Packers at Panthers
THE STORY: Aaron Rodgers waited behind Brett Favre for three seasons before getting the chance to show he was a franchise quarterback. His counterpart this week, Cam Newton, looked the part in his first NFL game. Both Rodgers and Newton had big games in Week 1, and they'll go head-to-head Sunday when the Carolina Panthers host the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers.
TV: FOX, 1 p.m. ET. LINE: Packers -9.5 O/U 46.5
ABOUT THE PACKERS (1-0): Rodgers has won seven straight starts, including Green Bay's run through the playoffs as the NFC's No. 6 seed last season. He has at least three passing touchdowns in five of those seven games. Rodgers had three touchdown passes by the end of the first quarter in a season-opening 42-34 win over New Orleans. The defense had its share of trouble, though, giving up 477 yards to Drew Brees and the Saints. That could spell another big game for Newton.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (0-1): Newton's debut exceeded everything the Panthers could have hoped for when they drafted him with the top overall pick in this year's draft. He passed for 422 yards — the most ever by a player making his NFL debut — and a pair of touchdowns in a 28-21 loss at the Arizona Cardinals. He also helped Steve Smith's resurgence after an injury-plagued 2010 season. Smith had eight catches for 178 yards and two touchdowns.
EXTRA POINTS
1. With 9,656 receiving yards, Packers WR Donald Driver is tied with Hall of Famer James Lofton for the most in franchise history.
2. Panthers RB DeAngelo Williams, who was held to 30 yards on 12 carries last week, scored four rushing touchdowns in Carolina's 35-31 win in Green Bay in 2008.
3. Packers rookie Randall Cobb tied an NFL record with a 108-yard kickoff return touchdown and caught a 32-yard touchdown pass last week. He became only the second rookie in NFL history with a touchdown catch and a kick return touchdown in his first game.