Dolphins vs Panthers Odds

Written by Kyle Hunter

The NFL Network’s Thursday night games are back again this week and it will be the Miami Dolphins traveling to take on the Carolina Panthers in what should be pretty good football game. The dynamics of the game have been changed a little by the news that Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown will miss the game because of an ankle injury, but the Dolphins do have Ricky Williams and both teams have plenty to play for in this one. Both teams enter at 4-5 and you have to think that whichever team loses this game will likely see any hope of a postseason berth dashed.

The Miami Dolphins started the season 0-3, but they have since played pretty decent football and given themselves a shot to get back into the thick of things. Chad Henne has done a nice job stepping in for the injured Chad Pennington. Henne hasn’t necessarily been asked to do a lot, but he has shown poise and has led the team to two last minute come from behind victories, including last weekend against Tampa Bay. Ronnie Brown is the star of the offense, but since he will be out this Thursday Ricky Williams will shoulder much of the load. Williams is in terrific shape this year and is averaging 5.3 yards per carry. Expect the Wildcat to still be a force with Williams in the backfield. The defense of the Dolphins has been great against the run, but a little below par against the pass this year.

Just like the Dolphins the Panthers started 0-3 and have spent the last few weeks digging out of that hole. Jake Delhomme has had a forgettable season thus far, throwing 13 interceptions and just 7 touchdowns. It isn’t by accident though that in the last 3 games Delhomme has thrown 0 picks and the Panthers offense has scored 34, 20, and 28 points in those contests. The rushing attack for the Panthers is very strong with DeAngelo Williams leading the charge by averaging 5.1 yards per carry and scoring 7 touchdowns. On the outside the Panthers have big play wide receiver Steve Smith, who can change the way defenses play single-handedly. The Panthers defense is balanced and does well forcing turnovers and pressuring the quarterback.

The NFL betting lines for this week show the Panthers are a 3 point home favorite in this pivotal Thursday night match up. The posted total has been set at 43.5 points. If you are looking to make NFL football picks you might want to know a couple of strong trends that apply to this game. The Dolphins are 8-3 against the spread in their last 11 road games and the Panthers are 4-1 against the spread in their last 5 games overall, but they are just 1-5 against the spread in their last 6 home games.

Both teams are going to want to establish the run in this one. Without Ronnie Brown the Dolphins are missing a lot, but they will still have a formidable rushing attack. The Dolphins have shown they can stop the run so far this year, but the Panthers feature one of the best rushing games in the league so we’ll see how that plays out. The two quarterbacks will need to protect the ball in this one and guide their offense with precision. It should be a very good match up.

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