***TNF IN THE SWAMP - PHI @ CAR***

***PHILADELPHIA EAGLES @ CAROLINA PANTHERS***

Man oh mannnnn it is good to be back! If you follow my Twitter handle, you know that the SwampMan recently got hitched and was out doing the honeymoon thing the past two weeks. That being said, I was unable to post any write-ups for my picks but still able to pump them out via twitter: @swampy_swami. The good news is I finally redeemed the horrendous start, going 14-2 ATS over the past two weeks. Hopefully the worst is behind us, and I am now in the zone. I got to be honest though, this Prime Time matchup is a doozy and extremely tough to call.

Tonight's Thursday Night Football matchup is by far the biggest since the season opener, as the 4-1 Eagles swoop into Carolina riding a 3 game winning streak to take on the also 4-1 Panthers. It should be nothing short of a tough, hard hitting, and entertaining battle between two 4-1 teams looking to solidify themselves amongst the top of the NFC Conference. Eagles Sophomore QB Carson Wentz is quickly establishing himself as the real deal after the Birds completely dominated the Cardinals last week in Philly as Went tossed 4 touchdowns through the air. I've said that this kid is the truth after first watching him last season. I admit I wasn't high on him whatsoever coming into the draft but after a quick glance in action, one can tell that he just has that "it" factor that you can't teach. His calm and cool presence in the pocket is beyond his years and he successfully feels pressure in the pocket, utilizing his mobility to keep plays alive while his targets get open. This offseason the Eagles did him a major solid, bringing in some veteran WRs for him to throw to. It looks like that move has woken up their struggling young WR Nelson Agholor who had a bad case of butterfingers to begin his career, and has now become a threat downfield for Wentz in the passing game. They also brought in bruising RB LeGarette Blount to provide some stability on the ground and help open up the aerial attack for the young QB. That all being said, this Eagles offense is looking pretty damn good. Philly has only lost to the Chiefs thus far, the top ranked team in the league at the moment. That game was also much closer than the final score indicates, impressive stuff.

The Birds will look to keep soaring but may run into a brick wall tonight against the Carolina defense who seems to be bouncing back to their Super Bowl appearing form from two seasons ago. They brought back a familiar face in former Panther DE Julius Peppers who has really helped bring the "Keep Pounding" mentality and swagger back to this defensive front. His presence alone helps this extremely talented LB core in Kuechly, Davis, and Thompson, arguably the best LB trio in the game. It is also important to mention that the Panthers will be honoring the late Panther player/coach Sam Mills an old teammate and mentor of Peppers, with a number 51 sticker on their helmets tonight. This kind of thing really can put a team's motivation for a single game over the edge, especially at home and on Prime Time. The young Panther CBs are improved with experience after a trial by fire season last season when Pro Bowl CB Josh Norman left for Washington. They will have their hands full tonight against Wentz who will be forced to make magic happen once again through the air because I believe the Panthers defensive front will be able to slow the ground and pound run game of Blount up the middle. These Panther CBs will surely have their hands full and be tested against Alshon Jefferey (a Carolina native), Torrey Smith, and Agholor tonight. However, Philly is without their top offensive lineman in Lane Johnson after suffering a concussion last week. We all know how Wentz struggled last season while Johnson was out due to suspension, and it should be more of the same trying to replace him on a short week here tonight against one of the league's best pass rushes thus far. The way these guys beat the crap out of Lions QB Matt Stafford last week was alarming. After starting slow at home, Carolina put together back to back road wins in New England and Detroit. While some may say that both of those squads are overrated, one can't argue that both have high octane passers in Brady and Stafford. Throw in Brees as the QB they faced in their last home game before those two which resulted in a loss, and this defense has faced three top signal-callers in a row. While they gave up passing TDs, if you look closely almost all were short-yardage in the Red Zone which is fixable. Back at home and with their new found confidence, I think they will get to Wentz tonight.

The weather calls for some possible rain, and that being said I don't like Carolina's chances of success through the air either. Despite Cam finally looking healthy again after coming off of a shoulder injury and taking a few weeks to knock the rust off this season, the Eagles defense is solid as well. They get back DT Fletcher Cox tonight from injury which will provide for a big boost to that unit. The green Eagle CB duo of Rasul Douglas and Jalen Mills have held their own so far this season and tonight I actually like how they match up against the big WRs of Carolina in Benjamin and Funchess due to the CBs height both standing over 6 feet tall. After all this jibba jabba I will wrap things up by saying that I think tonight calls for a classic defense vs run game battle, especially if conditions are a bit wet. That being said, as I mentioned I do not like how Blount's run game measures up against that quick LB core. I think the X-Factor is with Carolina Rookie Christian McCaffery. I believe he has the skill set and matchup here to bust out in a big way on the Prime Time stage tonight, and I think he will be the one to make the difference. He is off to an okay start but hasn't really had that breakout game yet. I think that tonight is the night. The Eagles are without a doubt for real in my mind, but I think they hit a speed bump here in a tough spot on their schedule as Wentz faces a flurry of Cats looking to take his head off. As I mentioned above, he has a knack for feeling pressure and keeping plays alive, but I don't like his chances of scrambling much tonight against Kuechly and Co. PANTHERS-3