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5 NFL teams that must win in Week 13

By Mike Phillips

FOXBOROUGH, MA - NOVEMBER 24: Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott throws on the run against the New England Patriots during the third quarter. The Patriots won 13-9. The New England Patriots host the Dallas Cowboys for a Sunday afternoon football game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA on Nov. 24, 2019. (Photo by Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
FOXBOROUGH, MA - NOVEMBER 24: Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott throws on the run against the New England Patriots during the third quarter. The Patriots won 13-9. The New England Patriots host the Dallas Cowboys for a Sunday afternoon football game at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA on Nov. 24, 2019. (Photo by Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – NOVEMBER 24: Joey Slye #4 of the Carolina Panthers reacts after missing a field goal during a NFL game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes Benz Superdome on November 24, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – NOVEMBER 24: Joey Slye #4 of the Carolina Panthers reacts after missing a field goal during a NFL game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes Benz Superdome on November 24, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /

4. Carolina Panthers

There are bad losses, and there are absolutely brutal defeats that can derail entire seasons. What happened to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday may fall into the latter category after they suffered a heartbreaking defeat in New Orleans.

It looked like the Saints would run away with the game early, but Carolina fought all the way back to tie the game at 31 late in the fourth quarter. The Panthers got themselves into position to kick a go-ahead field goal in the final two minutes, but Joey Slye hooked his kick wide right, giving the Saints new life.

Drew Brees took full advantage, driving right down the field to set up a game-winner for Wil Lutz, allowing the Saints to escape a nail-biter with a win. This loss has the potential to be devastating for Carolina, which dropped its third straight game to fall to 5-6 on the year.

Carolina needs to stop the bleeding now in order to avoid having a second straight year go off the rails, and this week offers a perfect antidote in the form of the hapless Washington Redskins. Dwayne Haskins and company did pick up a win last week, but they had to fight tooth-and-nail to get by a Detroit Lions’ team starting Jeff Driskel at home.

The Panthers should run all over the Redskins to get back to .500, which would give them at least a chance down the stretch. A loss here could put Ron Rivera even further onto the hot seat, which would add an element of distraction to the team that they absolutely don’t need.

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