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Carolina (2-2, 0-1 away) at Arizona (1-3, 1-1 home)

Why To Watch
The Panthers and Cardinals are both coming off critical prime-time victories that could very well have resuscitated their respective seasons. If Carolina is to keep the momentum rolling during its road trip to Arizona this week, the team must rededicate itself to the running game. That may require giving backup RB DeShaun Foster more chances to provide the burst that starter Stephen Davis is not offering the unit right now.

The Cardinals, on the other hand, have to be encouraged by the play of fill-in QB Josh McCown, who threw for 385 yards in Sunday night's victory over the 49ers. However, if Dennis Green's team has any chance of getting back into the NFC playoff picture, McCown must cut down his mental errors and get significantly more help from a running game that essentially has become a non-factor.


When the Panthers have the ball
Rushing: The Panthers have been surprisingly inept at establishing the ground game this season, ranking in the bottom half of the league in that department. Starting RB Davis continues to lack explosiveness and is a big reason why the unit as a whole is averaging just 3.3 yards per carry.

Davis had just 51 yards on 19 carries against Green Bay, but the Panthers continue to give him more carries than backup DeShaun Foster, despite Foster showing much more burst when he is in the game. It would seem logical to at least let the two backs split the carries more equally, but the Panthers continue to use Davis as the primary ballcarrier and Foster in more of a third-down role.

Regardless, the Panthers have the opportunity to get their running game untracked this week against a Cardinals run defense that is surrendering 110.8 yards per contest. Arizona is much more athletic up front this season with the likes of DEs Chike Okeafor, Bertrand Berry and Darnell Dockett, but the unit as a whole lacks ideal size and strength when forced to defend the run. Berry will get too far upfield at times, Dockett wears down easily, and his fellow defensive tackle starter, Ross Kolodziej, is a marginal starter. There also is very little depth along the defensive line, which makes this unit susceptible to a disciplined, patient and powerful running attack.

Passing: QB Jake Delhomme has to like his chances in the passing game this week. For starters, he should have a huge mismatch with WR Steve Smith working against RDC David Macklin. Truthfully, Macklin should be nothing more than a nickel cornerback in the NFL. However, the Cardinals are so weak at the position that Macklin has been forced into a starter's role.

Making matters even worse is the season-ending knee injury to starting LDC Antrel Rolle. As much as the Cardinals would like to roll their coverage to Macklin's side in order to give him extra help against Smith, they will be limited in how much attention they can give because of the inexperience of rookie Eric Green, the starter on the other side. Look for Smith, who clearly has been Delhomme's favorite target with 25 receptions for 354 yards and four touchdowns this season, to put up huge numbers in this mismatch.

Also, with safeties Adrian Wilson and Robert Griffith spending so much time helping out Macklin and Green along the deep perimeter, there should be lots of room for underrated TE Kris Mangum to operate down the middle. If the Cardinals have any chance of holding up against the passing game, RDE Bertrand Berry (4.5 sacks already this season) must consistently exploit his mismatch vs. slower and less-athletic Panthers LOT Travelle Wharton.

When the Cardinals have the ball
Rushing: The Cardinals currently own one of the NFL's least-impressive rushing attacks, averaging just 75 yards per game on the ground. The unit has good size and strength along the offensive line, but missed assignments, inexperience playing together and an overall lack of athletic ability has led to entirely too many miscues.

Furthermore, RBs J.J. Arrington and Marcel Shipp have shown little consistency carrying the football. Arrington has explosive burst and change-of-direction skills, but his vision and patience are lacking right now. Shipp has better experience and can find holes more consistently, but he is unable to create and run away from defenders very often.

Things will not come any easier this week against a Panthers' defense that is surrendering just 85.5 yards per game on the ground. The Panthers certainly miss DT Kris Jenkins' presence, but they are getting strong play out of the tandem of Kindal Moorehead and Jordan Carstens, who are rotating opposite LDT Brentson Buckner.

DEs Mike Rucker and Julius Peppers will create huge mismatches for massive but slow-footed OTs Leonard Davis and Oliver Ross. With Arizona having to commit so much attention to the Panthers' defensive linemen, MLB Dan Morgan and WLB Will Witherspoon should have all the room they need to pursue the run from sideline to sideline.

Passing: McCown put up some solid numbers in the passing game last week, and he did not throw an interception, which is extremely promising. However, he continues to miss a lot of open receivers and makes too many errant throws. Nevertheless, at this point, McCown seems to give this team its best chance to win.

McCown has the mobility to avoid some of the pass rush that his marginally athletic offensive line continues to let through. He also is a gunslinging, competitive type who isn't afraid to take chances downfield. That is exactly what this team needs out of its quarterback seeing as it has such great young talent at wide receiver in Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Bryant Johnson.

Look for the Cardinals to continue to spread the field with a lot of three-receiver sets. With LDC Ken Lucas returning opposite RDC Chris Gamble, the Panthers have the athletes to match up in some one-on-one situations in coverage. However, nickel slot DC Ricky Manning will be overmatched by any of the Cardinals' top three receivers, so look for McCown to target Manning as much as possible.

McCown is likely to be on the run for a good portion of the afternoon, as his offensive line stands little chance of holding up against the front-four of Peppers, Buckner, Moorehead and Rucker. The Cardinals will need to keep backs or tight ends in on many of their passing attempts in order to give McCown some added protection. That means the pressure will be on Fitzgerald, Boldin and Johnson to get open against a lot of six- and seven-defender coverage looks in the Panthers' secondary.