Falcons vs Panthers: The best betting props for TNF

The Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers are both coming off heartbreaking losses last weekend, and will now square off in an NFC South showdown on Thursday Night Football. This is the second meeting of the season between these clubs.

The Falcons have just one win so far this year, and appeared to hit rock bottom when they fired head coach Dan Quinn earlier this month. 

Meanwhile, the Panthers have already exceeded preseason expectations with a 3-4 record, which keeps them in the playoff conversation despite the loss of their star running back Christian McCaffrey. Luckily for Carolina fans, McCaffrey is back practicing and is trying to suit up Thursday. 

Here are the three best prop bets for Thursday’s game between the Falcons and Panthers. 

Teddy Bridgewater passing yards

Teddy Bridgewater continues to be one of the best comeback stories in football. 

After coming back from a catastrophic leg injury a few years ago with Minnesota, to putting in his time as a backup in New Orleans last season, Bridgewater has emerged as the starter in Carolina in the post-Cam Newton Era, and has done a solid job this season. 

Bridgewater is averaging 275 passing yards per game, and the Over/Under for his total passing yards on Thursday is 279.

Bridgewater has already had success against the Falcons defense this season, throwing for 313 yards and two touchdowns in Week 5. He also completed 75% of his passes, and has the weapons in his receiving corps to be successful. 

The Falcons defense continues to bleed passing yards. They have yet to keep an opposing offense to fewer than 300 pass yards in a game, and that includes the Chicago Bears.  

Pick: Over 279.5 passing yards (-115)

Anytime touchdown

Robby Anderson is on pace for a big season in his first year with Carolina. Through seven games, he has 640 receiving yards on 46 receptions. 

The targets have been there. The catches have been there. The receiving yards are there. The touchdowns, however, have not been there. 

He has just one TD, which he caught back in Week 1. It's a bit surprising, given he has the second most red zone targets on the Panthers, but despite a productive season, going from the red zone to the end zone just hasn’t been as automatic as he’d like, with catches on just 40% of his red zone targets. 

There is an opportunity to change that Thursday. 

The Falcons have held their opponents to 23 points in each of the last three weeks, but their pass defense has been burned pretty much all season. 

They have allowed the most receiving yards and the most receiving touchdowns, two of those coming in a Week 5 loss to the Panthers. Anderson had eight catches on 12 targets for 112 yards that day. 

Last weekend it was fellow receiver D.J. Moore who had a big day for Carolina, with two touchdowns. Robby Anderson has a prime opportunity to break out of his TD slump against the Falcons on Thursday.

Pick: Robby Anderson anytime touchdown (+125)

Todd Gurley rushing yards

Todd Gurley has been incredibly busy for the Falcons offense in the last two weeks, with 43 rushing attempts over that time. The yardage has been terrible, however, as he has averaged just 2.35 and 2.74 yards per carry in each of his last two games. 

He gets what should be an easier matchup on Thursday. The Panthers are in the bottom 10 teams in the league when it comes to total rushing yards allowed, and opposing running backs have averaged 4.9 yards per carry this season against Carolina.  

The Over/Under for Gurley rushing yards is set at 63.5, and while his last two outings would not have been good enough to reach the Over, he should have a chance to put up vastly improved numbers this week. 

Gurley rushed 14 times for 121 yards – 8.64 yards per carry – against the Panthers in Week 5. 

Working on a short week, it’s unlikely Gurley will see the same workload as he has in the last two games, and no one should expect triple digit rushing yards on Thursday based on his performance three weeks ago. He has gone over the century mark only once this year. But if he can turn 15 to 17 carries into 4.5 yards per carry, the Over is a winner. 

Pick: Over 63.5 rushing yards (-115)

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