CHARLOTTE — The Carolina Panthers feel like they're on the precipice of something special. With four games ahead of them, they're in the division lead at the moment. Staying there starts with winning in New Orleans on Sunday.

"Just a really focused group and excited group, obviously, with this opportunity that we have in front of us to go down there and play the Saints," said Canales on Friday. "So, we're fired up to get after it."

Panthers haven't won in New Orleans since the 2022 season finale. To do so this week will require stopping a quarterback and offense that have found a rhythm, achieving balance on their own offensive side of the ball, and embracing a "championship opportunity" that could define the Panthers season.

With that in mind, here are five things to watch Sunday as the Panthers try to even the season series with the Saints.

The Shough Effect

The first time the Panthers faced Tyler Shough, the quarterback was making his second start in the NFL. He was taking over an offense that had traded away its downfield threat and couldn't find its identity. Now, five weeks later, the Panthers turn on the tape and see a quarterback whom the offense has rallied around.

"Oh man, he's been doing his thing, young guy, just making plays, just finding a way to get his team on board and finding ways to win it," said safety Tre'von Moehrig of Shough.

"Young guy" is somewhat relative here. He is a rookie, but after six years in college, he's a 26-year-old rookie. It's not quite the same as rolling Philip Rivers into the offense and seeing what happens, but it's a little different than putting a wide-eyed rookie in the backfield and the defense trying to shake him with pressure.

While the Saints' offensive line hasn't held up consistently, thanks in part to linemen shuffling through injuries (tackle Asim Richards is out Sunday with an ankle), and Shough has taken an average of 3.0 sacks per start this season, his ability to extend plays outside the pocket has still given Carolina a wrinkle to prepare for this week.

Of his 210 drop-backs so far this season, 19.6 percent have been on the run.

"They've involved the quarterback in the run game, they have featured guys in the pass game like (Chris) Olave and Mr. (Juwan) Johnson that they're trying to get the ball to, and, they're really buying into the physical part of the game," said defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero. "And I think that's going to be the big challenge on Sunday."

According to Next Gen Stats, the Panthers have played zone coverage at the highest rate in the league this season (84.6 percent). Since taking over as the starter in Week 8, Tyler Shough has averaged 6.8 yards per attempt against zone coverage, compared to 5.5 yards per attempt against man coverage. However, he has thrown all five of his interceptions against zone coverage.

How does pass defense look with Horn back?

A big piece in possibly getting those interceptions will be back on the field Sunday. Jaycee Horn has been cleared from concussion protocol and can play against New Orleans. Horn has five interceptions already this season, in both zone and man coverage, a number tied for second in the league, even while missing a week with the concussion. Horn took a lot of responsibility after the Saints' loss in Week 10, when the Panthers gave up six explosive passing plays and Horn himself gave up two.

"I think the common theme is that we just need to execute better," said Evero of the lessons from that loss. "I would say in certain instances—I don't want to divulge the game plan too much, but I can certainly do a better job in terms of creating clarity with some of the things we were doing schematically, but, yeah, we all got to be better from that standpoint."

The group also gave up five explosive passing plays without him against the Rams in Week 13.

Sunday can't be motivated only by revenge in that area, though, said Horn.

"It's just, it's a blessing to be able to be playing meaningful football at this point in the year, but we still got to focus on going 1-and-0 every week or every day, really, just winning the day, and, like I said at the beginning, letting the chips fall where they may."

Shutting down explosives against the Saints means shutting down Chris Olave. He took up the mantle after the Saints traded Rashid Shaheed earlier this season, really flexing that part of his game in Charlotte in Week 10.

"He's just their leader," said Mike Jackson of Olave. "We know he's going to get the ball at least 10-to-12 times a game, and he kind of gets them going for the passing game."

Some of those explosives after the catch could also be negated by having Moehrig back on the field (who was suspended for the Rams game). The safety has allowed 5.3 yards per target in coverage, the fourth-fewest by any safety targeted at least 25 times. Moehrig has allowed 3.5 yards after the catch per reception, the 12th-lowest mark among that same group of safeties.

If the front can flush Shough, it also gives Derrick Brown opportunities to shut down the passing game before it even starts. He has seven batted passes so far this season, leading the Panthers in passes defended.

What kind of balance does the offense strike?

If there's one aspect the Panthers have been consistent in this season, it's that they can be wildly inconsistent. Some weeks might see a franchise-record rushing attack. Other weeks might set a new franchise record in the passing game. Other weeks have seen both falter. But by building on each performance week by week, Carolina finally struck a balance against the Rams, resulting in a near-flawless offensive game.

Bryce Young threw for a career-high 147.1 quarterback rating, going 15-of-20 for 206 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. On the ground, Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle split carries almost evenly, with Hubbard taking 17 rushes and Dowdle finishing with 18 rushes.

It's what Dave Canales has always envisioned for this offense, and it seems to be coming to life at the perfect time.

"Panthers football should look a certain way, and I want to make sure we come out of it playing the run well on defense and then on offense, making sure that Rico and Chuba have an opportunity to affect the game," he said this week.

That wasn't necessarily the case in the first meeting with the Saints, when Dowdle also had 18 rushes, but Hubbard only had three, and as a team, the Panthers finished with just 73 rushing yards.

"We missed some opportunities in the pass game, and the Saints did a great job, challenging us in our run game," Canales said of the issues in that loss. "The focus in that week was to try to have that balanced attack, and they didn't give us a lot, and they played us really well."

But from every loss comes a lesson, and with the bye week to look at extra stuff, the Panthers were able to pick apart what went wrong that first meeting, marry it with what went right against the Rams, and come up with a game plan for Sunday.

"They had a great game plan (in Week 10), so we looked at that part to see. We're going to be looking at that early in the game to see if they have the same type of plan, to counteract that part of it."

According to Next Gen Stats, Hubbard and Dowdle are both among the best in the league at not taking a loss on runs, with Hubbard even leading all backs. Hubbard has been stuffed for a loss or no gain on 9.9 percent of his carries, the lowest mark among running backs with at least 100 carries on the season. Rico Dowdle has posted the seventh-lowest mark (13.0 percent) in that category among the same group of running backs.

Here comes the Boom?

For the first time since the Week 10 matchup against the Saints, the Panthers will have their two starting linebackers on the field together. Trevin Wallace returned in Week 13 against the Rams. After sitting out Week 12, 13, and using the bye week to recover from a hip and hamstring injury, Christian Rozeboom was a full participant in practice all week.

"Never had a bye week that late, but in this case it ended up kind of working out for me," admitted Rozeboom. "So, yeah, feeling good."

Despite missing two games, Rozeboom still leads all Panthers defenders with 91 total tackles. He also has five tackles for loss, a pass defended, and a forced fumble. Before the sequential injuries, he and Wallace had hit a groove together that was shutting down the middle of the field more and more each week.

Having them both back on the field this week can be massive as the Panthers begin a playoff push, starting with a Saints team that wants to run.

"This (Saints) team has kind of found their identity," said Evero this week. "They played tough on defense, and then on the offensive side of the ball, they're committed to run the ball, they're involving the quarterback in the run game."

That run game has looked different in recent weeks, though, and will again on Sunday. The Panthers won't be facing a guy with whom they are very familiar, Alvin Kamara, since he has been ruled out for a third straight week with a knee and ankle injury.

In his place, New Orleans has turned to rookie running back Devin Neal. Through nine games, he has 50 rushes for 178 yards and one touchdown. He's also pulled in 16 receptions for 100 yards.

The change in running back doesn't change the plan for Derrick Brown, though.

"I mean, the offensive line is still there, right? You're playing the same guys," he noted this week. "Alvin Kamara is a dynamic back. The young guy that got in there, I mean, they got a lot of plug-and-play pieces, so I mean, they got depth just like when our guys go down.

"So I mean now it's one of those things where, like I said, we got to execute. We got to come out and execute in all three phases, and I mean it's got to be from the start."

Returning in Caesars Superdome

A month ago, Panthers special teams coordinator Tracy Smith was pontificating on the different stadiums in the NFL and how they affect returners' eyes on kickoffs and punts. He pointed out the sunspots in AT&T Stadium, the retractable roofs in Atlanta and Arizona, and the quirks of each stadium.

"They all have their little personality," Smith said, before highlighting one stadium in particular for its unique challenges.

"The biggest difference for us is the color and the texture of the actual roof because our returners are looking, seeing the ball in the roof of the dome to track it. That can be challenging depending on how their lights are structured. The Superdome, for example, in New Orleans has the ring of lights around it, so the ball from a certain hash will pass through the lights twice on its way down to you, that kind of thing."

Now Trevor Etienne will get a chance to play in the Superdome as an NFL returner and try his hand at the challenges it presents.

"We definitely talk about it, but my strategy is just to go out there and do what I've been doing," Etienne said this week. He played in New Orleans in college a couple of times, as part of the Sugar Bowl games there, and has some experience with the dark pall the dome can cast on returners.

"I've played in there a couple times, so I've been there and, yeah, it's like a big circle, and it's just like the big Mercedes-Benz sign is right above you."

For Etienne, though, who is averaging 23.7 yards per kickoff return while sharing returns with either Hubbard or Dowdle, the tactic can't change.

"Keep your eyes on the ball the whole way," he smiled.