Panthers now face long odds to overcome 'shocking' start
CHARLOTTE — It seemed like a funeral.
Defensive tackle Kyle Love sat motionless in front of his locker, a blank stare on his face. Linebacker Thomas Davis poked his head out of the training room, knowing there was a crowd of reporters awaiting him, before creeping back inside.
Another player broke the silence, saying to no one in particular: “This is going to feel like (expletive) tomorrow.”
Yet that feeling had already pervaded a room full of dazed faces.
The Carolina Panthers stumbled Monday night, losing a sloppy game to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when rookie kicker Robert Aguayo’s 38-yard game-winning field goal provided the final 17-14 margin as time expired.
Now the Panthers are 1-4 and at the bottom of the NFC South. Forget about avoiding the dreaded Super Bowl hangover — just getting back to the playoffs would be monumental. Since 1990, only eight teams have made the postseason after starting 1-4.
“We’ve got to finish, man,” defensive tackle Kawann Short told Paste BN Sports. “We’ve got to finish on all sides of the ball. We’ve got to help each other out. We’re right there on the edge, but we have to understand that it’s going to take everything we’ve got to get back in this. We’ve just got to believe.”
Defensive end Charles Johnson called the team’s start “very shocking” considering the Panthers ripped through the regular season last year, compiling a 15-1 record before a run to the Super Bowl.
“Yes,” Johnson told reporters when asked if he thought the Panthers were still a playoff team. “Of course. We’ve just got to put some wins together.”
This was an opportunity lost. This was a game the Panthers had. But self-inflicted errors doomed them. Carolina gave away four turnovers, committed three fourth-quarter penalties, two of them personal fouls. The Panthers missed tackles and blew coverages.
Backup quarterback Derek Anderson started in place of Cam Newton (concussion) and coughed up the ball three times, including a fourth-quarter interception from the Bucs' 1-yard line.
Carolina next faces the New Orleans Saints (1-3), desperately hoping to end its three-game skid. Whether Newton returns Sunday remains a mystery. Pro Bowl running back Jonathan Stewart also remains sidelined. A once-stout defense has given up too many big plays, especially its inexperienced secondary.
But a veteran-laden team won't likely roll over.
"We've got enough older guys, and we've been through some situations before that not necessarily mimic this, but they're challenging times," said linebacker Luke Kuechly. "We just have to fight to get better."
Already three games behind the Atlanta Falcons, a wild card spot seems like the Panthers' best hope. Yet it may be a fleeting one.
“What happened the year before has nothing to do with this year,” tight end Greg Olsen said. “We’ve been saying that since the day after the Super Bowl. That’s just the reality of it. It’s unfortunate that we had to learn it by being 1-4, but that’s the way this league goes.
"You’ve got to earn everything and, right now, we’re not earning anything.”
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Follow Lorenzo Reyes on Twitter @LorenzoGReyes
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