North Charlotte Today

The Carolina Panthers are preparing for a significant divisional matchup as they face the New Orleans Saints this weekend. The Saints, who defeated the Panthers 47-10 in their first meeting of the season, have since struggled and hold a 2-6 record coming into Charlotte.

The quarterback situation for the Saints remains uncertain. Derek Carr, who began the season as the starter, has been sidelined with an oblique injury since Week 5. Rookie Spencer Rattler has taken over in his absence. However, Saints coach Dennis Allen expressed optimism about Carr's potential return against the Panthers. "Derek Carr had a throwing session again today, looked good in the throwing session," Allen said. "I would expect him to be back out at practice again on Wednesday."

Regardless of who starts at quarterback, Alvin Kamara remains a pivotal part of the Saints' offense. Kamara leads New Orleans' rushing attack with 505 yards on 121 carries and is also a key receiving threat with 40 receptions for 307 yards. He has scored seven touchdowns this season.

While Kamara is central to their offensive strategy, other players like Chris Olave contribute significantly as well. Olave has accumulated 387 yards and accounts for about 25% of the team's targets following Rashid Shaheed's season-ending surgery.

The Panthers will need to focus on controlling possession time to keep these offensive threats off the field, especially considering that five of New Orleans' six losses occurred when their opponents dominated possession time.