The 2-1 Panthers sat idle during their Week 4 bye but in many respects still saw their season outlook improve. Here are five ways Carolina “won” their bye week: They signed Eric ReidThe Panthers clearly needed more than Colin Jones to replace injured starting safety Youth Bruce Irvin Jersey , Da’Norris Searcy. Reid should be a solid starter and shore up a position of need. The Falcons lostThe Atlanta Falcons dropped a soul-crushing game to the Cincinnati Bengals to fall to 1-3.In most years the Panthers, Falcons, and Saints are battling for the NFC South title and Wild Card playoff spots. Every Falcons loss helps the Panthers playoffs odds. Fitzmagic went “poof” Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Buccaneers were the toast of the NFL after a shocking 2-0 start. The last thing the Panthers needed was for the usually hapless Bucs to suddenly become competent. But after a Week 3 loss, the Bucs then got destroyed in Week 4 by the Chicago Bears, 48-10. It’s a relief to see the Bucs are still the Bucs. The Eagles lostWhile the defending Super Bowl champs are struggling a bit Stitched Bruce Irvin Jersey , they could still be in the mix to challenge the Panthers for a Wild Card spot. The Eagles Week 4 loss to AFC’s Tennessee Titans drops them to 2-2 and helps Carolina’s playoff aspirations. Turner and Samuel practicedAn early bye week is normally a bad thing, but it worked out well this year for the banged-up Panthers. Trai Turner and Curtis Samuel have both returned to practice. Getting an extra week of rest was definitely helpful. Not a bad bye week, all things considered. With a winnable home game against the New York Giants coming up this week, the Panthers season is looking up.FanPulse: How Panthers and Falcons fans see Sunday’s game Welcome to SB Nation FanPulse — a survey of fans across the NFL, powered by SurveyMonkey. Each week Youth Graham Gano Jersey , we send 32 polls to 100+ plugged in fans from each team. Panthers fans, sign up HERE to join FanPulse.How confident are you in the direction of the team? Last week: 99 percent confidenceIt’s kinda weird to see the confidence level drop after a 1-0 start. Hopefully a win against the Falcons on Sunday will bring the fans’ confidence back up where it was a week ago.Will the Panthers win or lose in Week 2?Odds: Falcons are 6-point favoritesCat Scratch Reader FanPulse: Panthers by 4The Falcoholic FanPulse: Falcons by 4No big surprise here—both fan bases think their team will win, and both groups think the game will be close. The Panthers are totally gonna win though, right?Other than QB, what is most valuable to an NFL offense? I’m surprised that the number of people who picked left tackle isn’t higher Stitched Graham Gano Jersey , but I’m not surprised to see it come out on top. Protecting the quarterback is vital to success, which is very difficult to do without a quality left tackle. Not that Panthers fans would know anything about that. . .