Panthers HC Frank Reich preparing for Cowboys fan takeover in Carolina

When the Carolina Panthers play host to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, they’ll likely welcome a large contingency of fans of Amerca’s Team to the stadium as well. Since the Panthers are 1-8 and the Cowboys are 6-3, the Dallas fans have a bit more motivation than their opposition to watch the game at Bank of America.

To get his team ready for that eventuality, head coach Frank Reich has been working with the offense on some silent counts to counteract the crowd noise Cowboys fans could provide this weekend. Reich at least found a way to break the news with a tip of his hat to the city of Charlotte.

“I think everyone knows how well Dallas travels,” Reich explained. “We have a great city that other teams’ fans like to come to… We’re prepared either way.”

The Cowboys are double-digit favorites on Sunday but edge rusher Micah Parsons has been harping all week about not overlooking the opponent. Riding high off of a two-game streak with 70 points scored and 10 points allowed to start the season, that’s exactly what Dallas did against the Cardinals.

“We already made that mistake once, we can’t make it twice,” Parsons said, referencing the team’s Week 3 loss to Arizona. “I think during that time, there was a lot of adversity that the team was facing, things like that. We were missing half of our O-line. We’re way more healthy, way more locked in. It’s November-December football, we can’t have those kind of mishaps happen. We got to go out there and win.”

Panthers rule out Jaycee Horn

The Carolina Panthers activated the 21-day practice window for two injured players this week. Cornerback Jaycee Horn and tight end Ian Thomas returned to practice, however, the team ruled the defensive back out for Sunday’s game against Dallas.

Horn suffered a hamstring injury in the Panthers’ season opener against the Atlanta Falcons. The cornerback is in his third season in the NFL after Carolina drafted him No. 8 out of South Carolina. He has appeared in just 17 games, though, as he dealt with multiple injuries during his first two years in the league. In the offseason, he dealt with an ankle and foot injury that kept him out of OTAs and minicamp, as well.

Last year was Horn’s best in the NFL as he totaled 53 tackles and three interceptions across 13 games. He had one tackle in the loss to the Falcons prior to his injury.