Following a trio of effortless victories, the Blues were shut down comprehensively by Essendon last week and are aiming to erase that memory against Fremantle on Friday night.
Both sides are 3-1 but, according to star midfielder Marc Murphy, Carlton desperately needs to come away with a win to remain at the right end of the ladder.
"It's a big game - if we lose we're back among the pack but we're pretty confident we can go over there and get the job done," Murphy said on Wednesday.
Murphy admitted there was "probably a little" sense of a reality check after last week's loss to the Bombers.
"We didn't get ahead of ourselves but you can tell that when you're a little bit off your game anyone can beat you on any given day," he said.
Blues coach Brett Ratten criticised the side for playing less aggressively than Essendon and failing to respond to the Dons' pressure, and Murphy said that issue had been addressed this week.
"We have had a few meetings about the way we played and a few of our efforts," he said.
"The way we attacked the ball wasn't great but the best thing about football is you get another week to have another go so we're looking forward to turning that around."
He said he was hopeful the stats that favoured the Bombers would be an isolated case.
"We went inside 50 four or five more times than them but they scored a bit more than us," he said.
"Whether that's our whole team defence or that's just the way we're going inside 50, we'll be having a look at that.
"Hopefully it's just a one-off. But we didn't use the ball too well."
Key to the Blues' success on Friday night will be a quick start to silence Fremantle's supporters and drain the side's confidence early, Murphy said.
He said the loss of defender Jeremy Laidler for up to two months with a knee injury was "terrible news for us and for 'Laids'."
Laidler joins Andrew Carrazzo on the sidelines, after the midfielder succumbed to a shoulder injury which could also mean an eight week break.
