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The Carolina Panthers face the Arizona Cardinals at home in Week 16. After three straight weeks of competitive losses, they took a massive step back against the Cowboys last week. Their offense could not keep up with Cooper Rush, and they lost again, falling to 3-11. Now, they face the Cardinals, who are playing for their playoff lives. The Panthers will do it without Xavier Legette, who is out with a hip injury, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
“Panthers ruled out wide receiver Xavier Legette for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals due to his hip injury,” Schefter reported.
Legette was the final pick of the first round and has been important to Young's development this season. Despite a solid rookie year, he may remember it most for dropping a potential game-winning touchdown in Week 15. The Panthers could have beaten the Eagles with that catch. But without him this week, it could be another step back for Young.
The Panthers will also be without Jonathon Brooks and Miles Sanders for this game. Chuba Hubbard will have to carry their running game while Jalen Coker and Adam Thielen dominate the passing game. Without Legette, it will be tough sledding to keep up with a solid Cardinals offense.
Panthers building toward the future down the stretch
The Panthers started this season with the lowest expectations possible. If they saw progress from Young and finished in the top ten of the draft order, it would be a rousing success. But they did not reach those goals for the first three-quarters of the season. Young was brutal before getting benched in favor of Andy Dalton.
The Panthers slid Dalton in to nip the winless season storyline early on and hope Young could learn from the veteran. After Dalton got in a car accident, Young came back and showed significant improvements. The Panthers nearly beat the Eagles, Buccaneers, and Chiefs after their bye. They did beat the Giants and Saints in consecutive weeks with Young under center before the bye.
Legette has been a major reason why Young has shown improvement. He has 439 receiving yards, the most on the Panthers this season, and four touchdowns. While he is not on the level of Brock Bowers or Malik Nabers, it is a solid season to start his career.
The Panthers play the Cardinals at home without Xavier Legette at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
