Panthers vs. Broncos Final Score Prediction for NFL Week 8 (Denver Will Trounce Carolina)

Iain MacMillan | 3 Hours Ago

Oct 13, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) and quarterback Bo Nix (10) warm up before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Week 8 of the NFL season marks the return of former No. 1 overall pick, Bryce Young, to the starting role for the Carolina Panthers. Andy Dalton sustained a minor injury in a car accident this week, which means Young will be starting in his place.

The good news is the Alabama product will get another chance to prove himself. The bad news is the start comes against arguably the best defense in the NFL in the Denver Broncos.

Let's take a look at how the news has affected the odds for the game and then I'll predict the final score.

Panthers vs. Broncos Odds, Spread, and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

• Panthers +10 (-105)
• Broncos -10 (-115)

Moneyline

• Panthers +380
• Broncos -500

Total

• OVER 41.5 (-110)
• UNDER 41.5 (-110)

The Broncos opened as 7.5-point favorites to start the week. When the news was announced that Young would start in place of Dalton, the line shifted further toward the Broncos by 2.5 points. Denver now sits at -10 at DraftKings.

The total for the game also dropped two points from 43.5 to 41.5. Bettors and oddsmakers clearly have no faith in the top pick from the 2023 draft.

Panthers vs. Broncos Final Score Prediction

In this week's edition of the "Road to 272 Bets", I wrote why I was backing the UNDER instead of betting on a side in this game:

We have a game with an elite defense and two offenses that are amongst the worst in the NFL, yet the total for the is set in the mid-40s. I don't know what the explanation for that could be.

The Broncos' defense leads the NFL in opponent yards per play at 4.4, which is 0.4 fewer yards per play than the next-best defense. They're also second in opponent EPA per play and fourth in opponent success rate. As a cherry on top, they sport the third-highest pressure rate, pressuring opposing quarterbacks on 28.6% of their dropbacks.

Considering the Panthers only average 15.7 points per game as it is, I don't know how they'll score points against this elite of a defense.

The Broncos offense hasn't been much better, averaging 20.7 points per game and ranking 25th in EPA per play.

The UNDER in this game may be my favorite bet on the board.

With that being said, if I have to predict the final score then I need to also predict a winner. With Bryce Young starting, I'd be shocked if Carolina can keep this game close. Young's performance didn't just fail the eyeball test. He had the worst performances by a quarterback by a mile this season, ranking at the bottom of almost every quarterback metric you can find.

The Broncos proved last week what they can do to a team that is no match against their defense. I expect another blowout in their favor on Sunday.

Final score prediction: Panthers 6, Broncos 31

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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