The NFC South will be on display tonight as the Atlanta Falcons take on the Carolina Panthers. Both teams are not where they want to be in terms of their record, but when the Falcons and Panthers face each other it’s always a fun and entertaining game. Week 8 of Thursday Night Football can be seen on Fox, NFL Network and Amazon Prime video at 8:20 p.m. ET. The game can also be streamed on the Yahoo Sports app.
The Falcons and Panthers met earlier this year with Carolina coming away with a 23-16 win. The Panthers jumped to a 20-7 lead at halftime and never looked back. Panthers running back Mike Davis, who is from Atlanta, rushed for 89 yards and recorded 60 receiving yards and one touchdown in the win. Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan struggled, throwing an interception and recording a 63.6 passer rating.
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The Falcons have suffered a number of tough losses this season, including last week against the Detroit Lions. After Todd Gurley scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:04 left in the fourth quarter, the Lions drove the length of the field and scored the game-tying touchdown with no-time remaining. The Lions kicked the extra point to win the game.
“I was mad as hell,” Gurley said when talking about scoring the touchdown. “I was trying not to. My momentum took me in. It’s kind of crazy. The last time I played Detroit, I went down. This time, I end up scoring. It’s like what goes around comes around. It’s just one of those unfortunate situations. I’ve been in plenty of those situations since my rookie year – about six or seven. I’ve always gotten down. It’s an unfortunate one right there.”
The Panthers are coming off a 27-24 loss to the New Orleans Saints. Kicker Will Lutz hit the game-winning field goal for the Saints with 7:55 left in the fourth quarter. The Panthers only recorded 37 rushing yards in the loss. The team was hoping to have star running back Christian McCaffery back in the lineup tonight, but he’s still on injured reserve due to an ankle injury. In just two games this year, McCaffrey rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns. He was named to the All-Pro First Team in 2019 after rushing for 1,387 and tallying 1,005 receiving yards.
