4 bold Carolina Panthers predictions vs. the Bengals in Week 4
By Luke Gray
Week 3 was pretty much a perfect outing for Dave Canales as he secured his first win as an NFL head coach. The Carolina Panthers dominated in all three facets of the game to secure a win over the Las Vegas Raiders, finally kicking their season into gear after a sputtering start.
Attention now turns to Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals. They are coming off a surprising loss to the Jayden Daniels-led Washington Commanders and will be desperate to avoid an 0-4 start in the always competitive AFC North. But Carolina, now led by Andy Dalton, will be confident of pulling off a win to get themselves back to .500.
After fans finally got to see some offensive competency, much of the same will be expected in Week 4 as the Panthers welcome a Bengals team whose defense was non-existent on Monday Night Football. Daniels ended the contest with more touchdowns than incompletions - a damning stat for defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo.
Dalton will be hoping for success against his former team. But the result will likely depend on how the Panthers stop the dynamic pairing of former LSU teammates Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase.
Without further ado, let’s look at four bold predictions for the Panthers in Week 4.
Bold Carolina Panthers predictions vs. the Bengals in Week 4
Andy Dalton has another 300-yard, 3-touchdown game
When Dave Canales decided to bench Bryce Young the day after he threw for just 84 yards in a home loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, not many would have expected what transpired at the Las Vegas Raiders.
Dalton became the first quarterback in the NFL this season to throw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns, completing 26-of-37 passes for 319 yards and three scores with a 123.6 passer rating. Simply night and day compared to what fans had seen under Young through two weeks.
The offense went from simply unwatchable to scoring 35-plus points for the first time since the Christmas Eve demolition of the Detroit Lions in 2022. Dalton will fancy his chances at emulating his success against the team that drafted him back in 2011.
In the Monday Night Football loss at home to the Washington Commanders, the Cincinnati defense had rookie Jayden Daniels looking akin to Patrick Mahomes as the former Heisman Trophy winner picked apart their defense. Dalton will be licking his lips at the opportunity to get one over his old team.