Carolina Panthers Schedule: 2023 NFL Games, Strength Of Schedule, Fantasy Outlooks

The Carolina Panthers have the sixth-easiest schedule in the league in terms of the combined winning percentage of opponents last season.

Unfortunately for the Panthers, the Saints and Falcons both have easier schedules than the Panthers. Everyone in the NFC South has less-than-formidable opponents lined up.

How will the road ahead affect the outcome of their season? How will it impact the fantasy football players on their squad? Let's take a look and examine this further.

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• Kicker fantasy football rankings
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• Dynasty fantasy football rankings

How Tough Is The Panthers' 2023 Schedule?

It helps when the Panthers play in the NFC South and square off against weak teams like the Falcons, Saints, and Buccaneers twice a year. This year, every NFC South team also plays each team in the AFC South, possibly the only division weaker than the NFC South.

Their intraconference opponents are the NFC North, which could be hit-or-miss. The Packers have a good lineup, but the unproven Jordan Love is coming in at quarterback. The Vikings won 13 games in 2022, but their point differential was -3. The Lions are considered a rising team. Even the Bears could be tough just because of the difficulty of containing Justin Fields' rushing ability.

The Panthers' push for a division title might come down to the wire. In the final six games of the season, they play four games against divisional opponents. A stretch from Week 13 to Week 15 includes road matchups against the Bucs and Saints and then a home game against the Falcons.

2023 Panthers Schedule Analysis for Fantasy Football

Panthers wide receivers and their quarterback has easy fantasy schedules this season. Their intraconference opponents in the NFC North – the Lions, Bears, and Vikings, – all landed in the top seven for most points allowed to opposing fantasy QBs. The Lions were the easiest matchup for fantasy QBs. While the Lions did improve their secondary, another reason the Lions allowed a lot of points to fantasy quarterbacks was due to the Lions' strong offense, which resulted in many shootouts.

The Panthers' stretch from Week 4 to Week 6 includes the Vikings, Lions, and Dolphins, all games that could turn into high-scoring affairs that would benefit Bryce Young and wide receivers like Adam Thielen and Jonathan Mingo. The Panthers' receiving core includes some veterans and the early-second round pick Mingo. While Mingo is currently slotted as the WR4, he could move into the starting lineup if he wows at training camp.

The Panthers running back situation also is a little bit uncertain. Free agent acquisition Miles Sanders will probably be the RB1, but Sanders has not been a high-volume bell cow for most of his career. RB2 Chuba Hubbard proved to be a capable running back last season.

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