Waiting all day for Sunday Night Football is going to be worth it for anyone who is a fan of scoring.
The Detroit Lions' secondary has been prone to giving up big plays, and quarterback Bryce Young of the Carolina Panthers has done just that in his first three games of the season. Young leads the league in passing yards, after all, with 939 through three weeks.
On the flipside, the Panthers are plagued with injuries entering the primetime matchup, including their two starting cornerbacks. The staunch Panthers pass defense now finds themselves in their own "Legion of Whom" situation.
Sunday night's game is shaping up to be a high-scoring venture, so which Lions can fans expect to come up big on primetime?
4 Lions who should have an explosive game against the Panthers
Jared Goff
Obviously, with the Panthers banged up and CBs Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson on the injured reserve, QB Jared Goff is well set up to put up numbers on Sunday.
Goff has thrown eight touchdowns without turning the ball over once. His 802 passing yards are sixth in the league, while completing the third most passes (77). Goff hasn't missed a beat under Drew Petzing's offense, and is on track to have arguably his best season yet. That includes on the ground, where he's on pace for a career-high in rushing attempts (51).
The Panthers' secondary was initially a scary prospect for Goff and the offense, and they still could be. However, the injuries to Horn and Jackson are a huge blow for the Panthers defense, and opens the door for another big game out of Goff.
And Goff may need to air it out, anyway, if his secondary keeps the Panthers in the game.
Sam LaPorta
If Goff has an explosive game, that means someone in the receiving corps should as well, right? Keep an eye on tight end Sam LaPorta.
The Panthers have allowed three TDs to TEs this season on 13 receptions between Chicago Bears' Cole Kmet, Atlanta Falcons' Austin Hooper and Kyle Pitts Sr., and Cleveland Browns' Harold Fannin Jr. Last Sunday, Fannin led the Browns in receiving, with 51 yards and two of those aforementioned three TE TDs.
READ MORE: Jared Goff should be on every QB-needy fantasy manager's radar ahead of Week 4
Those numbers may not be eye-popping, but for a Panthers defense that will likely bring extra attention to wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams to make up for losing their starting corners, that could leave someone like LaPorta more open for safer passes, especially in his reliable redzone and short yardage situations.
Oh yeah, the last time the Lions played the Panthers (2023), LaPorta caught two TD passes, including a 31-yard one on a fun trick play. Would love to see a rerun of that play on Sunday!
Jahmyr Gibbs
Running back Jahmyr Gibbs has become synonymous with the word explosive to the point where it feels like cheating to include him in this topic.
Yet, Gibbs is an even greater explosive threat than normal against this Panthers defense. The Panthers have given up an average of 193.33 yards per game on the ground. Yes, much of that comes from the Bears' 291 rushing yards in Week 1, but the Panthers also have up 157 and 132 to the Falcons and Browns, respectively.
Panthers have given up at least 70 rushing yards to four players in the first three weeks, an additional two players with at least 50 rushing yards, and six total rushing TDs. Again, yes, all six of those rushing TDs came in Week 1, but suffice it to say, the Panthers run defense hasn't been the team's strong suit this season.
With the Panthers going up against the best passing attack they've faced all season, stopping Gibbs will be a tall order both on the ground and in the air.
Aidan Hutchinson
To give the defense some love, anyone in the Lions' improved pass rush could be slotted here, so who better than EDGE Aidan Hutchinson?
Hutchinson has picked up where he left off in 2025, with 3.5 sacks in his first three games in 2026. He and the Lions' pass rush will be going up against a Panthers' offensive line that has given up seven sacks. As NFL Analyst John Ellis pointed out on X, via Next Gen Stats, Young has been pressured 57 times on dropbacks this season so far.
READ MORE: What pass block win rate tells us about Lions' steadily improving offensive line
Over half of those pressures came courtesy of the Browns this past Sunday, but the fact remains that the Panthers' highly paid O-line hasn't been able to protect their young QB. That may become even more difficult with the status of rookie tackle Monroe Freeling (Concussion) and guard Damien Lewis (Elbow) up in the air.
Even if both play, the Lions' pass rush could feast on SNF. Missing one or both? That could spell disaster against a Detroit defense that's second in sacks (12.0), with four players with at least 2.0 sacks.
The key to victory for the Lions is slowing down Young and the pass game. No better way to do that than mounting up the pressures throughout the game to make his life as difficult as possible. If Hutchinson and company can, the explosive players on the Lions offense should be able to comfortably take care of the rest.
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