Carolina (0-2) at Las Vegas (1-1)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. EDT, CBS
BetMGM NFL odds: Raiders by 5.
Series record: Raiders lead 4-3.
Against the spread: Carolina 0-2; Las Vegas 1-1.
Last meeting: Raiders beat the Panthers 34-30 on Sept. 13, 2020, in Charlotte.
Last week: Panthers lost to the Chargers 26-3; Raiders beat the Ravens 26-23.
Panthers offense: overall (32), rush (29), pass (31), scoring (32)
Panthers defense: overall (25), rush (31), pass (9), scoring (32)
Raiders offense: overall (22), rush (32), pass (7T), scoring (20T)
Raiders defense: overall (23), rush (29), pass (15), scoring (19T)
Turnover differential: Panthers minus-1; Raiders minus-3.
QB Andy Dalton. All eyes will be on Dalton, who takes over for 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young, who was benched by first-year head coach Dave Canales on Monday after two disappointing starts. Dalton started one game for an injured Young last season and had a huge statistical game, completing 34 of 58 passes for 361 yards with two touchdowns, although the Panthers lost 37-27 at Seattle. Still it was one of Carolina’s bests offensive outputs of a season which ended with a 2-15 record. Dalton is 83-78-2 as a career starter with 246 touchdown passes and 144 interceptions.
RB Zamir White entered the season with the onus of trying to follow Josh Jacobs, who just two years after leading the NFL in rushing signed with the Packers. White also bore the burden of playing behind an offensive line that is still trying to find itself. Nevertheless, if the Raiders want to have much success this season, White — who has rushed for 68 yards through two games — has to get going.
Dalton vs. Raiders defense: Look for plenty of play-action passes by the Panthers, which plays to the 14-year veteran quarterback’s strengths. Dalton is 447 of 692 passing (64.6%) for 5,404 yards with 32 touchdowns and 16 interceptions on play-action passes since 2016, per NextGen Stats.
Panthers DT Shy Tuttle is dealing with a foot injury and his status is unclear for Sunday. ... Raiders LB Divine Deablo (oblique/concussion) and CB Decamerion Richardson (hamstring) did not practice Wednesday. Tyree Wilson didn’t play Sunday at Baltimore because of a knee injury, but returned to practice this week. DE Maxx Crosby (ankle) and DT Christian Wilkins (knee) were limited but expected to play.
The Raiders' first game as Las Vegas' team was at Carolina in 2000. Jacobs' 6-yard touchdown run with 4:08 left put the Raiders ahead for good after the Panthers had rallied from 12 points down with two TDs in the fourth quarter. ... The past two meetings have been especially high scoring with the Raiders edging Carolina by a combined 69-62.
The Panthers have the worst record in the league since 2018 at 31-70. ... RB Chuba Hubbard had 64 yards rushing on 10 carries in the team’s loss to the Chargers and appears to have a firm grasp on the starting job. ... Dalton has 32 games with at least 300 yards passing in his career. ... Young will serve as Dalton’s backup. ... WR Diontae Johnson, who was brought in to be Carolina’s No. 1 receiver, has just five catches for 34 yards through two games. ... WR Adam Thielen, Carolina’s other starter, has been held to five receptions for 69 yards. ... The Panthers defense has allowed five passing TDs in two games, second most in the league behind the Commanders (6). ... Carolina has scored three points in its past two road games going back to last season. ... Brock Bowers' 156 yards receiving leads all tight ends. ... Gardner Minshew has completed 55 of 71 passes, his 77.5% tops the league. ... Davante Adams is 50 yards from becoming the 17th player to reach 11,000 receiving yards. ... Maxx Crosby is three sacks from moving into third place in Raiders history. Anthony Smith is in that spot with 57 1/2 sacks. ... Daniel Carlson made all four field-goal attempts against the Ravens, including both kicks from beyond 50 yards. He is 27 of 34 from that distance for his career. Carlson's 38-yard field goal with 27 seconds provided Las Vegas with the winning points. He has made 17 of 20 field goals in the final two minutes or overtime since becoming a Raider in 2018.
Thielen seemed to have good chemistry with Dalton last season. In Dalton’s only start in Week 3 of the 2023 season, he was 11 of 14 passing for 145 yards and one touchdown when targeting Thielen.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young hands off to running back Miles Sanders during the first half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Erik Verduzco)
Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Robert Spillane (41) celebrates after making an interception against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Kansas City (2-0) at Atlanta (1-1)
Sunday, 8:20 p.m. EDT, NBC
BetMGM NFL Odds: Chiefs by 3 1/2
Series record: Chiefs lead 7-3.
Against the spread: Falcons 1-1, Chiefs 1-1.
Last meeting: Chiefs defeated Falcons 17-14 at Kansas City on Dec. 27, 2020.
Last week: Chiefs defeated the Bengals 26-25; Falcons defeated the Eagles 22-21.
Chiefs offense: overall (15), rush (19), pass (14), scoring (6).
Chiefs defense: overall (29), rush (17), pass (31), scoring (19-T).
Falcons offense: overall (18), rush (17), pass (20), scoring (25).
Falcons defense: overall (11), rush (27), pass (7), scoring (10-T).
Turnover differential: Chiefs minus-2, Falcons minus-2
RBs Carson Steele and Samaje Perine are expected to get most of the work in the backfield after Isiah Pacheco hurt his ankle in the final minute of a win over Cincinnati. Steele is an undrafted rookie who turned heads in training camp with his run-through-a-wall style. The Chiefs were planning to use him mostly in short-yardage situations. Perine signed with the Chiefs on Aug. 30 and has been trying to pick up the playbook quickly. He is at his best catching the ball out of the backfield.
FS Jessie Bates III is coming off a huge performance in a 22-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles this past Monday night. He broke up what appeared to be a touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith and sealed the victory with an interception in the closing seconds. Bates also contributed a team-high 12 tackles, including one behind the line, earning NFC defensive players of the week honors. For the season, he has been credited with 18 tackles — 13 of them solo efforts.
QB Kirk Cousins vs. Chiefs secondary. Cousins completed five of six passes for 70 yards on the final drive, including a 7-yard touchdown to Drake London with 34 seconds remaining, to lead the Falcons to their improbable victory in Philadelphia. He should be overflowing with confidence as he faces a Kansas City defense that has allowed huge chunks of yardage the first two weeks against star quarterbacks Lamar Jackson of the Ravens and Joe Burrow of the Bengals. The Chiefs rank next-to-last out of 32 teams, giving up an average of 256.5 yards per game.
The Chiefs lost Pacheco to an ankle injury, one week after putting WR Marquise Brown on injured reserve because of shoulder surgery. The Falcons are relatively healthy, though LB Nate Landman did go injured reserve before last week's game at Philadelphia with calf and quad issues. That left Atlanta with only three inside backers — Kaden Elliss, Troy Anderson and rookie JD Bertrand — on the active roster.
The teams have only met 10 times with the Chiefs winning seven of them, including the past two. ... In their most recent game, Patrick Mahomes threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns, and Travis Kelce had a big game as the Chiefs won 17-14 on Dec. 27, 2020. Younghoe Koo missed a 39-yard field-goal attempt that would have sent the game to overtime. ... Atlanta's most recent victory over the Chiefs was a 40-24 triumph on Sept. 9, 2012, in Kansas City.
Both of the Chiefs’ wins this season have been decided on the final play of the game. Ravens TE Isaiah Likely landed out of bounds on a would-be tying TD catch in Week 1, and Harrison Butker kicked a winning 51-yard field goal last week against the Bengals after the winning drive was extended by a pass interference call on fourth down. ... Cousins was the first NFL quarterback in the past 30 years to complete at least 80% of his passes while throwing for at least 70 yards on a drive that began on the road in the last two minutes with his team needing a touchdown to erase a deficit, according to OptaSTATS. ... Chiefs OT Wanya Morris caught a TD pass last week against Cincinnati. OT Eric Fisher caught a TD pass in 2020 and did the same for Kansas City in a playoff game against Pittsburgh in 2022. ... Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier combined for 150 yards on 23 carries against the Eagles. Overall, the Falcons averaged 5.4 yards per carry. ... Kansas City WR Rashee Rice has 12 catches for 178 yards and a TD through the first two games of the season. ... Falcons WR Darnell Mooney had a 41-yard touchdown catch and two more huge receptions on the winning drive against the Eagles, totaling a team-high 88 yards on those three grabs. ... Chiefs DT Chris Jones has 77 sacks. He needs two more to pass Justin Houston for fourth most in team history. Chiefs FS Chamarri Conner returned a fumble 37 yards for a touchdown against Cincinnati. He also had a sack on a blitz. ... Falcons DE Grady Jarrett had six quarterback hits in the first two games. ... Butker has kicked four game-winners in his Kansas City career. He also has made 29 field goals of at least 50 yards.
Don’t read too much into Travis Kelce’s meager production in the Kansas City offense. The four-time All-Pro tight end has just four catches for 39 yards through two games, with a long catch called back by a penalty last week against Cincinnati. He should get a bigger workload as the Chiefs adapt to Brown’s absence and the loss of Pacheco.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
FILE - Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (27) scores a touchdown ahead of Los Angeles Rams free safety Lamarcus Joyner (20) as Chiefs offensive guard Cameron Erving (75) looks on during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud III (34) is tackled by Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun (53) after a catch during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker (7) walks off the field after kicking a 51-yard field goal at the end of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals to give the Chiefs a 26-25 victory Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) celebrates his touchdown with teammate Chris Lindstrom (63) during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
