Arizona Cardinals vs Carolina Panthers: Preview, prediction
By Scott Allen
The Arizona Cardinals travel to Charlotte, North Carolina to take on the Carolina Panthers
The Arizona Cardinals head back east for an early-window game on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers. The Cardinals lost the NFC Championship game 49-15 back in January to send the Panthers to Super Bowl 50.
What: Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers
Where: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, N.C.
When: 10:00 a.m. Arizona time (1:00 p.m. ET)
TV: Fox Sports (Sam Rosen, Daryl Johnston)
Radio: Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (Dave Pasch, Ron Wolfley)
It is a game many Cardinals fans wish to forget. Very little went right for the Cardinals that cold evening in Charlotte. The Cardinals offense made numerous mistakes, including a forgetful day by quarterback Carson Palmer.
Fast forward nine months later and you are looking at two underachieving teams. The Cardinals are 3-3-1 after a tie with the Seattle Seahawks last week. The Panthers are 1-5 and coming off their bye week. The Cardinals will have their bye week next Sunday.
Both teams have had their injury struggles but also seem to both be playing at a level lower than they did last season for whatever reason. A win by either of these teams on Sunday could jump start them for a playoff run in the second-half of the season.
After both Palmer and Panthers starting quarterback Cam Newton suffered concussions recently, both have returned to action. Palmer was on the Cardinals injury report this week with what is listed as a hamstring injury. He should play on Sunday.
A loss on Sunday could do serous damage to both teams as far as the playoffs are concerned. Nothing is set in stone, but a loss could be more serious to the Panthers chances. A loss drops them to 1-6 with losses already on the books to all three NFC South divisional opponents.