CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Coach Matt Rhule said early Monday morning the goal was to have the Carolina Panthers play their best football over the final five regular-season games after returning from their bye this week.
That got more difficult later in the day when the team announced running back Christian McCaffrey would miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury suffered in the second quarter of Sunday’s 33-10 loss at the Miami Dolphins.
Statistics clearly show the Panthers are better with the NFL’s highest-paid running back ($16 million per year) than without him.