Bengals at Panthers: Week 15 preview, odds and injuries

Week 15 · Sun, Dec 20 · Bank of America Stadium1 PM ET

at1 PMET · Fox

At a glanceUpdated Nov 10, 2026, 4:57 PM ET

The Cincinnati Bengals (6-2) visit the Carolina Panthers (3-5) on Sun, Dec 20, 1 PM ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC (Week 15, 2026 season), on Fox.

When and where is Bengals vs Panthers?

Sun, Dec 20, 1 PM ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC. TV: Fox.

Who is injured for Bengals vs Panthers?

Bengals: Kyle Dugger (S, questionable, quadriceps). Panthers: Ihmir Smith-Marsette (WR, out, undisclosed), Bobby Okereke (LB, questionable, foot), Damien Lewis (G, questionable, knee), Jaelan Phillips (LB, questionable, hamstring) and Will Lee III (CB, questionable, hamstring).

Cite this page

Pigskin Nightly, “Bengals at Panthers: Week 15 preview”, https://pigskinnightly.com/games/2026-12-20-cin-at-car (updated 2026-11-10).

How we calculate Plain-text version Report an error

Regular season through week 14 · rank out of 32

Where this game will be decided

1Bengals third-down offense vs Panthers third-down defense
The Bengals' third-down offense ranks 1st in third-down conversion rate (54.6%, 97 third downs) against a Panthers third-down defense ranked 29th (47.7% allowed, 107 third downs faced).
1stCIN offense28 spots apart29thCAR defense
2Bengals pass protection vs Panthers pass rush
The Bengals' pass protection ranks 8th in sack rate (4.7% sacked, 322 dropbacks) against a Panthers pass rush ranked 32nd (3.9% of dropbacks, 308 dropbacks faced).
8thCIN offense24 spots apart32ndCAR defense
3Bengals red-zone offense vs Panthers red-zone defense
The Bengals' red-zone offense ranks 5th in red-zone touchdown rate (66%, 32 trips) against a Panthers red-zone defense ranked 29th (75% allowed, 24 trips faced).
5thCIN offense24 spots apart29thCAR defense

When the Bengals have the ballEdge CIN · +17 ranks

CIN dropback offenseEPA per dropbackCAR pass defense

3rd+0.26322 dropbacks

CIN +17

+0.07 allowed308 dropbacks faced20th

CIN run gameEPA per rushCAR run defense

18th-0.10162 rushes

-0.03 allowed210 rushes faced25th

Dropbacks include sacks and scrambles; rushes are designed runs. What EPA measures.

When the Panthers have the ballEdge CAR · +12 ranks

CAR dropback offenseEPA per dropbackCIN pass defense

13th+0.08348 dropbacks

+0.03 allowed316 dropbacks faced14th

CAR run gameEPA per rushCIN run defense

12th-0.04176 rushes

CAR +12

-0.04 allowed176 rushes faced24th

Third downEdge CIN · +28 ranks

CIN third-down offensethird-down conversion rateCAR third-down defense

1st54.6%97 third downs

CIN +28

47.7% allowed107 third downs faced29th

CAR third-down offensethird-down conversion rateCIN third-down defense

21st37.7%106 third downs

47.5% allowed101 third downs faced28th

Conversions are third-down snaps that gained a first down or scored.

Red zoneEdge CIN · +24 ranks

CIN red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateCAR red-zone defense

5th66%32 trips

CIN +24

75% allowed24 trips faced29th

CAR red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateCIN red-zone defense

6th66%29 trips

41% allowed29 trips faced5th

A trip is a drive with at least one snap inside the opponent's 20; the rate is trips that ended in an offensive touchdown. Small samples swing fast here.

Explosive playsEdge CAR · +16 ranks

CIN big-play offenseexplosive-play rateCAR defense against big plays

17th9.3%484 plays

CAR +12

7.3% allowed518 plays faced5th

CAR big-play offenseexplosive-play rateCIN defense against big plays

14th9.5%524 plays

CAR +16

11.2% allowed492 plays faced30th

Completions of 20+ yards and runs of 10+, per snap. Definition.

Pressure & sacksEdge CIN · +24 ranks

CIN pass protectionsack rateCAR pass rush

8th4.7% sacked322 dropbacks

CIN +24

3.9% of dropbacks308 dropbacks faced32nd

CAR pass protectionsack rateCIN pass rush

23rd7.5% sacked348 dropbacks

CIN +14

7.3% of dropbacks316 dropbacks faced9th

Sacks per dropback. The public play-by-play has no pressure charting, so this is the sack side of it only.

TurnoversEdge CIN · +14 ranks

CIN ball securityturnovers per gameCAR takeaway defense

16th1.1 giveaways a game8 games

1.1 takeaways a game8 games17th

CAR ball securityturnovers per gameCIN takeaway defense

19th1.3 giveaways a game8 games

CIN +14

1.5 takeaways a game8 games5th

Interceptions and lost fumbles on offensive snaps, per game. Turnover rates are among the least stable numbers in football.

AbsencesCIN 0 · CAR 0 regulars out or doubtful

Bengals1 listed

0 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QKyle DuggerS66% defense · 4 wk

Panthers5 listed

0 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QBobby OkerekeLB89% defense · 7 wk
QDamien LewisG89% offense · 5 wk
QWill Lee IIICB73% defense · 7 wk
QJaelan PhillipsLB64% defense · 5 wk
OUTIhmir Smith-MarsetteWRno snaps

Snap share is the average of the weeks each player was on the field this season. Full injury report ↓

Rest & travelSame rest · CIN travels 335 mi

AwayBengals

7days since last game

335miles to get here

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 14 vs KC · 13,298 mi flown this season

Normal week

Rest edgeEvensame restTravel gap 335 mi

HomePanthers

7days since last game

0miles · home

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 14 vs NO · 3,713 mi flown this season

Normal week

League splits for these situations ↓

Sample: CIN 8 games, 484 offensive and 492 defensive plays · CAR 8 games, 524 offensive and 518 defensive plays. Rank 1 is the best offense or the best defense in each stat. Keys are the largest rank gaps (12+ spots) between an offense and the defense it faces, one per stat. Ranks are not schedule-adjusted.

Season to date · rank out of 32