Three bold predictions for Carolina Panthers against Pittsburgh Steelers

McCaffrey will rush for under 100 yards

This is a prediction that I do not want to make. However, not all predictions have to be positive. Christian McCaffrey will rush for under 100 yards in Thursday’s game, as running room will be difficult to find.

Pittsburgh currently ranks fifth in the National Football League in fewest yards given up. With 722, they are holding their own to say the least. They also rank sixth in the league in fewest yards allowed per game with 90.3. To put that in perspective, McCaffrey has rushed for over 90 yards only once this season.

If there is one positive about the statistics for the Carolina running backs, it is that the Steelers are giving up a bit more than four yards a carry. Particularly in a first down situation, getting four yards via the ground game is a nice starting point. McCaffrey has averaged over four yards a carry five times this season. His best mark was a 6.6 effort against the Cincinnati Bengals back in September. In that contest, he rushed the ball 28 times for 184 yards. That remains his highest yardage total to this point in the season.

There is a very good chance McCaffrey could struggle on Thursday in the running game. Luckily, he is versatile enough to make an impact if he cannot find running lanes. He needs to be a focal part of the game plan either way. What the Panthers will have to do is find which method of offense (rushing or receiving out of the backfield) works best and utilize him that way.