CHARLOTTE — The Panthers (4-4) are back on the road this week, heading to Wisconsin to take on the Green Bay Packers (5-1-1). Carolina will be looking to get back on the winning side after falling 40-9 to the Bills in Week 7 and ending what had been a three-game win streak.

"We looked at the tape in the film and discussed what the reason was behind it, and from that we just fixed things and moved forward," said running back Chuba Hubbard on Monday. "We got Green Bay this week, so that's where our focus is."

The Packers are coming off a 35-25 primetime win over Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers. The Panthers are 6-12 all-time against the Packers. Carolina is 4-6 at home and 2-6 on the road. Carolina is 0-1 in the playoffs against Green Bay.

The last time these two teams faced off was Christmas Eve, 2023. The shootout ended in a 33-30 loss for the Panthers.

Before the team dives into preparation this week, get to know the 2025 Packers.

Tucker Kraft Cheesehead

Whenever a tight end is a team's leading receiver, the offense typically doesn't have a top wideout option, or the scheme is built on check-downs. The Packers have good wideouts, including Christian Watson, who returned this week. They have a scheme that is happy to push the ball downfield.

And Tucker Kraft is still Green Bay's leading man. He can do it all, from the middle of the field to deep passes, working wherever he's needed at any given time. The third-year tight end has 30 receptions for 469 yards, which leads the Packers by a wide margin, and is the third-highest in the NFL amongst tight ends, trailing Travis Kelce by a mere 5 yards. Kraft is also Jordan Love's favorite red zone target. He has six receiving touchdowns. The rest of the team combined has seven.

At 6-5, 259 pounds, Kraft does most of his damage after the catch, and he typically can't be brought down by just one defender. According to Next Gen Stats, Kraft leads all tight ends this season with 346 yards after the catch. That is 110-plus YAC yards over expected, 56 more than any other player at the position. Against the Steelers on Sunday night, the tight end had seven catches for 143 yards; 131 of those yards came after the catch, the third-most yards after the catch in a game by a tight end since 2016.

The Micah Parsons problem

The Packers made one of the biggest moves of the NFL offseason when they traded for pass-rusher Micah Parsons. The former Dallas Cowboys star has come as advertised. He has 6.5 sacks and 44 quarterback pressures, which leads the league amongst all front-seven members.

Everything on the Packers' defense goes through Parsons. The secondary's time to cover is drastically reduced due to his getting to the quarterback so quickly. If he's not breaking the pocket, it's because he's likely getting double-teamed. Parsons faces the second-most double teams (22.4 percent of his snaps) of all edge rushers in the NFL.

When that happens, it opens up lanes for Rashan Gary, who actually leads Green Bay with 7.5 sacks. Gary and Parsons are fifth and sixth, respectively, in the NFL in total sacks, and the most duo of any team through the first half of the season.

A Love story

Every good "Love" story needs a leading Romeo (sorry, not sorry). The Packers have that connection with Jordan Love and Romeo Doubs. The quarterback and wideout connected back in the 2022 offseason after Doubs was drafted, and that chemistry began to take over games in 2023, when Love became the full-time starter.

While Kraft is the leading receiver, Doubs is Love's favorite wideout. The two have connected for 27 receptions for 350 yards and four touchdowns this season.

Love also has the rookie, Matthew Golden, who has brought in 21 catches, averaging 12.0 yards per reception. And running back Josh Jacobs has proven himself a solid check-down option. He has 19 receptions for 191 yards.

After Jayden Reed's early-season injury, the Panthers were desperate for a deep-threat option. That finally happened with the return of Christian Watson. The speedster played in his first game of the season, after enduring an ACL recovery in the 2024 season finale. In his return, he pulled in four receptions for 85 yards, averaging 21.3 yards per reception, and topped out at 20.33 mph on one route.