CHARLOTTE – For the past three weeks, vibes have been high in the Carolina Panthers facility. The practice energy is up, the locker room is pulsing and players bounce through the hallways.

"Winning two games in a row really has helped," Dave Canales said Friday of the feeling surrounding his team right now. It's not by luck though, the coach said, but a manifestation of work to this point.

"I would say that what I saw was a group that was growing more confident in the things that we're asking them to do heading into those games. I could feel it in practice and even a couple of games before that, you know, I could start to feel the level of comfort, the speed of play, the communication, all those things, watching those things come alive over the last month really."

Now the group will be tested, with the back-to-back Super Bowl champs. The Kansas City Chiefs and their 9-1 record, MVP quarterback and top five defense will be facing a healthier Panthers offense though, with arguably the most complete depth chart of the season.

Canales said on Friday that Jonathon Brooks will "absolutely" play on Sunday after a full week of practice.

"He had a great week," Canales said. "He's been involved with the plan, and he looks confident. He was running hard, he was making cuts, you know, kind of starting to develop the second level part of his runs, which is what I wanted to see. I wanted to see him hit the hole, go through it, see the finish and all that. So, I'm excited to get him out there this week."

Having Brooks not only available, but also not on a pitch count, will fill a void left by Miles Sanders, who will be out with the ankle injury sustained against the Giants in Week 10. Sanders had 38 carries in 10 games, so the role is not a large one at the moment.

"The starting point is Chuba Hubbard," Canales clarified, and Brooks will be used in similar roles to Sanders for now.

Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker are both listed as questionable on the final injury report of the week, although Canales believes both will play.

"We've been waiting and hoping to get Adam back out there," Canales said. "He just opens up some things for us third down wise and in the red zone."

Coker had what Canales described as "a little bit of a strain" that popped up Thursday. He did not practice on Friday as part of a management day. After some rest on Saturday, coaches "expect him to go," on Sunday.

Kicker Eddy Piñeiro did not practice on Friday either, with a lingering left knee pain that Canales admitted arose during the celebration of the walk-off game-winning field goal against the Giants in Week 10. Asked if he's ever had a player suffer a celebratory injury, Canales laughed, "not that I can remember."

Despite Piñeiro sitting out of Friday's practice, the Panthers feel comfortable not signing an extra kicker for now.

"He had two really good days of kicking this week," Canales said of Piñeiro. "And so we've just been talking to him and communicating and he feels like he's ready to go."