Panthers look to keep playoff hopes alive against the Redskins

The Carolina Panthers (5-6) are back at home to face the Washington Redskins (2-9) after being edged out in the 34-31 late-game thriller in new Orleans last week. But this week they'll have some help from the home crowd and it will be loud here inside Bank of America stadium today.

The Panthers are 5-6 and looking to even their record today and keep their playoff hopes alive. To do that, the'll need starting quarterback Kyle Allen to show the same mettle he did a week ago and keep his turnovers to a minimum.

It will be a challenge to keep up the pass protection for Allen with Greg Van Roten becoming the most recent casualty in the O-line saga for Carolina.

Other moves by the team include placing rookie running back Jordan Scarlett (knee/ankle) on injured reserve and signing offensive lineman Brad Lundblade to the active roster.

The Panthers defense is ranked 2nd in sack in the NFL and have been causing a lot of bad dreams for opposing quarterbacks. But they have also suffered injuries on that side of the ball within the last week. Dontari Poe, who had 4 sacks this year, is the biggest loss. Poe went down with a quadracept injury against New Orleans and is now on IR and done for the season.

The Panthers will continue to juggle what they need to to try and replace him but that will be easier said than done. The team signed defensive linemen Woodrow Hamilton on Wednesday to replace him. Hamilton was on the Panthers preseason roster but has started only one game during his NFL career.

The Panthers have also struggled on special teams. After the loss to the Saints, in part, due to the play of kicker Joey Slye head coach Ron Rivera has been clear that this will not become an ongoing issue. So look for this to be a make-or-break week for the Panthers' kicker.