Yahoo Sports Staff Updated Thu, October 29, 2026 at 11:30 PM UTC About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In this story The Carolina Panthers and Green Bay Packers will open up Week 8 on "Thursday Night Football," with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. ET at Lambeau Field. The game will air on Prime Video.
Despite just a 3-3 record, the Panthers hold the lead in the NFC South thanks to a tie-breaker over the Atlanta Falcons. They'll look to bounce back after an embarrassing home blowout against their division rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week, where they lost 43-13 with a season-high four turnovers. The Bucs won that game with just 64 total passing yards as Carolina struggled to stop the run, giving up 258 yards on the ground. Adding insult to injury (literally), starting right tackle Taylor Moton suffered a fractured fibula in Week 7 in just his second game back from a blood clot.
The Packers will also look to bounce back after a Week 7 loss to the Detroit Lions 20-17 thanks to a walk-off field goal from Detroit kicker Jake Bates. Green Bay will have plenty of opportunity on offense this week after seeing how the Bucs exploited the run game against the Panthers, with Josh Jacobs in his second game back after being activated from the commissioner's exempt list.
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for live updates, highlights and more as the Panthers and Packers open up Week 8 on "Thursday Night Football," airing on Amazon Prime Video.
Moneyline odds: Packers -198, Panthers +166
Surprisingly to many fans and pundits alike, Young has been a model of consistency this season.
The former Alabama star has thrown for 1,712 yards this season, which is good for 10th overall. He has also racked up 12 touchdown passes against four interceptions. Prior to last week's home debacle, Young had thrown for at least 281 yards in the first five games.
He has cleared this number four times, which includes two games where he had three touchdown passes.
I know Green Bay's defense is tough against the pass (208 yards allowed per game) and has generated pressure on 38.5% of dropbacks sans blitzing, leading to the fourth-highest pressure rate across the league. However, this is a prime bounce-back spot for Young in a game I think we could see some offensive fireworks.
With marquee wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan at his disposal, I fully expect Young to reach at least two touchdowns. Throw in tight end Darren Waller, who caught a 50-yard touchdown from Young last week, and Chuba Hubbard catching balls out of the backfield and I think Young could have a big rebound outing at Lambeau.
Read more from our Panthers-Packers betting preview, including more player props and a pick against the spread.
The Packers will have a lot more balance with Jacobs off the commissioner's exempt list. Jacobs wasn't efficient in his return against Detroit in Week 7 with just 36 rushing yards on 11 attempts, but he added 55 yards and a touchdown on five catches. The Packers' running game was going nowhere without him in the lineup.
While offensive line issues will continue to keep Green Bay from having a great rushing attack, at least it should keep defenses honest. There should be concern over how Jacobs plays on a short week, after not playing for the first six weeks. But he's facing a Panthers defense that gave up 258 rushing yards last weekend against the Buccaneers. Carolina gave up 291 rushing yards in Week 1 to Chicago and while the run defense had improved after that, Sunday's performance against Tampa Bay was troubling. Jacobs and the Packers will be testing that run defense early on.
Check out the rest of our Panthers-Packers preview, including betting insights and fantasy football storylines we're watching in Week 8.
With less than 90 minutes remaining until the Carolina Panthers and Green Bay Packers kick off, each team has announced its inactives for Week 8. For the Packers, wide receiver Matthew Golden (shoulder/foot) and cornerback Keisean Nixon (shoulder) are both active after initially being listed as questionable. There are no surprises on the Panthers inactives list.
Source: Sports
0 Comments