The Panthers, at 7-6, are ironically the team with the best record in one-score games, at 6-1. Two of those wins came against two of the best teams in the NFC: the Green Bay Packers and the Los Angeles Rams. They also hold a slim three-point victory over the Dallas Cowboys, who have been trying to make a late playoff push.

Good news: at least to begin this stretch one analyst sees McMillan as a strong play. The Big Lead has McMillan ranked among the NFL's top 15 wide receivers for Week 15.

One of the NFL's biggest surprises, Carolina (7-6) is coming off an impressive 31-28 win over the Los Angeles Rams. And while they are still on the outside looking in on the NFC playoff picture, the Panthers now control their own playoff destiny in the NFC South thanks to the Buccaneers ' loss to the Falcons on Thursday night.

On Wednesday night, the NFL announced the freshly-slated times for their Week 17 games. That weekend will see the Panthers host the Seattle Seahawks from Bank of America Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 28 at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Meanwhile in the NFC, the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles are floundering, the Detroit Lions might not even make the postseason and there's also no clear team-to-beat in their place, with only a single game separating the one seed and the seventh seed.

The Panthers have an undeniably easier time knocking the four-times defending NFC South champions off of their throne if the Falcons triumph tonight. Remember, rooting for them to win doesn’t mean we’re rooting for them to look good. A win is a win, even if it comes at the “expense” of Tampa just looking plain awful on a short week.

These teams met back on November 9 with the Saints winning 17-7. The New Orleans defense owned the day limiting the Panthers to a mere 73 yards rushing and just 175 yards of total offense. No doubt Carolina needs a more balanced attack this weekend.

Josh Kendall and Chad Graff of The Athletic released their NFL Power Rankings for Week 15. The focus here are the Carolina Panthers. Dave Canales’s squad was off last week, and managed to move three rungs up the ladder from the No. 18 spot to 15th. The Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers both own 7-6 win-loss records atop the NFC South.