The Las Vegas Raiders will be hungry to make it into the playoffs after missing the cut as a bubble team in 2019, and they have a manageable first test.
Although it’s unclear if the Las Vegas Raiders will actually move to a new quarterback after signing Marcus Mariota to either back up or compete with former NFL MVP candidate Derek Carr, the Carolina Panthers will absolutely have a new starter under center in 2020.
After unceremoniously dumping former MVP Cam Newton, who memorably carried the likes of Philly Brown and Jerricho Cotchery to 15 wins, Carolina has selected Teddy Bridgewater to lead the team in the Matt Rhule era.
Bridgewater’s first taste of action will come against the Raiders in Week 1, according to a report from The Athletic’s Vic Tafur. The game will occur in the Raiders’ house, giving Bridgewater some extra nerves in his regular-season debut as the Raiders starter.
Las Vegas should be the favorites to win this game, but it should be a close and intriguing matchup for both teams. The game could be decided by the young running backs, as Christian McCaffrey is an MVP candidate and the clear star of the Panthers offense. Meanwhile, Josh Jacobs is also the best player on the Raiders offense and could have a juicy matchup.
Of course, the main focus will be on the quarterbacks, who will be in the spotlight for different reasons. Carr will be under pressure to perform after the Mariota signing, and that’s assuming Mariota doesn’t get a chance to win the job in August.
As for Bridgewater, he has massive shoes to fill in Carolina, but he’s shown with the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints that he can win games in the NFC. DJ Moore, Curtis Samuel, free agent signing Robby Anderson, underrated tight end Ian Thomas, and McCaffrey round out his supporting cast.