The Carolina Panthers hit the bye at 2-2, and for once the offense is the reason for optimism. On today's Two Growls One Roar podcast, we hand out a bye-week report card, walk through every key injury before the trip to Philadelphia, sort real reporting from speculation in the cornerback trade rumors, and scout a struggling Eagles team.
Under new play caller Brad Idzik, Carolina went from 26th in passing last season to first in the NFL at 301.3 yards per game, and ranks fourth in both scoring (30.3 points per game) and total offense. Bryce Young leads the league with 1,268 passing yards and is on pace for nearly 5,400 yards and 38 touchdowns. Tetairoa McMillan put up career highs of 14 catches, 192 yards and two touchdowns in the 32-26 Sunday Night Football win over Detroit, and Chuba Hubbard added 122 rushing yards and two scores. The defense gave up 412 passing yards to Jared Goff but made two fourth-down stops to close it out.
Then the injury board. Trevor Etienne should be practicing after the bye, and Damien Lewis is expected back. Jaelan Phillips and Monroe Freeling are both listed as hopeful for Philadelphia. Taylor Moton and Tershawn Wharton are still waiting on medical clearance, and Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson are on injured reserve for roughly eight weeks. Xavier Legette is also on IR.
That cornerback hole has the rumor mill spinning ahead of the November trade deadline. We go through the names being floated, make clear which ones are speculation, and talk about whether Dan Morgan should buy. We also touch on the Bryce Young contract, after the team tabled extension talks until after the season.
Next up is Philadelphia on October 18. The Eagles are 2-2, blew a 20-10 fourth-quarter lead to the Rams, went 0-for-12 on third downs in that game, and are dealing with injuries to Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith, Lane Johnson and more. They play Jacksonville in London this Sunday before hosting Carolina. After that, the Panthers host the 0-4 Buccaneers and go to Green Bay on a short week.
We close with an NFC South review. Carolina and Atlanta are tied at 2-2, with the Panthers holding the head-to-head after the 34-3 win. The Falcons rolled the Saints 45-24 on Monday night, New Orleans sits at 1-3, and Tampa Bay is 0-4 for the first time since 2013 with Baker Mayfield out and undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels starting.
Question of the day: is this Panthers team a buyer at the trade deadline? Tell us in the comments.
Subscribe for daily Panthers coverage and follow @TGORPODCAST on X. More at twogrowlsoneroar.com. Two Growls One Roar is on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
