With their playoff hopes officially dashed, the Indianapolis Colts will have to find another source of motivation as they play in their second to last game of the season. Coming to town on Sunday are the Carolina Panthers, who are looking for a strong end to their struggling season.

On Monday night, the Colts were greatly embarrassed by the New Orleans Saints in a 34-7 defeat and there was little to no positives from that game. But as they say, “today is a new day.”

Here are three key matchups to watch in Colts’ Week 16 bout:

RB Christian McCaffrey vs. Colts’ defensive front seven

In what is easily this game’s biggest matchup, the Colts are facing one of the most dynamic and versatile offensive players this league has seen in a long time. Third-year running back Christian McCaffrey is literally having an all-time season and at one point, he was even considered a front runner for this year’s MVP award.

Between his incredible efforts as a runner (1,307 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns) and receiver (94 catches and 814 receiving yards), McCaffrey forces defenses to always keep their eyes on him, which allows other Panthers offensive targets to play in favorable situations.

The Colts’ defense, especially linebacker Darius Leonard, has to play with an extra burst and anticipation while defending McCaffrey. This has to be done because one mistake could literally turn into a game-changing play for the Stanford product.

In fact, McCaffrey is actually 388 total yards (2,121) away from tying the record of most scrimmage yards gained in a season (2,509), set by former Tennessee Titan Chris Johnson in 2009.