Colts vs Panthers Odds, Prediction: Bet Underdog Carolina?

Colts vs. Panthers odds have Indianapolis as 1.5-point road favorites, with a game total over/under that sits in the range of 44.5 to 45.5.

Bryce Young and the Panthers finally picked up their first win of the season last week against the Texans, and now they are looking to build some positive momentum after busting a six-game losing streak. The Colts have lost three straight games and are desperate for a win in this spot.

Both teams are already in a spot where it’s hard to envision them making any kind of playoff push so a loss here could eliminate any last glimpse of hope.

Let's preview the game and get into my Colts vs. Panthers prediction below.

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Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how the Colts and Panthers match up statistically:

Colts vs. Panthers DVOA Breakdown

	Offense	Defense	Edge
Overall DVOA	11	29
Pass DVOA	16	14
Rush DVOA	4	32

	Offense	Defense	Edge
Overall DVOA	30	21
Pass DVOA	28	21
Rush DVOA	29	21

There was a lot of optimism around Gardner Minshew when he took over for the injured Anthony Richardson. He was widely regarded as one of the top backups in the league and many even thought he would be an upgrade.

When Jonathan Taylor returned, the optimism rose even higher for this Colts team to compete in a relatively weak AFC South. However, the Minshew era has been rough as the Colts are 0-3 since he took over as the full-time starter.

Minshew has had some problems in the turnover department, and he continues to play inconsistently at times, but it’s hard to blame him for the Colts’ current skid. Their defense has given up a dismal 38 PPG over this losing streak. That includes giving up 38 points to a Saints offense that had been inept until that point, as well as surrendering 39 points to P.J. Walker’s Browns. The Colts defense now ranks outside the top 20 in defensive DVOA at 21st in both pass and rush defense.

The Panthers defense has also had their struggles this year, but they have been much more competitive against the pass. They are dead last in rush defense DVOA, but a very respectable 14th in pass defense DVOA.

That was on full display in last week’s game, when they shut down C.J. Stroud and the Texans' passing attack. They should really be able to limit anything that Minshew wants to do through the air and focus on Jonathan Taylor.

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From a coaching perspective, this is a revenge game of sorts for Frank Reich.

There is obviously a brand new system in place in Indianapolis, but Reich is very familiar with most of these players and should have some insight that will help him prep for this game. Overall, there is definitely a decent coaching advantage with Reich over first-year head coach Shane Steichen.

Reich has also done a good job of developing Bryce Young so far in his rookie season. Young really struggled early on and that led to the dismal start for this Panthers team. However, Young has improved as of late and outdueled Stroud, who has been the rookie QB receiving all of the praise. 

When it comes to CPOE+EPA composite, Minshew and Young are now virtually the same quarterback with just .001 separating them. If you eliminate the first four games when Young really struggled, he has a CPOE+EPA composite 0.15 higher than Minshew since Week 5.

The Panthers are a young team motivated to keep trying to collect wins in their lost season whereas the Colts could be in a pretty deflated spot after three consecutive losses.

Bryce Young continues to show improvement and this Panthers defense is also starting to toughen up at the right time. I think this is a coin-flip game, so getting points with the home team strikes me as the best way to approach this matchup.