The NFL Network should lobby for a ratings mulligan. The do-over never will be granted, of course, but at least the executives learned a valuable lesson: Be cautious scheduling certain teams to perform on a national stage.

The Panthers are not prime-time players.

Heck, the way they executed on third down Thursday night at Bank of America Stadium, the Panthers, like the Lions, should be blacked out.

It certainly wasn’t a laugh track in the Panthers’ locker room, following the Dolphins’ 24-17 victory. The second quarter alone was “Must Miss TV,” capped by a booming echo of dissatisfied customers.

Miami's Tyrone Culver bats down a pass in the end zone on the final play of the Panthers' loss.

Let’s begin with the second play of the fourth quarter, a chance for the Panthers, down 14-3 at the time, to creep back in contention. What happened? Jake Delhomme, who one play earlier overthrew an open receiver in the end zone, suffered a sack. (It was the fourth third-down sack Delhomme absorbed.)

If that is not enough reason for TV execs to petition for a mulligan, here is more evidence. The Dolphins lined up for a 3-and-16 play in the second quarter, conservatively approaching the situation. What happened? On his first official rush of the season, Lex Hilliard scampered past the stick off a draw play. A draw play! And that lead to Ricky Williams’ first touchdown.

Need more?

OK, and without exploring the hideous tackling by the secondary, late in the third and beefed up with an extra blocker, the run-first Panthers needed one yard to keep a key drive moving. What happened? Jonathan Stewart was grounded behind the line of scrimmage.

Watching Delhomme throw Thursday, we all would have been better off reading a book. What did Delhomme do? Very little, except, among several poor decisions, missing an uncovered Steve Smith on a go route early in the first quarter.

Don’t be fooled by the one-score outcome or the drama in the final 39 seconds, the Panthers’ entertainment level remains out of focus.

-- JEFF HAWKINS

Here is a video preview:

The Carolina Panthers and Miami Dolphins find themselves in similar situations, as they prepare to meet up Thursday night. Both teams are 4-5 and looking to reach the .500 mark at a critical point in the season. Both were playoff teams a year ago that saw their seasons end abruptly upon entering the postseason. Both were also expected to have a better record when this matchup was originally scheduled.

Both teams have had unsettling injury news this week. The Panthers will be without Pro Bowl left tackle Jordan Gross for the remainder of the season, in addition to linebacker Thomas Davis, who went down for the year the week before. The Dolphins will be without Ronnie Brown, the centerpiece of their trademark Wildcat formation, for the rest of 2009 after tests revealed further damage to his injured foot.

What will the loss of Brown do to the Dolphins offense? It's hard to say. Brown was the main catalyst in the Wildcat, taking most of the direct snaps from the shotgun position before either handing off to Ricky Williams or taking the ball himself. Brown also has been known to throw a touchdown pass every now and then. It was Brown's success with the Wildcat that softened the blow of losing quarterback Chad Pennington for the season with a shoulder injury early in the year, as young quarterback Chad Henne isn't quite ready to run an offense full time. That leaves unanswered questions about who will direct the Dolphins' offense.

One solution could be rookie quarterback/jack-of-all-trades Pat White. White has gotten some brief experience in the read-option formations the Dolphins like to run in addition to the Wildcat, an almost equally tricky play set to identify and defend. White experienced some success in the Dolphins' loss to the Patriots, and was able to produce a touchdown on an outside toss to Williams in last week's win over Tampa Bay. With Brown out, you can also expect to see second-year man Lex Hilliard get some carries to help Williams shoulder the load.

The Panthers and Dolphins have nearly identical rushing statistics on a per game basis, ranking third and fourth respectively in rushing yards per game, with only 0.4 yards separating them. The Dolphins' defense is the better of the two at stopping the run, allowing slightly less than 100 yards per game, but has yet to face a fellow top-five rushing team with the type of potency that the Panthers' dynamic duo possesses.

The two teams differ drastically when it comes to pass defense, with the Panthers resting in the top 10, while the Dolphins are giving up almost 240 yards per game through the air. Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme is coming off of his best game of the season, and with Steve Smith and Muhsin Muhammad also experiencing a spark last week, it could be a long day for the Dolphins' secondary even if they are able to slow down the running game.

Both teams are on the outside looking in at their respective playoff races, and a win Thursday would be huge for either club. The Panthers are just one game out of the last playoff spot in the NFC and the Dolphins rest at two games behind the last spot in the AFC, but also just two games out of their division race.

INJURY REPORT

For the Panthers, S Charles Godfrey (ankle) and FB Brad Hoover (ankle) are likely out after missing another full week of practice, and DE Charles Johnson (pectoral) is doubtful. DT Damione Lewis (shoulder) and RB Jonathan Stewart (achilles) are both listed as questionable despite having practiced fully on Wednesday, while RB DeAngelo Williams (knee) carries the same status after sitting out practice Wednesday. Williams said in an interview with the NFL Network on Wednesday that he would be ready to go for Thursday night.

Miami will be without TE Anthony Fasani (hip), DT Paul Soliai (ankle), and LB Erik Walden (hamstring). FS Tyrone Culver (ankle) and starting G Justin Smiley (shoulder) are listed as questionable, though Smiley practiced fully on Wednesday. Starting FS Gibril Wilson (hamstring) is listed as probable after practicing Wednesday.

KEY MATCHUPS

Jake Delhomme vs. Miami Secondary: Delhomme is coming off his best performance of the year after turning in his first 100-plus quarterback rating of the year against the Falcons last Sunday. The Dolphins come to Charlotte with a secondary that could be more questionable than the Falcons', and with less athletic personnel to bail it out.

Pat White vs. Panthers' Defense: Pat White could be the x-factor for the Dolphins on Thursday night, and the Panthers cannot let him rack up a bunch of yards and keep the abnormal playbook of the Dolphins alive and kicking in the absence of Ronnie Brown. There isn't a lot of film to watch on White, so the Panthers will have to use mainly in-game adjustments to stop the rookie -- something that will be more challenging with Thomas Davis missing at the outside linebacker position.

Panthers' Kick Coverage vs. Ted Ginn Jr.: The Dolphins have one of the best averages per return in the NFL, and are one of only three teams with 1,000 or more kick return yards this season. Ginn is one of the more explosive young returners in the league, as he showed in his two-touchdown game against the Jets earlier in the season. The Panthers must do a better job at covering returns in order to prevent Miami from starting with ideal field position or, worse, making a gamebreaking big play.

Double Trouble vs. Miami Run Defense: The Dolphins are giving up less than 100 yards per game on the ground, but the Panthers come in with more than 1,000 yards rushing in their last five games. Jonathan Stewart got back on track Sunday after a down game in New Orleans, and DeAngelo Williams is solidifying his place amongst the league's top running backs with a second consecutive stellar season.

PREDICTION

In the regular season, the Panthers have never beaten the Dolphins, one of only two teams they have yet to conquer. The two haven't met since 2005, however, and both franchises have since changed some key pieces. Tony Sparano has turned the Dolphins back into somewhat of a threat in the AFC, and has mastered the art of trickery with his and former Panthers offensive coordinator Dan Henning's Wildcat shenanigans.

The Panthers have finally found the successor, or successors, to Stephen Davis in the backfield and have been able to thrive in their run-first offense since. The Panthers are coming off their fourth win in their last six games and seem like a team that may be poised to make a legitimate run at the postseason in the coming weeks. The Dolphins just lost their most important player and will struggle to overcome his absence as they too try to turn themselves into playoff contenders. The Panthers will win this one, thanks to the running game -- again -- and some timely passing from Delhomme. Final score: 27-17.

-- AUSTIN PENNY

Besides earning millions for, in essence, 16 three-hour and 15-minute work weeks, the fortunate few who gain admittance into the pampered NFL easily can be spoiled by the structured schedules.

There are few reasons for deviating from the tradition: Mondays are reserved for meetings and postgame review; Tuesdays grant coaches time to refine gameplans, while players lounge; Wednesday practices at times get physical; Thursdays and Fridays, see Wednesday; and Saturdays are spent working at half-speed.

But for Thursday's primetime game against the multi-dimensional Dolphins at Bank of America Stadium, the Panthers have been forced to alter their weekly itinerary for the first time in franchise history. Coach John Fox addressed the week's abbreviated preparation.

“This is the first time we’ve ever done this,” he was quoted as saying. “We turned down the tempo of practice some to get the guys refreshed and still try to get our work done ... hopefully, we can cram two days work in (Wednesday).”

Hopefully, the Panthers will be able to take advantage of an injury to Ronnie Brown, the catalyst to the Dolphins’ Wildcat offense.

“We’ve been preparing for it all season," Fox said. We played them in the preseason. That wasn’t even ridiculously close to how we’ll play them this time. I think we’ve got a good plan.”

A good, but shortened, plan that changed more without left tackle Jordan Gross, who became the seventh key player placed on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury Sunday.

Said Jake Delhomme: “All the guys will have to step up.”

Does that include the Panthers' quarterback executing a forward pass of more than five yards? The work week probably was too short to contemplate that outlandish concept.

-- JEFF HAWKINS

The Carolina Panthers have found a way to re-enter the playoff picture in the NFC, albeit from an outsider's perspective.

With a good amount of help Sunday, their win against the visiting Falcons pulled them to within one win of the final NFC Wild Card spot. There is currently a log jam of 5-4 teams that includes Philadelphia, New York, Green Bay and Atlanta. The Panthers are one of three 4-5 teams that will be trying to claw their way through the ranks and into the postseason.

Carolina has a short week this week, squaring off with Miami on NFL Network's Thursday Night Football, and then will head to New York to take on the Jets, their first of three northeastern trips in the final weeks of the season.

There is no question that the Panthers are playing better football at this point in the season than they were at the beginning of the year, but the problem now is the injuries that are starting to mount. Carolina has already lost LB Thomas Davis and LT Jordan Gross for the year in the last two weeks, and both of those guys were playing at a Pro Bowl-caliber level.

Only time will tell how the Panthers' backups fare during the thick of the season and whether these losses will cost them a shot at the playoffs. One thing is certain, however, and that is the fact that the Panthers cannot afford to lose another starter at this point in the season.

-- AUSTIN PENNY

Coming off a big win against the Falcons on Sunday, the Panthers have a short week to prepare for Thursday night's contest against the Dolphins. Here's some interesting reading:

Carolina Growl on former Panthers offensive coordinator Dan Henning's return to Charlotte.

Here's their take on the Panthers' plans for the no-huddle offense.

This is a nice profile of Mackenzy Bernadeau, who will fill in at LG while Travelle Wharton moves to LT to replace Jordan Gross.

NFL.com's Game Center for Thursday night's game against Miami.

-- AUSTIN PENNY