October 13, 2026
Bill Streicher/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Bryce Young and the Panthers aren't the NFC pushovers they used to be.
The Eagles have fallen into a rut of three straight losses, plagued by injuries, poor offensive playcalling, and even poorer situational decision-making.
They're 2-3 now, falling to below .500 for the first time since 2021, and after the past two games against the Rams in Philly and then the Jaguars in London, are no longer the automatic favorites that they've usually been from week to week for the past several years.
Times are changing. Even so, the Eagles are back to being a betting favorite for Week 6 as they return home to South Philadelphia to face the Carolina Panthers, but narrowly.
Sportsbooks have the Birds at around 1-1.5 points over Carolina. Here's a look at several, along with the money lines and over/under point totals...
| Sportsbook | Spread | Money Line | Total O/U |
| DraftKings | PHI -1.5 | CAR -105 PHI -115 | 41.5 |
| FanDuel | PHI -1.5 | CAR +100 PHI -118 | 41.5 |
| BetRivers | PHI -1 | CAR -103 PHI -120 | 42 |
| BetMGM | PHI -1 | CAR -105 PHI -115 | 42 |
| Caesars | PHI -1 | CAR +102 PHI -120 | 41.5 |
*Lines as of Tuesday, Oct. 13
The Eagles look to have another tough week ahead of them.
Last Sunday's late crumbling to Jacksonville further drove home that the team just isn't as talented as it used to be, and at least on the offensive side of the football, doesn't have smart enough personnel to compensate for it through scheme and situational awareness.
Jalen Hurts and the Birds stalled out with the ball through the second half, again, and even after they did swing a final drive for a late go-ahead field goal, head coach Nick Sirianni tossed it all away with an ill-advised kickoff plan that let the Jaguars take the winning kick for themselves with just one second left – just one second too much for the Birds.
And this was all after a Monday night embarrassment from the Bears, who were playing with third-string QB Case Keenum, and a fourth-quarter meltdown to the Rams after the Eagles had built up a 10-point lead, only to fall back on seemingly all the worst traits of a Sirianni-dictated offense.
Lane Johnson's retirement early last week already felt like a point of no return for the team, but then general manager Howie Roseman's call to trade the struggling Cam Jurgens to Baltimore for a 2028 second-round draft pick signaled enough that the organization was ready to start looking beyond this season for a restock, even when the team was still 2-2.
It was a deceptive 2-2, though, and the loss to the Jaguars in London was enough to show why.
The Eagles are hoping to get Saquon Barkley back as their leading running back and DeVonta Smith as their No. 1 receiver, after both positions have been torn apart in the past couple of weeks. Their skill should help for sure, if they're healthy, but they probably won't solve all the Eagles' current problems alone.
And then there's the Panthers, who at 2-2 after a bye week, aren't quite the pushovers they used to be in what's often been a weak NFC South.
Carolina QB Bryce Young is averaging 317.0 passing yards per game, which ranks as the best in the NFL right now, above even last year's MVP Matthew Stafford, while throwing for nine touchdowns to just two interceptions.
At the same time, running back Chuba Hubbard and receiver Tetairoa McMillan provide Young and the Carolina offense with some elusive threats, who each proved way too much for the Detroit Lions' defense during the Panthers' 32-26 win in Week 4 – Hubbard ran for 122 yards and two touchdowns, and McMillan caught 14 passes for 192 yards and two scores himself.
The Panthers could also be getting Jalen Coker back from injury this week as another pass-catching threat, which would give Carolina more to spread the ball around with against an Eagles' defense that has shown its openings in the secondary.
Jalen Carter, after a monster pass-rushing effort against the Jaguars, could be crucial again when it comes to deciding whether Young will even have time to look.
The Eagles can win this week, but they also had their chances to win the past two weeks and let it slip away from them.
Now, pressure is building.
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