The Carolina Panthers, Although Unpredictable, Are Inspiring Hope

Enjoyable Football is Back in the Queen City

This Panthers team just feels different. Sure, they still take an occasional gut punch, like losing to the Saints or dropping a stinker on Monday Night Football in San Francisco, but they always come back swinging harder than before.

Most importantly, the Panthers have proven that they can beat anyone in the league when they are on their A-game. The fans are slowly filling the stadium back up, and there is a little glimmer of hope in every Panther faithful’s heart that grows more and more as the season progresses.

Dave Canales was quick to give the Carolina fans credit for their part in the win over the Rams. “I just gotta say: Bank of America Stadium. The fans showed up in the weather. It was wet, but it was loud. And it was noticeable.”

The Need for Consistency

A lack of consistency has plagued the Panthers this season. In one game, Bryce Young is throwing for 400 yards, and in the next one, he has two interceptions.

Rico Dowdle goes off for 150 rushing yards, but Dave Canales decides that he is only going to run the ball six times the next game. The defense is forcing sacks and turnovers and then proceeding to let opposing offenses torch them.

The ups and downs have made the Panthers pretty unpredictable so far. However, Bryce Young seems to be trending upwards overall, and Dave Canales is steadily improving as a play caller.

Now, as the season winds to a close and the race for the playoffs tightens, the Panthers will have to string together some wins with consistently good play to grab the divisional title.

Playoff Qualifying Scenarios

Right now, the Panthers sit at 7-6, half a game behind divisional leaders Tampa Bay, who hold a 7-5 record. The NFC is very competitive at the moment, so the Panthers’ best odds to make the playoffs would be by winning the division over the Bucs.

The Athletic currently gives the Panthers a 22 percent chance of making the playoffs. A slim chance, but one the Panthers will look to snatch at nevertheless.

How can they pull it off? Beat Tampa Bay in Weeks 16 and 18 and win one of the remaining games against the Seahawks or the Saints. Not an easy task by any means.

That way, the Panthers finish 10-7 and are guaranteed to hold the tiebreaker over the Bucs.

The Wild Card is another vague possibility for Carolina, but it would require plenty of help from teams around the Panthers. Controlling your own destiny sounds a lot better, so the Panthers will certainly have those matchups vs the Bucs circled on their calendar.

Bryce has never beaten Tampa Bay in his young career, so he will be hoping to get that chip off his shoulder and lead his team to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

It has been one roller coaster of a season in Charlotte, but if this team can figure out a way to get to the playoffs, the Queen City is going to be celebrating like it hasn’t in a long time with the one and only Carolina Mic leading the way!