More photos » by Charles Krupa - AP

1 day ago: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) scrambles as he tries to elude Carolina Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers (90) during the first half of an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

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Good morning Panther faithful! Realistically, who thought we were going to beat the Patriots on Sunday? I always think the Panthers have a shot, but with a banged up o-line, a decimated D-line and a young QB it was always going to be an extremely tough game. Wes Welker demonized the Panthers' defense showing why he's one of the pre-eminent wide receivers in football; this coupled with a near 100 yard game from Kevin Faulk and the Patriots were near guaranteed a win, especially with how bad the Panthers' offense played on Sunday.

However, it wasn't all bad on Sunday. There were a few standout performances and some that were lacking. So join me when I break it all down:

After the jump...

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More photos » by Lynne Sladky - AP

8 days ago: New England Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss (81) speaks to quarterback Tom Brady (12) during the third quarter of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Miami, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Good morning Panther faithful and happy hump day! This Sunday's game between the Carolina Panthers (5-7) and the New England Patriots (7-5) proves to be one of the biggest tests of the Panther's season. The Patriots may be 7-5, but most agree they're far more dangerous than their record shows, meanwhile, the Panthers are 5-7, but like the Patriots most agree that they have the potential to be far more dangerous than their 5 wins suggest.

This 2009 Pats team is not the same as previous iterations. While still dangerous in every phase of the game they're not nearly the juggernaut in every phase that we've seen during their dynasty run. This leaves the door slightly open for Matt Moore and the Carolina Panthers to press the advantage. So, how do we match up against the Pats? Find out:

After the jump...

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NBA writer John Hollinger does this every year starting around this time. Using a computer simulation run 5,000 times ESPN predicts the results of the 2009-10 NBA season and prognosticates who will make the playoffs this season.

You can find a link to the predictions here.

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More photos » by Mike McCarn - AP

8 days ago: Carolina Panthers' Matt Moore, right,talks with injured quarterback Jake Delhomme, left, in the second half of their 16-6 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Mike McCarn)

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Good morning Panther faithful! I have to start by saying one thing- Redzone Defense WOW! If case you didn't get a chance to see Sunday's game vs. Tampa Bay here's the single reason we won right here: The Carolina Panthers stopped the Buccaneers 5 times in the red zone, and another 3 times between 20 and 30 yards out. While these 20-30 yard stops are not technically red zone defensive stands, for all intents are purposes we had 8 occasions where the Bucs were knocking on the door and the Panthers defense said ‘No'. It was a good thing that the defense stepped up, because the Panthers offense was anemic on Sunday.

As good as the Panthers' defense was on Sunday there are still a lot of other areas to be optimistic about, and some others we need to be wary of. So please join me and I break it all down

After the jump...

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In Matt Moore's three true starts in 2007 the Carolina Panthers' receiving corps was drastically different than the group we have today. However, some of the key players are still on our offense. Today we're going to look behind Moore's numbers from those three games to see what his passing tendencies were and try and see if we can paint a picture of the QB and who he might be looking for on Sunday vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The setup is quite simple really. Take Moore's attempted passes and see who he liked to throw to in 2007. We're looking at attempts over completions because it puts the onus on Moore, and paints a better picture of who he likes to target. In the end we'll break it all down and I'll come up with a rough estimate for how I think he'll distribute the ball on Sunday.

So join me... after the jump

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More photos » by Chuck Burton - AP

Matt Moore can take the rain, but can he stand the torrent of expectation placed on him on Sunday? (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

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Happy hump day Panther faithful! I like Wednesdays, I always have. For a football fan the day is particularly forgiving. I don't know the intimate details of how grieving works, but I do know that my disappointment from Sunday, which normally manifests itself as anger around Monday has become accepted by Wednesday. This is the time I start to get excited about Sunday's game. I know many fans these days will say something akin to ‘How can you be excited about this team?' well, it's simple. At times like this I dig deep, reflect on the team and remember the past summer when all there was available was baseball. It drastically helps put things in perspective and be thankful I have football, any football, to watch on Sunday.

The Carolina Panthers (4-7) are at home to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-10) and though the Bucs are having a poor season, if you're a fan of them you have a lot to be hopeful for; Josh Freeman looks like the real deal. These division matchups are always tough; there are no easy wins in the NFC South, so let's break it down.

More after the jump...

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