New Orleans Saints-Carolina Panthers Week 9 NFL Thursday Game Preview

The NFL kicks off Week 9 on Thursday night with two NFC South teams looking to get back to the .500 mark when the New Orleans Saints (3-4) hit the road to take on the Carolina Panthers (3-4-1).  At stake will be first place in the division.

This will be the 39th matchup between the two clubs, with Carolina leading the series 20-18. The Panthers have also won three of the past four matchups.

The Panthers, who are looking to rebound from a 13-9 loss to Seattle, welcome the return of running back DeAngelo Williams. Williams, who has missed the past four games with an ankle injury, will rejoin Jonathan Stewart in the backfield as Carolina looks to take control of the division as the second half of the season begins.

“You’ve got to win within the division, and you’ve got to win at home,” says Carolina head coach Ron Rivera. “That’s the key. This is a good opportunity to be sharp. Our guys are playing hard. We’ve got to find ways to put them in position to have success.”

In the loss, rookie wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin (Round 1, No. 28 overall) had four catches for 94 yards, including a career-long 51-yard reception in the fourth quarter to set up one of the team’s three field goals. Benjamin currently leads NFC rookies with 571 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

“We didn’t play our best football on Sunday,” says Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. “The next opportunity awaits on Thursday and I’m anticipating that to be a great game for us.”

The Saints head into Thursday night also getting key contributions from their first-round rookie receiver. Brandin Cooks (Round 1, No. 20 overall) had six catches for 94 yards and scored two touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) in the Saints’ 44-23 home win over Green Bay on Sunday Night Football.

Cooks is the first Saints rookie to score on both a rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown in the same game since 2006 (Reggie Bush, December 3, 2006 vs. San Francisco). Cooks leads all rookies with 40 receptions and is fourth among rookies with 372 receiving yards.

Saints running back Mark Ingram was also instrumental in the win, rushing for a career-high 172 yards on 24 carries with one touchdown.

“The offensive line did a great job and we’ve just got to keep improving, keep getting better,” says Ingram. “Carolina is a good team, a great team. Those NFC South games are always tough so we’re going to have to bring our ‘A’ game.”

New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees passed for 311 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions for a 138.4 passer rating in the Saints’ win last week.

Since joining New Orleans in 2006, Brees has led the Saints to 22-10 (.688) record in primetime games (any game that starts 7:00 PM or later on the East Coast), the third-best record of any team during that span. With a win on Thursday night, New Orleans can tie the New England Patriots (23) for the second-most wins in primetime since 2006.

“There’s no more important game than this quick turnaround, the Thursday night game at Carolina,” says Brees. “This was the team that won the division last year. We are going to need our best performance to beat them.”

Brees has 78 touchdown passes during primetime games, trailing only Peyton Manning (97) for the most during that span. His 9,639 passing yards are also the fourth-most on primetime since 2006.

Still, all eyes might be on the wideouts Thursday night.  NFL teams have gotten key contributions from rookie wide receivers this year, with Cooks and Benjamin being two of the most impressive.

“I said before the draft that this was the deepest pool of receiving talent that I’ve seen since I started doing this in 2003,” says NFL Network analyst and former NFL scout Daniel Jeremiah.

In Week 8, nine rookie wide receivers had at least 75 receiving yards, the most in a single week in NFL history. All nine receivers were selected in the first four rounds of the 2014 NFL Draft and all within the first 118 picks.

“I think 10 of my top 50 players in this draft were wide receivers,” says Jeremiah. “And this group has more than lived up to the hype.”


WEEK 9 INJURY REPORT – SAINTS at PANTHERS

New Orleans Saints

DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN PRACTICE

Monday
LB David Hawthorne (hand), RB Austin Johnson (knee), RB Khiry Robinson (forearm), RB Pierre Thomas (rib, shoulder)

Tuesday
LB David Hawthorne (hand), RB Austin Johnson (knee), RB Khiry Robinson (forearm), RB Pierre Thomas (rib, shoulder)


LIMITED PARTICIPATION IN PRACTICE

Monday
C Jonathan Goodwin (knee, ankle), TE Jimmy Graham (shoulder), LB Kyle Knox (ankle)

Tuesday
C Jonathan Goodwin (knee, ankle), TE Jimmy Graham (shoulder), LB Kyle Knox (ankle)


Carolina Panthers

DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN PRACTICE

Monday
T Byron Bell (knee), CB Bene' Benwikere (ankle), LB Chase Blackburn (knee), WR Corey Brown (concussion), S Thomas DeCoud (hamstring), G Amini Silatolu (calf), G Trai Turner (knee), RB Fozzy Whittaker (thigh)

Tuesday
T Byron Bell (elbow), CB Bene' Benwikere (ankle), WR Corey Brown (concussion), S Thomas DeCoud (hamstring), G Amini Silatolu (calf), G Trai Turner (knee), RB Fozzy Whittaker (thigh)


LIMITED PARTICIPATION IN PRACTICE

Monday
T Nate Chandler (thigh), DT Kawann Short (ankle), RB DeAngelo Williams (ankle), LB Jason Williams (hip)

Tuesday
T Nate Chandler (thigh), DT Kawann Short (ankle), RB DeAngelo Williams (ankle), LB Jason Williams (hip)

By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com