Packers vs Panthers on Thursday Night Football: Two Teams Coming Off Losses Open Week 8 at Lambeau Field
Green Bay is 4-3 and favored by 3.5 at home. Carolina is 3-3, down its top two cornerbacks, and coming off a 30-point loss. The NFL's Week 8 opens tonight at Lambeau Field, streaming on Prime Video at 7:15 p.m. Central.
Week 8 of the NFL season opens under the Lambeau Field lights. The Carolina Panthers visit the Green Bay Packers on Thursday Night Football, with kickoff at 7:15 p.m. Central, streaming nationally on Prime Video with Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit and Kaylee Hartung on the call, and over-the-air coverage in the Green Bay, Milwaukee and Charlotte markets.
Both teams arrive off losses. Green Bay, 4-3, fell 20-17 to Detroit last week, a defeat that snapped a three-game winning streak. Carolina, 3-3, was routed 43-13 by Tampa Bay. As of 4 p.m. Central Thursday, DraftKings had the Packers as 3.5-point favorites, with the moneyline at Green Bay -180 and Carolina +150 and the total set at 46.5.
The matchup's pressure point is on the outside. USA TODAY's preview notes the Panthers remain without their top two cornerbacks, which should give Green Bay receivers Christian Watson and Matthew Golden chances to make downfield plays, while running back Josh Jacobs faces a Carolina run defense that has struggled this season. Carolina's counter is quarterback Bryce Young, who performed better in the Panthers' last prime-time outing - a 32-26 Week 4 win over Detroit - than he did against Tampa Bay.
For the loser, the hole deepens in a crowded NFC: Green Bay is chasing Detroit in the North, and Carolina cannot afford a second straight blowout with its secondary this thin. The winner leaves Thursday night with the rest of Week 8 to watch from in front.
