ESPN projects Panthers will miss NFL playoffs despite favorable schedule

The Carolina Panthers, because they finished in third place last year and only won five games, have a pretty favorable schedule this year. The NFL tries to make it so that bad teams don't have to run the gauntlet and good teams do to keep parity and give those bad teams an opportunity to improve. The Panthers have had favorable schedules for several seasons.

Despite that, ESPN's projection does not have the Panthers sneaking into the playoffs for the first time since 2017. They aren't facing a lot of difficult teams, but that might not be enough for them to get into the postseason. Based on how good the NFC is, the Panthers are probably looking at a division title as their only path.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers remain the favorites to do so, and they earn the NFC's third seed in this projection. The Panthers miss out yet again and push closer to a decade without playing beyond the regular season.

However, there is reason to hope that this won't be the case. The Buccaneers have lost offensive coordinators twice in the last two years to be head coaches, one of which is now with the Panthers. At some point, their offense should hit a bit of a snag and regress a little bit.

Plus, the Panthers way outperformed last year with a historically bad defense. Yielding over 30 points per game, the Bryce Young post-bench Panthers went 4-6. With a significantly improved defense and an offense that should be even better, the Panthers figure to be one of the most surprisingly decent teams in 2025.