The Carolina Panthers entered Week 13 as heavy underdogs against the Los Angeles Rams, facing the NFL MVP favorite in quarterback Matthew Stafford. Everything pointed to a setback. Instead, they delivered another shockwave.
Their sensational win was the second-largest upset of the NFL season. And the only bigger one? Carolina’s Week 9 stunner over the Green Bay Packers.
No other team has pulled off a double-digit-spread upset this year. And right now, the Panthers have become the league’s most unpredictable, chaotic — and somehow effective — underdog.
Carolina Panthers' unpredictability has become their biggest strength
The Panthers have been favored twice: a modest 5.5-point line against the New Orleans Saints (a game they lost 17-7) and a 1.0-point edge over the New York Jets. Other than that, they haven't been favored.
They’re 6-5 in those matchups. That’s a winning record while being consistently told they have no chance.
This kind of season can only happen if your quarterback takes a step forward, and Bryce Young did just that against the Rams. He went 15-of-20 for 206 passing yards and three touchdowns, including a 43-yard strike to rookie sensation Tetairoa McMillan, with a little over six minutes remaining.
If the offense was steady, the defense was a tornado. Three turnovers forced. A pick-six by Mike Jackson Sr., a late-game strip of Stafford by Pro Bowl defensive lineman Derrick Brown to seal the upset. The Rams' signal-caller entered the contest with 28 touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Panthers gave him one on his second drive, and later took one to the house.
Not bad for a team that spent the year being underestimated.
Chuba Hubbard finally performed well with 83 rushing yards and a receiving score. Second-year wideout Jalen Coker stacked together an impressive day with four catches for 74 receiving yards and a touchdown.
With the win, Carolina reached seven victories for the first time since 2022, a small but telling milestone. Every season has one team that defies logic. A team that throws out the script and forces the league to pay attention. This year, that team is the Panthers.
They weren’t built to dominate. They weren’t expected to contend. And they certainly weren’t favored to knock off two of the NFL’s best teams as double-digit underdogs.
But they did it anyway… twice.
Whatever you think the Panthers are going to do next, they’ll probably surprise you. And at this point, that unpredictability has become their most significant advantage.