Rainy forecast, sunny outlook for Panthers

Good morning, Panther fans.

Our team is a 9.5-point home favorite against Arizona tonight.

Game time weather in Charlotte is likely to be rain, possibly dampening the potent Cardinals passing game.

The only person you know who's picking against the Panthers is ESPN analyst and possibly embittered Keyshawn Johnson.

All in all, a good start to your day.

The details:

The weather: Forecast calls for likely showers at game time, probably developing into rain by 9 a.m. Temperature: 52 degrees. Historically, rain hampers passing games, but it needs to fall at a decent rate to impact a game.

The picks: The more prominent predictions have rolled in at week's end. For early and midweek picks, click here and here. Also, click on available links below to see how experts picked the weekend's other games.

Peter King, Sports Illustrated: Carolina 26, Arizona 17. Go back to draft day. Remember the deal Panthers GM Marty Hurney made in the middle of round one? He dealt second- and fourth-round picks in the 2008 draft, and a first-rounder in 2009, for the Eagles' first-round choice (19th overall). Was right tackle Jeff Otah really worth that kind of quarterback-ish ransom? Apparently he was because the Panthers rushed for 30 touchdowns this year. Thirty! John Fox wanted an offense that was more slug-it-out than throw-it-deep. Luckily for him, the Panthers are blessed with the ability to do both, and I don't trust Arizona's running game to be as good this week as it was last week against Atlanta, when Edgerrin James swam in the Ponce de Leon pool. I think Carolina controls the clock and the game.

Sporting News football staff:

Vinnie Iyer - Carolina , 30-27
Arnie Spanier - Carolina, 31-20
Dennis Dillon - Carolina, 21-16
Greg Cosell - Carolina, 27-20
Clifton Brown - Carolina, 27-18
Albert Breer - Carolina, 31-13
Real Scouts - Carolina, 27-24
Brian Baldinger - Carolina, 24-23

ESPN football staff: Carolina wins - Seth Wickersham, David Fleming, Merrill Hoge, Ron Jaworski, Mark Schlereth, Marcus Allen, Chris Mortensen, Mike Golic, Mike Ditka, Cris Carter, Tom Jackson. Arizona wins - Keyshawn Johnson.

Madden NFL 09 Simulation: Carolina 23, Arizona 13.

Finally, some NFL odds:

Odds to win the 2009 Super Bowl XLIII:

New York Giants 13/4
Carolina Panthers 4/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 17/4
Tennessee Titans 6/1
Philadelphia Eagles 6/1
Baltimore Ravens 15/2
San Diego Chargers 9/1
Arizona Cardinals 20/1

Odds to win the 2009 NFC Championship

New York Giants 7/5
Carolina Panthers 3/2
Philadelphia Eagles 8/3
Arizona Cardinals 10/1

Odds to win the 2009 AFC Championship

Pittsburgh Steelers 8/5
Tennessee Titans 9/4
Baltimore Ravens 10/3
San Diego Chargers 7/2

Which team will score the most points this weekend?

Carolina Panthers 5/2
New York Giants 4/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 4/1
Arizona Cardinals 5/1
Philadelphia Eagles 5/1
Tennessee Titans 5/1
Baltimore Ravens 6/1
San Diego Chargers 6/1

source: bodoglife.com via NFLGridironGab