Panthers open as underdogs vs. Jim Harbaugh, Chargers for Week 2 matchup at home

The Carolina Panthers are only underdogs by less than a touchdown for their Week 2 matchup with the LA Chargers.

Aug 17, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh reacts against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half at SoFi Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Perhaps the scariest thing about the Carolina Panthers' humiliating 37-point loss on Sunday was that their opponents really weren't all that impressive. The New Orleans Saints are unlikely to be a playoff team this year under head coach Dennis Allen. However, they were good enough to pulverize the Panthers on offense, defense and special teams in yesterday's game.

Things are going to get worse before they get better, because the schedule isn't going to get any easier anytime soon. Next up on the slate is Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers, who have opened as 5.5 point road favorites for next week's game against Carolina, per Draft Kings Sportsbook.

The Chargers are coming off a 22-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1. Running back J.K. Dobbins led the way for LA's offensive attack, totaling 135 yards and a touchdown on just 10 carries. It was a relatively quiet game for star quarterback Justin Herbert, who posted just 144 total passing yards and a 31.8 QBR.

That's to be expected from this team in 2024, though. Under Harbaugh the Chargers are going to be a run-first, defensive oriented kind of challenge. Rookie head coach Dave Canales could do worse than just watching what Harbaugh does throughout the game and taking notes, because an upset against literally any other team right now sounds pretty close to impossible. A betting man would take LA at -5.5 and not look back for a second.

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