NFL Preseason: Carolina Panthers at Baltimore Ravens Preview and Pick

The NFL preseason continues on Thursday night when the Carolina Panthers travel to Maryland to take on the Baltimore Ravens.

The Top 10 Sportsbooks, like Bet Mania, have set the opening line in this game, and the Baltimore Ravens started out as a 3.5 point favorite with an over-under of 33.5.

The NFL bettors came in with early action on the underdog Carolina Panthers, and the line dropped to Baltimore as three-point favorites.

To get the latest odds on the game check out Bet Mania. Sign up and use the NFL preseason code REGAW and get a $50 free bet on this game!

The Ravens go into this game with a slew of players suffering from injuries. Offensive tackle Jared Gaither and cornerbacks Fabian Washington and Chris Carr could be held out of Thursday night’s preseason game.  Free safety Ed Reed will be unable to play as he is on the team’s PUP list. The Ravens will also be without rookie linebacker Sergio Kindle, who fractured his skull a few weeks ago. Even without those players the Ravens should be fine on Thursday night.

 

Baltimore Ravens

They are very deep on both sides of the ball, especially on offense. The Ravens' probable preseason quarterback rotation will be: Joe Flacco, Marc Bulger, Troy Smith, and John Beck.

The Ravens have tremendous depth at other skill positions like wide receiver and running back.

At wide receiver the starters are Mark Clayton and Anquan Boldin, and they are backed up by veterans Donte Stallworth and Derrick Mason.

At running back they have Ray Rice and Willis McGahee to start things off and big bruising fullback Le’Ron McClain to play as fullback. Third-year man Jalen Parmele will get playing time as well.

 

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers enter this season in a semi-rebuilding mode, as they sent veterans packing in the offseason. Quarterback Jake Delhomme now plays for the Browns, and defensive end Julius Peppers now sacks opposing quarterbacks in Chicago.

The Panthers' probable preseason quarterback rotation is Matt Moore, Jimmy Clausen (rookie—Notre Dame), Hunter Cantwell and Tony Pike (rookie—Cincinnati). This is an impressive lineup, although it does not have much experience. Expect Moore and Clausen to handle the quarterback duties in the first half.

At running back the Panthers have talent in DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, but they won’t see much playing time, and Stewart may not play at all. Expect a lot of Tyrell Sutton, Dantrell Savage, and Josh Vaughan out of the backfield.

At wide receiver Steve Smith is still out nursing an injury, and the Panthers are razor-thin in this spot.

 

Game-Time Winning Pick

John Fox focuses more on execution than winning in the preseason, evidenced by a 3-10 record against the spread. The Ravens are very deep and experienced on offense, and that will be the difference in this game. Bulger is fighting for the No. 2 spot and will have veteran wide receivers playing alongside him. The deep offense will be too much for a young Panthers team.

Play Ravens -3

 

The NFL is back! Although it’s just preseason, it’s great to watch football again!

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Other Preseason Previews and Picks

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