Love throws three TDs as Packers beat Panthers and Watson plays through injury

Jordan Love threw three touchdown passes and the Green Bay Packers beat the Carolina Panthers 27-19 on Thursday night at Lambeau Field, according to the ESPN box score. Green Bay moves to 5-3 and Carolina falls to 3-4.

Love finished 30 of 41 for 288 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, a fourth-quarter end zone pick by Zakee Wheatley on a throw to Matthew Golden. He spread it around: Tucker Kraft scored from 12 yards, Golden from 24 and Josh Jacobs from four.

Christian Watson was the best story of the night. He caught 8 passes for 113 yards on 10 targets, including a 53-yard catch in the second quarter that sent him to a local hospital with a chest injury. He came back and finished the game. After the game, Underdog NFL, citing ESPN's Rob Demovsky, said Watson has a broken rib. The team has not announced anything, so treat his Week 9 status as open.

Golden answered the questions from his missed practices this week. He drew a team-high 13 targets and caught 7 for 79 yards and a touchdown, one play after dropping a possible score.

Jacobs is the dud on paper and the winner in fantasy. He ran 21 times for 39 yards against the league's lowest-ranked run defense, but he scored twice and added 6 catches for 13 yards. The goal-line work is still his.

For Carolina, Chuba Hubbard carried the offense with 22 carries for 81 yards and a touchdown plus 7 catches for 38 yards. Bryce Young threw for 209 yards with one touchdown and one interception and took six sacks. Tetairoa McMillan led the Panthers with 6 catches for 58 yards on 11 targets, and Jalen Coker scored on a 26-yard fourth-down catch. Panthers cornerback Will Lee was carted off with a hamstring injury.

What RSO owners should do now: Hold Watson and stash a cheap Green Bay receiver if your roster allows it, since a rib fracture can linger. Golden's 13 targets make him a buy in contract leagues before his price climbs. Keep starting Jacobs for the touchdowns. Hubbard's volume keeps him a weekly RB2, while Young stays a bench quarterback behind this line.

What to watch next: Watson's imaging results and Green Bay's first injury report next week, plus Carolina's secondary depth with Lee hurt and three corners already on injured reserve.