2 min read • December 11, 2021
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Injury Advantage: Falcons Defense
Carolina will be playing in its sixth game this season without star running back Christian McCaffrey, who is now out for the season with an ankle injury. In those previous five games, the Panthers have averaged 119.8 rushing yards.
Chuba Hubbard, the 22-year-old running back out of Oklahoma State, started last time against the Falcons and ran for 82 yards. Sam Darnold, who is on IR with an injured right shoulder, ran for 66 yards in the game. Expect Cam Newton to get his fair share of carries in this contest, especially in the redzone.
The Panthers will have a tougher time finding that same success on the ground this time. Carolina will be without three of its five starting linemen, plus they are down to their third-string left guard. Starting left guard Pat Elflein will start at center in place of Matt Paradis, who tore his ACL earlier this season.
Atlanta is only down slot corner Isaiah Oliver, who is lost for the season with a torn ACL. Their linebacking core is intact and left defensive end Jonathan Bullard will return this Sunday after missing the past two games with an ankle injury.
Check out the full field view and SIC health scores at https://sicscore.com/nfl/games/carolina-panthers-vs-atlanta-falcons.
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