As the 2015-16 NFL Regular Season is getting ready to start on Sunday the 13th of 2015 so we begin previewing some of the games. Today we start with the Panthers of Carolina playing at the Jaguars of Jacksonville at the EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida with the kick-off scheduled for 1:05 PM ET and seen on Fox TV. The early odds of SBG has the Panthers favorites at -3 -115 and -170 on the ML with the Over/under at 41. The underdog Jaguars are + 3 -105 and +150 on the ML.
This is a memorial game as both these teams were expansion teams back in 1995, so they celebrate their 20th season in the NFL and with a game against each other in this Week # 1. The question coming into this 1st game, has either the Panthers of the Jaguars made enough changes in the offseason to be able to reach the playoffs and/or Super Bowl 50?
For those that Bet on NFL and are fans of the Panthers of Carolina, this is one team that proved you can make the playoffs despite a losing record, but that does not help in the postseason playoffs. But this season the Panthers seek to stay in the mix for the entire season, and are expecting to win this season opener against Jacksonville.
Unfortunately the luck of the Panthers has changed as they lost their star WR K. Benjamin with a torn ACL in the preseason, and is out for the entire season. To add to the misery their receiver D. Funchess likely will not play in the 1st game as he nurses an injury to his hamstring.
However, as the receivers go by the wayside, the Panthers still have a great running game which ranked 7th in the 2014 season. Their QB C. Newton continued scrambling as he had his 4th season with 500 plus yards in his 4 years as a pro in the NFL. Assisting in the Panthers running game will be D. Williams who in 2014 was a back-up RB who had 810 yards rushing, and this season he will be a starter.
The defense returns with most starters intact, a defense that allowed their opponents an average of only 10.50 points during the last 4 NFL seasons. The Panther expect their star LB L. Keuchly who led the NFL in tackles in 2014 and his defensive teammates to stop the Jaguars offense that only managed some 15.7 points per game on average, which happen to be the worst in the NFL in 2014. For your info the Panthers have lost both of the 2 games they played at the EverBank Field in Jacksonville both S-U and ATS.
If you’re a Jaguars of Jacksonville fan, your QB Bortles in 2014 had a decent season passing for 11 TD’s and some 2,910 yards and was intercepted on some 17 occasions, and he was more impressive than back-up QB’s B. Gabbert or QB C. Henne.
The offense got a big boost in the offseason, as the Jaguars acquired former Denver TE J. Thomas, but will more than likely be out for the 1st month with an index finger broken. During his 2 season’s he caught 12 TD’s passes each season at the Broncos. Thomas is 6’5” and weighs 250 lbs, and signed a $46 million 5 year deal with Jacksonville. Hurns in their opener in 2014 against the Eagles scored 2 TD’s with 110 yards on 4 receptions.
The defense for the Jaguars is expected to be over aggressive in their attempts to stop Panthers QB Newton. Even as their defense has no star power they still were ranked 6th in the NFL on sacks. A defensive team effort from their front 7 will seek to overcome the Panther aerial offensive unit with their top tackler who is their strong safety J. Cyprien who made 80 some tackles in 2014. The Jaguars in their ultimate 9 games their game total has been an under in six of those games. The Prediction is that the Panther will win their 1st game in Jacksonville with a close win over the Jaguars at 19-16!