The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 27-22 loss on Thursday night added intrigue to the Carolina Panthers-Atlanta Falcons game Sunday afternoon.
With the Bucs falling to 3-5, the winner of the Panthers-Falcons bout will own first place in a woeful NFC South division.
Atlanta sits at 3-4 entering the week and would be a win up on the Bucs with a victory. A Panthers win would create at least a three-way tie in the division (New Orleans could also move to 3-5 with a win over the Las Vegas Raiders). By virtue of a 3-0 division record, Carolina would own the division tiebreaker heading into Week 9.
"We do understand that it is a division game," Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota said Thursday, via the Associated Press. "You've got to create somewhat of a lead in your division, you want to create separation. This is where it starts."
The Falcons have leaned heavily on the run game through seven weeks, ranking fifth in rushing and 31st in passing. They're one of only three teams with more rush yards than pass yards in 2022 (Bears, Giants).
Meanwhile, the Panthers, who traded their best player, Christian McCaffrey, last week, could make a stunning rise to the top of the division. P.J. Walker's brilliant game against the Bucs last week gave Carolina its second division win of the season (Week 3 vs. New Orleans). While they're 0-5 versus the rest of the league, the Panthers can remain undefeated in the NFC South by knocking off the Falcons on the road.
"We knew what (McCaffrey) meant to this team," Walker said, via the AP. "We knew what he brought to the table, but we still had to go out there and execute and go out there and play at a high level."
Walker faces a Falcons pass defense that is banged up and ranks last in the NFL in yards allowed. A good game from the former XFL quarterback and Carolina would vault from season-over mode to division leader under interim Steve Wilks.
