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Carolina at Washington Game Preview

Donte Jackson

Game Reset

  • Carolina Panthers (4-10) at Washington Football Team (6-8)
  • FedEx Field, Landover, Md.
  • Sunday, Dec. 27 | CBS | 4:05 pm ET
  • Injury Report | Depth Chart

History: Carolina vs. Washington

Notable Connections

Washington

PLAYERS

  • Linebacker Thomas Davis played for the Panthers from 2005-18, playing in 176 games (158 starts) and totaling 1,077 tackles
  • Cornerback Cole Luke spent time with Carolina from 2017-19
  • Linebacker Jared Norris was with Carolina from 2016-18
  • Linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk spent the 2019 season with Carolina
  • Quarterback Kyle Allen (reserve/injured list) was with Carolina from 2018-19

COACHES

  • Head coach Ron Rivera served as Carolina's head coach from 2011-19. He is the winningest coach in Panthers' history with a 76-63-1 record (3-4 in the postseason)
  • Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio served as Carolina's defensive coordinator in 2002
  • Offensive coordinator Scott Turner spent four seasons with Carolina in two stints (2011-12, 2018-19). Last season, Turner was the Panthers' quarterbacks coach and served as interim offensive coordinator the final three weeks of the year
  • Wide receivers coach Jim Hostler was with Carolina in 2019
  • Tight ends coach Pete Hoener was with Carolina from 2011-19
  • Offensive line coach John Matsko was with Carolina from 2011-19
  • Assistant offensive line coach Travelle Wharton played with Carolina from 2004-11 and 2013 and was an assistant coach from 2018-19
  • Assistant wide receivers coach Drew Terrell was with Carolina from 2018-19
  • Defensive line coach Sam Mills III was with Carolina from 2005-19, serving in various defensive coaching roles. Mills III is the son of Sam Mills Jr., the first player inducted to the Panthers' Hall of Honor
  • Linebackers coach Steve Russ was with Carolina from 2018-19 in the same role
  • Assistant defensive backs coach Richard Rodgers was with Carolina from 2012-19
  • Assistant special teams coach Ben Jacobs played for Carolina from 2013-18. In 2019, he served as assistant special teams coach

Washington is on the verge of its first playoffs appearance since 2015, needing a Giants' loss and a win over Carolina on Sunday.

The Football Team has one of the league's top defenses, ranking fourth in yards allowed (312.6), sixth in sacks (40) and fifth in points allowed (21.1).

Rookie defensive end Chase Young was voted to the Pro Bowl and has 5.5 sacks with 17 pressures and a fumble return for a touchdown.

Table inside Article
Category Carolina Washington
Offense
Total Yards/Game 356.6 (20th) 317.3 (29th)
Rushing Yards/Game 108.4 (20th) 100.0 (25th)
Net Passing Yards/Game 248.2 (16th) 217.3 (25th)
Sacks Allowed 29 (t-14th) 44 (t-29th)
Third Down Efficiency 40.4 (22nd) 38.5 (27th)
Points/Game 23.1 (22nd) 21.6 (26th)
Defense
Total Yards/Game 359.1 (19th) 312.6 (4th)
Rushing Yards/Game 119.4 (18th) 112.4 (13th)
Net Passing Yards/Game 239.7 (19th) 200.2 (3rd)
Sacks 24.0 (23rd) 40.0 (t-6th)
Third Down Efficiency 50.0 (30th) 37.4 (8th)
Turnover Margin +4 (t-10th) -3 (21st)
Points Allowed/Game 25.4 (20th) 21.1 (5th)

Stat Nuggets To Know

Team

  • The Panthers' defense allowed a league-worst 55.3 third-down conversion percentage through Week 10. From Weeks 11-15, the defense held opponents to just 36.2 on third down, 11th-best in the NFL.
  • From Weeks 11-15, Carolina's defense allowed just 619 yards in the second half, fifth-best in the NFL.
  • Against Green Bay, the Panthers recorded five sacks on six blitzes, the best sack-to-blitz ratio in the NFL in Week 15.
  • Carolina has had 10 games decided by eight points or fewer this season, and the Panthers are 2-8 in those games. The franchise record for the most games decided by eight points or fewer is 12, set in 1998 and 2003.
  • Sunday marks the fourth time that the Panthers will face a former head coach who is the head coach of their opponent. They are 0-3 in past meetings (2003, Dom Capers - Houston; 2012, John Fox - Denver; 2017, John Fox - Chicago)

Individual

  • Wide receiver DJ Moore leads all qualified players with 18.8 yards per reception while ranking 11th with 1,055 receiving yards. He's just the fourth player in franchise history with back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
  • Wide receiver Robby Anderson is tied for eighth in the league with 85 receptions, and his 1,017 receiving yards mark his first-ever 1,000-yard receiving season.
  • Wide receiver Curtis Samuel ranks second among all wideouts with an 80.2 reception percentage (65 catches on 81 targets).
  • Running back Mike Davis has 614 rushing yards and 987 scrimmage yards on the season.
  • Among NFL rookies, linebacker Jeremy Chinn ranks first in tackles (101), first in defensive TDs (2), tied for first in fumble recoveries (2), third in defensive snaps played (832), tied for fourth in forced fumbles (2) and tied for seventh in passes defended (5).
  • Defensive tackle Derrick Brown is tied for most tackles for loss (8) among NFL rookies. It's third-most among all-time Panthers' rookies, trailing Star Lotulelei (9) and Luke Kuechly (12).

Milestones in Reach

  • Shaq Thompson needs five tackles for 100 on the season, becoming the fifth Panther to record back-to-back 100-tackle seasons.
  • Davis needs 13 scrimmage yards for 1,000 scrimmage yards on the season, marking just the second time the Panthers have ever had three players with more than 1,000 scrimmage yards (2009 - Steve Smith, Jonathan Stewart, DeAngelo Williams).
  • Brown needs four tackles for loss to tie (Luke Kuechly, 12) for the most by a rookie in franchise history.

Carolina is 7-10 against Washington all-time in the regular season.

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