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Can the Football Team build off their big Week 10 upset over the Bucs? Find out with our Washington vs. Panthers picks for Week 11.

The return of Cam Newton to the Carolina Panthers is one of the most interesting sports stories in a while. His departure was not ideal but definitely necessary. Some might say the same thing about his return to the field, but only time will tell.

His Panthers are looking for their third win in four games after dismantling the injured Arizona Cardinals last week.

The Washington Football Team, meanwhile, snapped a four-game losing streak by beating the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That was the best game Taylor Heinicke has played in several weeks and he'll be hoping to build on that in this one.

Here are my picks and predictions for the NFL Week 11 matchup between Washington and the Panthers (odds via Caesars Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5 star scale).

Washington vs. Panthers Week 11 Game Info

Date/Time: Sunday, November 21, 1 p.m. ETTV: FOXLocation: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NCWeather: 57 degrees

Washington vs. Panthers Odds Analysis

The line for this game sits anywhere between Carolina -3 and -3.5 depending on which online sportsbook you wager with. It actually opened at -2 and briefly went down to as low as -1.5 before finally settling where it is now. The Panthers improved to 5-5 against the spread last week while Washington is the worst ATS team in the league at 2-7.

The Over/Under for the game has moved around, too, and has dropped quite a bit from the 46-point. Most of the top online sportsbooks have this total at 43 as of Friday morning.

Washington vs. Panthers Picks

Washington +3.5 ?Under 43 ??

SEE ALSO: Week 11 Parlay Picks

Washington vs. Panthers Predictions

Washington +3.5 (-120)

It makes sense that there would be a lot of hype surrounding Newton's return to Carolina, especially after the way he looked last week. The thing is, Washington has a good defense that can get a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Without getting into what happened last week, it's no exaggeration to say that the Panthers' offensive line is bad.

While WFT might not be a popular team with the betting public, especially considering its ATS record, anything over a field goal is too much for Carolina.

If Washington gets a lead and makes the Panthers play from behind, its defense could be the equalizer here. That's why we like the Football Team in our Washington and Panthers picks for Week 11.

Under 43 (-110)

Neither one of these teams wants to get into a shootout. There is a world where Newton does run up the score considering the atmosphere and weapons at his disposal. The reason I don't think that will happen is the same reason I'm taking the points with WFT — the Panthers' offensive line is really bad.

The group has been an Achilles heel for this squad all season and they will be again in Week 11 against a WFT team that does a great job of getting pressure on quarterbacks.

The one thing that Newton does is make the Panthers more dangerous in short-yardage situations. I think the combination of the short passing game to Christian McCaffrey with the short-yardage running of Newton, which will protect him from the WFT pass rush, lead to the Under being the best play here.

SEE ALSO: Week 11 Underdog Picks

Picks made on 11/18/2021 at 5:53 p.m. ET.