December 6, 2015, Troy, NY The Carolina Panthers are the NFL’s lone remaining undefeated team at 11-0, take on the underwhelming New Orleans Saints at 4-7 in a matchup of division rivals. The Panthers travel to the Big Easy in pursuit of their third consecutive NFC South title. The Saints fired Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan during their bye week and replaced him with former Raiders head coach, Dennis Allen. The Saints are ranked last in defense, and their once potent offense has eroded. New Orleans head coach Sean Payton is on the hot seat, and QB Drew Brees could become a cap casualty. In the offseason, in an attempt to improve their offensive line play, the Saints traded TE Jimmy Graham and a 4th round pick to the Seahawks for C Max Unger and a 1st rounder. Their once vaunted passing attack has stalled, and their defensive woes have led to an under .500 record.
In Week 3, The Panthers defeated the Saints 27-22 at Bank of America Stadium on a late endzone interception by CB Josh Norman. Brees missed the game with a shoulder injury. Panthers head coach Ron Rivera, who deserves consideration for Coach of The Year, has a team built around a powerful running attack and a punishing defense. QB Cam Newton has closed the gap on frontrunner Tom Brady in the race for MVP. LB Luke Kuechly was named NFC Defensive Player of The Week for his performance against the Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day. The Panthers forced 4 turnovers, including 3 INTS, 2 by Kuechly on back to back passes, 1 returned for a TD.
Carolina has taken a one game at a time approach to their schedule and curently have home field advantage in the NFC. Scoresandodds.com have the Panthers as -6.5 favorites. Kickoff is scheduled for 425pm EST from Mercedes Benz Superdome in New Orleans, LA. The game will be broadcast by Fox.