league at getting at the quarterback. Carolina recorded five sacks of Philip Rivers and intercepted him three times in what was the most complete effort of the season by the Panthers defense.
Carolina has now recorded a league-high 39 sacks on the year and the pressure was partly responsible for the turnovers created. The pressure has come from all areas on the field with eight different players recording at least two sacks. The ability to get after the quarterback has also helped the secondary look better after the Panthers had to rework the defensive backfield with rookies following the loss of Norman.
Free ATS Pick
The Panthers’ defense looked like the team from last season in its win over San Diego. They pressured Rivers, forced turnovers and were flying to the football in a game that came much too late. However, it was good to see the Panthers play even though their chance at repeating as NFC champions was dashed a while ago. While the defense showed up and could be bolstered by the return of Luke Kuechly, the offense continued to sag and Cam Newton had another miserable performance.
It won’t be easy for the Skins to penetrate Carolina’s defense, but an improved running game has helped Cousins in the passing attack. With the weapons they have, Washington has put together a potent attack and it seems like they’re good for a few big plays every game. I like the Skins to come out with an edge as they try to get back in the playoff race and you know Norman will rally his new mates in an attempt to stick it to his old ones.
NFL Odds: Redskins 27, Panthers 20
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