Dennis Allen says the New Orleans Saints could have their starting quarterback in the lineup against the Carolina Panthers. Derek Carr is undefeated against Carolina, having beaten the Panthers twice when he was with the Raiders. He's won three in a row against them since joining the Saints including a blowout 47-10 victory to start this season.

So how likely is he to suit up next Sunday?

"I think there's a possibility, yeah," Allen said after Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

Carr has missed the last three games with an oblique muscle injury, which  Allen characterized as more of a mechanical issue than a pain tolerance question. The quarterback twisted his torso awkwardly winding up to throw against the Kansas City Chiefs back in Week 5, which caused an injury that's proven tricky to treat. But he's recently begun throwing again and is progressing in his recovery.

Hopefully his return makes a difference. The Saints had already lost three in a row when Carr went down with his injury, but they've since fallen further to a 2-6 record. With the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers beginning to pull away in the NFC South title race, it's vital that the Saints avoid another loss to a divisional opponent this Sunday, with or without Carr in the lineup.

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This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Dennis Allen says the Saints could have their starting quarterback against the Panthers