With NFC South title on the line against Bucs, winning is believing for Panthers
The Panthers weren’t in playoff contention during the final month of last season. The squad finished 5-12 after going on a 4-5 stretch to end Dave Canales’ first campaign as head coach.
But if you ask the players who were on last year’s squad — or even Canales himself — they’ll tell you that the lumps and growing pains from 2024 set the stage for their current path: a shot at the team’s first NFC South division crown in a decade.
Sure, the eventual NFC South winner will end up with the worst record in the conference’s playoff bracket for the third time in four years. And yes, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9), Saturday’s make-or-break opponent, have been in a free fall for the past two months — after starting 5-1 with wins over Houston, Seattle and San Francisco.
But the Panthers (8-8) are in position to surpass last year’s win total by four games and host a playoff game for the first time since 2015.
That’s an accomplishment for a team that was 2-15 just two years ago.
Now, though, it’s closing time. Carolina controls its own destiny, and instead of counting on the streaking Atlanta Falcons (7-9) to beat the somewhat surging New Orleans Saints (6-10), Canales and company want to finish what they started in training camp. A win on Saturday at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa would punch the Panthers’ ticket to the postseason dance for the first time since 2017.
The buy-in is there. The belief is flowing. And the hope is growing by the day.
“Going into this season, we took a lot of pride in just the fact that we knew a lot of people outside (the building) didn’t believe in us,” safety Nick Scott told The Charlotte Observer. “And that helped us become a tight-knit group inside the locker room. We just felt like we’re all we had, and that’s still the case now. All that matters to us are the people in this building, and week in and week out, regardless of the results, we just lean on each other and try to get better each week.”
The Panthers have been on a roller coaster ride to this point. They’ve traded wins and losses over the past 10 weeks, and their up-and-down performance trend actually favors them this week following this past Sunday’s 27-10 blowout loss in the home finale against the Seattle Seahawks.
The Panthers have shown an uncanny ability to bounce back. They’ve also shown they’re not particularly comfortable playing the favorites.
So, heading into Tampa Bay as 3.5-point underdogs — while coming off a blowout home loss — could do just the trick.
The Panthers searched for an identity last year. This year, they can claim one.
“This year, with all of these games, really for over a month now, it’s been such a rich environment in the building to know that we’re playing for this division,” Canales said. “Win the first championship first — that’s got to be the focus, and we have that opportunity in front of us.”
Canales has (kind of) been here before
In 2010, Canales was a first-year offensive quality control coach in Seattle. It was Pete Carroll’s first year in charge of the Seahawks, and he was taking over a roster that was in transition.
The team took a similar theme-park ride of a campaign to their season finale against the then-St. Louis Rams. At 6-9, the Seahawks didn’t look like playoff contenders, but they faced a win-and-in matchup for the NFC West title and took advantage with a 16-6 victory over the Rams in prime time.
Getting into the postseason with a sub-.500 record wasn’t en vogue then (or really, ever). And the Seahawks weren’t particularly lauded before their wild-card round matchup against the defending Super Bowl champion, New Orleans Saints. But the Seahawks claimed a home game to start the postseason and battled their way to a 41-36 upset win over Drew Brees, Sean Payton and the Saints.
While the Seahawks would go on to lose to the Chicago Bears in the divisional round, the push into the playoffs and the initial playoff win of the Carroll era set the table for what was to come: Seattle’s Super Bowl XLVIII victory over the Denver Broncos following the 2013 season.
“It really is a gift, when you win the division, to be able to host that first one, and we hosted the defending Super Bowl champs, the New Orleans Saints, who had to go all the way across the country and play us at 7-9,” Canales said. “But what I learned about that group is you just keep playing football. And there’s a way to win every game, and you don’t make a judgment about the game when things happen in a series. You don’t make a judgment about the season based on what happens in the early part or the middle part of it, you just gotta keep playing ball, because scenarios play out, and all of a sudden, you’re there.”
Canales’ experiences on the way to a Super Bowl championship helped mold his approach in Carolina. He’s seen proof that positivity and grit can lead to success, especially when reflecting back on those early days with Carroll and the Seahawks.
And as the Panthers face a similar situation to his 2010 Seattle squad, the key for Canales is belief — belief in the system and belief in each other.
“So, there’s this hopefulness that you have to keep trying to find your best football,” Canales said. “And that’s what I learned from coach Carroll, was to be optimistic about what could happen. Can you dream a little bit here? Regardless of what’s happening in the different parts of the season. Can we just keep getting our football better? And that’s the biggest approach that I try to apply to our group here, too.”
The first division championship is a stepping stone
Long snapper J.J. Jansen can look back and point to a turning point in the Ron Rivera era with ease.
In 2014, the Panthers — similar to the Seahawks in 2010 — pushed their way into the playoffs with a 7-8-1 record by virtue of winning the NFC South. It was a crummy division that year — not unlike it’s been for the past three years — and Carolina was able to get to the dance with a four-game winning streak to close out the season.
The Panthers hosted the Arizona Cardinals, who had an 11-5 campaign, without starting QB Carson Palmer. Carolina won, 27-15, and Jansen recalls that victory being as a watershed moment for the franchise.
“To win that game and then go on the road against Seattle was the next step,” Jansen said. “And then I really think that kind of launched our ‘15 season that obviously ended in the Super Bowl but was really good the whole way through. I think getting a home playoff game, an opportunity to win one at home in front of your home fans, is a big stepping stone, not just for the players but the organization and the city.”
Jansen, now in his 18th season, thinks the otherwise young Panthers of 2025 could see a similar situation bloom if they can beat the Buccaneers in Week 18.
“Most teams walk in with a list of goals for the year,” Jansen said. “I think every team — including our own — breaks down, ‘Hey, let’s win Game 1 of the regular season.’ But at the back end, there’s all of these goals, the first one is to win your division and get in the playoffs. And the reward for obviously winning your division is a home playoff game. And I think for a young team, that’s been through a lot, that’s been steadily progressing over the past few years, the ability to play a home game in front of our home crowd, is a really special moment.”
Pro Bowl right guard Robert Hunt has been a spectator for most of the Panthers’ zigzag season. He’s been sidelined with a bicep injury since Week 2 when the Panthers started 0-2 on the season. They’ve since won eight of their last 14 games.
Hunt — who has an opportunity to be activated off injured reserve for the finale or a potential playoff run thereafter — sees the buy-in from his teammates, especially when they’ve played with momentum.
As a group, they believe they can get the job done.
“You see it with the wins, obviously,” Hunt said. “We lose some, too, but with the wins you see the belief in the guys competing and trying to play at a high level. So, it’s kind of what it is — if you believe, you’ve got a chance.”
After watching other teams claim the division crown for a decade, the Panthers have a shot at starting a new wave within the NFC South. For a team that features 31 players under the age of 27, that’s a chance to cement a foundation for the foreseeable future.
According to the eldest player in the locker room, they’re prepared for the postseason environment of this weekend — and beyond, if necessary.
“The cool part is that I would argue our last two home games really had similar energy (to a playoff game),” Jansen said. “Certainly, two weeks ago against Tampa, I thought last week versus Seattle — they felt like home playoff games. So, when we get to that moment, that won’t be new for a lot of guys.”
