The Carolina Panthers, despite being 8-9 and losing a game that would’ve clinched the NFC South for them, found their way into the NFL playoffs. Since Carolina is also a division winner, it gets to host a playoff game. That game will be on Saturday, against the 12-5 Los Angeles Rams. The Rams have been one of the best teams in the league this season, so no one is giving the Panthers a chance to win.
Even though Carolina picked up a 31-28 home win over the Rams in Week 13 of the season, Saturday’s matchup is being viewed as a formality for Los Angeles to advance to the Divisional round. History shows it’s a mistake to count the Panthers out like that. ESPN reporter Dan Graziano recently pointed out that six teams with a .500 record or worse have hosted a Wild Card game; those teams went 4-2.
Panthers have a good chance to upset the Rams again
The bad news for Carolina is that the two losses came from the last two teams that were in this situation, so the trend isn’t currently on the Panthers’ side. History is, though, as home teams have been able to pull off some epic upsets after limping into the playoffs.
"The 2008 Chargers beat the Colts. The 2010 Seahawks beat the defending Super Bowl champion Saints in the Marshawn Lynch "Beast Quake" game. The Tim Tebow Broncos of 2011 knocked off the Steelers. And the 2014 Panthers beat the Cardinals. The last two teams to host a wild-card game with a regular-season record of .500 or worse did lose -- the 2020 Washington Football Team to the Buccaneers and the 2022 Buccaneers to the Cowboys. But the overall record of 4-2 certainly shows it can be done."Dan Graziano (ESPN)
Beyond the historical aspect of it, the Panthers have been great as an underdog this season. As Graziano highlighted, all eight of Carolina’s wins this season have come when the team was an underdog — the most wins in the NFL this season as an underdog. The Panthers will have to add to that number on Saturday if their season is going to continue.
Panthers and NFL history aside, it’s disrespectful to not give Carolina a chance at all. This is the NFL, and anything can happen on a given day. Additionally, the Rams are good, but they aren’t a world-beating team without flaws. The Panthers also have some redeeming qualities, despite their losing record. Like any game, Saturday’s matchup will be determined by what happens between the lines on that day.