Opening odds for Panthers vs. Falcons matchup in Week 8

The NFL is working through the Week 7 schedule, but in the meantime, we’ve got some early odds to get you ready for Week 8. The Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons will face off this coming week, with kickoff set for 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 30.

The Panthers (2-5) shocked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday with a huge defensive performance, winning 21-3 despite trading away their biggest weapon earlier this week and missing their starting quarterback. With Christian McCaffrey gone, there were plenty of questions about the Panthers’ offense, but Chuba Hubbard and D’Onta Foreman stepped up to finish things off on that side of the ball. Hubbard is questionable with an ankle injury.

The Falcons (3-4) fell to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, scoring all 17 of their points in the first half. Marcus Mariota was 8-for-13 for 124 yards and a touchdown today, and rookie running back Tyler Allgeier added 50 yards on the ground. The Falcons’ secondary was no match for Cincinnati’s receiving group, but they may fare better this week against the Panthers’ run-heavy offense.

DraftKings Sportsbook posted opening odds for this matchup earlier this week. Here’s a look at what the odds opened at and where they re-opened for Panthers vs. Falcons in their Week 8 matchup.

Panthers vs. Falcons

October 23

Point spread: Falcons -6
Point total: 41
Moneyline: Falcons -260, Panthers +220

October 20

Point spread: Falcons -6.5
Point total: 41
Moneyline: Falcons -250, Panthers +210

Early pick: Panthers +6

I like this Panthers team. They’re missing their starting quarterback, they fired their head coach, they traded away their top running back, and then they beat the Buccaneers. Maybe they just needed a little freedom, but I think that they’ll be able to put up a fight against the Falcons. It’s too early to tell if this weekend was just a fluke, so I’m not willing to make the ML bet quite yet, but Carolina should cover.