What should Kansas City Chiefs fans be watching for when the Carolina Panthers come to Arrowhead this week?
The 7-1 Kansas City Chiefs remain at home for the second straight game and welcome in the 3-5 Carolina Panthers to Arrowhead Stadium. This will be the first game against the NFC South for the Chiefs this year and the reigning champs hope to get off to a 1-0 start against the division.
The Panthers are an interesting team because while they don’t necessarily do anything great, they’ve been competitive throughout the season. They’re also getting Christian McCaffrey back after not having him since Week 2.
With all of this in mind, what should Chiefs Kingdom be keeping a watchful eye on when the Chiefs take on the Panthers? Let’s take a look.
Slowing down CMC
I already mentioned that McCaffrey would be returning for this game after he was injured in Week 2. The former first round pick was off to a hot start this season, rushing for 156 yards and four touchdowns through just two games.
While McCaffrey is one of the best running backs in the league, the Panthers might not push him too much in his first game back, but obviously that’ll change depending on how the game goes. If the Chiefs are able to get up by a wide margin, then the Panthers will be forced to air the ball out more. McCaffrey could be utilized as more of a receiver in his first game back too.
The Chiefs haven’t been great against the run this season, so I’ll be interested to see how they fare against McCaffrey. He was so good last season that he was a dark horse contender to win the MVP award and he showed he was still on track to have an impressive season through his first two games.
Can the pass rush get going?
The Chiefs pass rush has been a disappointment so far this season, but a lot of that can be blamed on injuries. Chris Jones and Frank Clark have both been banged up throughout the course of the season and that’s why it’s important for other players along that defensive line to step up and get after the quarterback.
Mitchell Schwartz will be out for Sunday's game against the Panthers.
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 6, 2020
Frank Clark and Sammy Watkins are questionable.https://t.co/fMyM1Q1vM0
We saw Tershawn Wharton get his first NFL sack last week and he’s someone to keep an eye on this week because of that performance. Wharton has been a nice story, going undrafted and becoming a force to be reckoned with on Kansas City’s defense.
It’d be nice to see the pass rush get home against the Panthers this weekend, but with Clark’s game status in doubt and Jones having a “quieter” season so far, we have to wonder if this is the week the unit gets the ball rolling.
Staying focused against “lesser” opponent
We’ve seen the Chiefs not fully take all of their opponents seriously this season and it finally caught up to them against the Raiders in Week 5. Prior to that, the Chiefs slogged their way through the games against the Chargers and the Patriots and were fortunate to escape those games with wins.
The Panthers were a team that I labeled as a “trap game” for the Chiefs. The reason for this is that while Carolina isn’t the most exciting team, they’re certainly a sneaky one. They’ve been competitive in nearly every game and were able to maintain relevancy when their best player was injured.
Carolina is very much a team who if the Chiefs aren’t prepared could come into Arrowhead and steal a victory from the reigning Super Bowl champions.