The Detroit Lions are back on the road in primetime taking on the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte on Sunday Night Football. It's an important early-season game for both NFC foes as Detroit tries to string a couple wins together for the first time this season and Carolina looks to defend home turf and avoid three losses in their first four contests.

Here are five things to watch out for in tonight's matchup:

1. GIBBS LOOKING TO STAY HOT

Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs has rushed for 307 yards with a 4.7-yard average and four rushing touchdowns through Detroit's first three games. He's currently fifth in the league in rushing. Gibbs has also chipped in 18 receptions for an additional 156 receiving yards and a couple more scores. His 463 total scrimmage yards trails only Atlanta's Bijan Robinson (467) on the season. Gibbs has been terrific to begin the year.

The Panthers' defense has allowed 580 rushing yards over their first three contests, currently ranking 32nd in the league in that department. Those numbers are a little inflated by Chicago running for 291 yards on Carolina in Week 1, but they also allowed 129 rushing yards in a win over Atlanta in Week 2 and 132 yards on the ground in a loss to Cleveland in Week 3.

Detroit's offensive line is healthy and playing at a very high level right now both in the run game and pass pro. The Lions controlled the line of scrimmage against the Jets and look to do the same tonight against the Panthers.

The forecast calls for rain in Charlotte tonight and it could end up being one of those games where the team that runs the ball more effectively and efficiently has an advantage.

2. HOW WILL CAROLINA SCHEME IT?

Carolina placed their two starting outside cornerbacks – Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson – on Reserve/Injured this week and have a couple other injuries on defense to navigate through ahead of tonight's contest.

How much will the changing personnel affect the schemes that Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero wants to deploy against an explosive Lions' offense that averages 31 points per game this season?

"It adds to the unknown. There's an element of, 'Do they change? Do they not? Who's going to be in the game? How are they going to organize it? What personnel packages do they want to play with?'" Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing said this week.

Detroit's first three opponents have been mixing it up pretty good schematically when facing the Lions vs. what they've shown defensively on film, per Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

"I feel like honestly we've been getting a lot of different looks than what we've seen on tape with a lot of opponents we've seen this year," St. Brown said. "We're expecting one thing, but also, you can expect the unexpected, too. We've got to be able to make adjustments in-game."

Defenses have played the Lions with a lot of shell coverages trying to keep everything in front of them and making quarterback Jared Goff and the offense earn their points by driving the football.

Detroit has nine completions of 20-plus yards (ranked 14th) and just one run of 20-plus yards this season. In 2025, the Lions finished third in the league with 66 completions of 20-plus yards and sixth with 14 runs of 20-plus yards.

It will be interesting to see how Carolina schemes it up defensively tonight and how it might look vs. what Detroit scouted on tape from the Panthers the first three weeks.

3. SECONDARY GAINS

The Lions come in allowing just under 300 passing yards per contest (299.3) as they rank last in the NFL in that category. Jets quarterback Geno Smith threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns in a loss to Detroit last week, but a lot of that production was late in that contest. Despite the numbers, the Lions' secondary played much better in phase and that's a step in the right direction. The next step is making more plays on the football when they are in position to do so.

Third-year cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. is expected to play a bigger role Sunday after stepping in for 23 snaps last Sunday and playing pretty well. Lions head coach Dan Campbell said Rakestraw earned a bigger role this week. Christian Izien is expected to make his second start at safety after playing well against the Jets.

"I told (Rakestraw) on Tuesday when he was in here, I said, 'How much you play is up to you.' And as simple as that," Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said this week. "We saw a very small sample size. Now let's see what that looks like on a larger scale and we'll just take it from there."

Carolina has the No. 1 passing offense in the NFL (295.7) led by quarterback Bryce Young. Can the Lions' defense, particularly the secondary, build on some of the improvements we saw Week 3 against the Jets?

4. DEFENDING TIGHT ENDS

Panthers tight end Darren Waller has a long frame at 6-foot-6, 245 pounds and is a crafty veteran with 10 years of experience under his belt in this league. He's caught 10 passes in three games with two receiving touchdowns.

It's a matchup to watch because the Lions have struggled to limit opposing tight ends on the stat sheet through their first three contests. Detroit's allowed 29 receptions for 351 yards and six touchdowns to the tight end position.

5. LIONS DEFENSIVE FRONT

Detroit is the only team in the NFL to have four players with at least 2.0 sacks – Aidan Hutchinson (3.5), Alim McNeill (2.0), DJ Wonnum (2.0) and Derrick Barnes (2.0). The Lions' 12.0 sacks in three games trail only Minnesota's 14 on the season.

Young has a quick release, a strong arm and has thrown for nearly 1,000 yards with seven touchdowns through three games. He's not using his legs to create plays as much as we saw in the past, but that's certainly still a component of his game when needed.

Detroit's defenders upfront must have a good rush plan to keep Young in the pocket and speed up his clock by winning their one-on-ones and creating havoc in the pocket.

The Lions' 73 total pressures are third-most behind only Minnesota (80) and Atlanta (76). They are second in quarterback hurries (50) and sixth in quarterback hits (23).

They've got to be good again tonight and make their presence felt early and often.