05-13-2024, 11:40 AM -
It's been mentioned previously, but I thought I would bring it all together here in one spot (sort of..???).
I think most of us (all ..??) are aware that the Panthers are a YOUNG team. The Panthers joined the league as an "expansion team' in 1995 along with the Jaguars. Since then, two more teams have "joined" the league. The Baltimore Ravens "joined" in 1996 and the Houston Texans in 2002. The Texans were a true "expansion team" joining the league some four years after the Houston Oilers left Houston for .... And the Ravens were "moved" to Baltimore from... Those stories are for another time...
Anyway, I thought I would gather this stuff together and sort of throw it out there for your enjoyment (or not..??). Now I know you folks think you know about this stuff, but I learned a lot about these bits of information while researching. I would bet that you will too. So, let's start with the Panthers...
The Panthers were awarded an expansion franchise in October of 1993. A LOT of excitement in Charlotte after waiting to hear from the NFL for six years. It all started in 1987 when Jerry Richardson met with backers, funding folks, prospective partners, etc. on July 16th. On December 15th it was official. The Panthers were officially "in the hunt" for one of two expansion franchises to be awarded. On October 26th, 1993, the NFL owners awarded the 29th NFL franchise to the Carolina Panthers. It was the first expansion team added to the league since 1976.
The Panthers played their very first EVER game in Canton, Ohio in the NFL Classic pre-season AFC-NFC Hall Of Fame Game on July 29, 1995. The Panthers played the other expansion team, the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Panthers won 20-14.
Since then, over 29 years, the Panthers have had some good years and some not-so-good years.
In their inaugural year (1995) the panthers had a record of 7-9. That's pretty impressive for an expansion team. In fact, That is a NFL record for "most wins by an expansion team". The following year (1996), the Panthers won the NFC West with a 12-4 record and went to the NFC Championship game. A GREAT start for the Panthers..!! Since then things have been sort of "up and down".
The Panthers all-time W-L record is 214-252. Their post-season record is 9-8. Over the years the Panthers have played ONE tie game. That game was in 2014 against the Bengals. It was a terrific game (sort of..??) and ended 37-37. One highlight-reel play had PacMan Jones run a kick back 97 yards. But guess what... Colin Jones, one of the fastest players ever in a Panthers uniform, ran him down at the 3 yd. line.!!
Over the years, the Panthers have had seven (7) winning seasons. There have also been three (3) 8-8 seasons. All the rest have been losing seasons, although there have been quite a few where the W-L totals have been relatively close.
In 2003 the Panthers made their first trip to the Super Bowl. They finished 11-5 in the regular season, then ran the table in the NFC playoffs. The Super Bowl was played in Houston in Reliant Stadium on February 1, 2004. The Panthers met the NE Patriots, led by Tom Brady and eventually lost the game 32-29 on a last second FG by Adam Vinatieri.
In 2015 the Panthers returned to the Super Bowl. The Panthers blew through the regular season at 15-1 then pushed through the NFC playoffs to end up in Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on February 7, 2016. The Panthers met the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50. The Panthers had the NFL's #1 Offense and the league MVP in Cam Newton. The Broncos finished the season 12-4, owned the NFLs #1 defense, and were led by the inimitable Peyton Manning. The game was a classic defensive struggle. The Broncos took the lead early and never relinquished it, defeating the Panthers 24-10. The CBS' broadcast of Super Bowl 50 holds the title of the most watched broadcast in American television history.
In 2017 the Panthers finished 11-5. That was the Panthers last winning season to date. So, six (6) consecutive losing seasons.
The Panthers catch a lot of flak every year. It seems there are always plenty of "talking heads" sounding off about how terrible the Panthers are as a team. Now, I'll grant you that the last few years have been a pretty slippery downward spiral. However, try to remember ANY year when the Panthers were recognized as a genuinely good team before the season started, or even at a point early in the season. I will contend that it has never happened. Even when the Panthers were going 12-4, 11-5, 15-1 -- all of the talk was about how they were going to "fold". "Just a lucky streak". "No way they win anything...".
So to close this missive, I'll throw this bit of information out there. You may not be aware, BUT.....
In the history of the NFL: There are currently twelve teams that have never won a Super Bowl game. Those teams are.... The Cleveland Browns; Detroit Lions; Houston Texans; Jacksonville Jaguars; Arizona Cardinals; LA Chargers; Tennessee Titans; Atlanta Falcons; Cincinnati Bengals; Minnesota Vikings; Buffalo Bills; and the Panthers.
There are four teams that have NEVER BEEN to a Super Bowl.!! Those are.... The Browns; Lions; Texans; Jaguars.
The Vikings have been to four SBs; The Bills have been to four SBs; The Bengals have been to three SBs; --- All of them have NEVER won...
The Cardinals, Chargers, and Titans have been to one SB, and the Falcons and the Panthers who have been to two SBs each. (NO wins..)
So, in retrospect, it would seem that there are quite a few teams that are worse off than the Panthers. As one of the youngest teams, at least we have BEEN THERE a couple of times..... which is more than some teams can say. And three teams have been there 3-4 times and NEVER WON.!!
I don't know about you, but AFAIAC the Panthers don't look too bad, everything considered. (*** Of course, I'll admit that the last few years have been pretty depressing..).
I think most of us (all ..??) are aware that the Panthers are a YOUNG team. The Panthers joined the league as an "expansion team' in 1995 along with the Jaguars. Since then, two more teams have "joined" the league. The Baltimore Ravens "joined" in 1996 and the Houston Texans in 2002. The Texans were a true "expansion team" joining the league some four years after the Houston Oilers left Houston for .... And the Ravens were "moved" to Baltimore from... Those stories are for another time...
Anyway, I thought I would gather this stuff together and sort of throw it out there for your enjoyment (or not..??). Now I know you folks think you know about this stuff, but I learned a lot about these bits of information while researching. I would bet that you will too. So, let's start with the Panthers...
The Panthers were awarded an expansion franchise in October of 1993. A LOT of excitement in Charlotte after waiting to hear from the NFL for six years. It all started in 1987 when Jerry Richardson met with backers, funding folks, prospective partners, etc. on July 16th. On December 15th it was official. The Panthers were officially "in the hunt" for one of two expansion franchises to be awarded. On October 26th, 1993, the NFL owners awarded the 29th NFL franchise to the Carolina Panthers. It was the first expansion team added to the league since 1976.
The Panthers played their very first EVER game in Canton, Ohio in the NFL Classic pre-season AFC-NFC Hall Of Fame Game on July 29, 1995. The Panthers played the other expansion team, the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Panthers won 20-14.
Since then, over 29 years, the Panthers have had some good years and some not-so-good years.
In their inaugural year (1995) the panthers had a record of 7-9. That's pretty impressive for an expansion team. In fact, That is a NFL record for "most wins by an expansion team". The following year (1996), the Panthers won the NFC West with a 12-4 record and went to the NFC Championship game. A GREAT start for the Panthers..!! Since then things have been sort of "up and down".
The Panthers all-time W-L record is 214-252. Their post-season record is 9-8. Over the years the Panthers have played ONE tie game. That game was in 2014 against the Bengals. It was a terrific game (sort of..??) and ended 37-37. One highlight-reel play had PacMan Jones run a kick back 97 yards. But guess what... Colin Jones, one of the fastest players ever in a Panthers uniform, ran him down at the 3 yd. line.!!
Over the years, the Panthers have had seven (7) winning seasons. There have also been three (3) 8-8 seasons. All the rest have been losing seasons, although there have been quite a few where the W-L totals have been relatively close.
In 2003 the Panthers made their first trip to the Super Bowl. They finished 11-5 in the regular season, then ran the table in the NFC playoffs. The Super Bowl was played in Houston in Reliant Stadium on February 1, 2004. The Panthers met the NE Patriots, led by Tom Brady and eventually lost the game 32-29 on a last second FG by Adam Vinatieri.
In 2015 the Panthers returned to the Super Bowl. The Panthers blew through the regular season at 15-1 then pushed through the NFC playoffs to end up in Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on February 7, 2016. The Panthers met the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50. The Panthers had the NFL's #1 Offense and the league MVP in Cam Newton. The Broncos finished the season 12-4, owned the NFLs #1 defense, and were led by the inimitable Peyton Manning. The game was a classic defensive struggle. The Broncos took the lead early and never relinquished it, defeating the Panthers 24-10. The CBS' broadcast of Super Bowl 50 holds the title of the most watched broadcast in American television history.
In 2017 the Panthers finished 11-5. That was the Panthers last winning season to date. So, six (6) consecutive losing seasons.
The Panthers catch a lot of flak every year. It seems there are always plenty of "talking heads" sounding off about how terrible the Panthers are as a team. Now, I'll grant you that the last few years have been a pretty slippery downward spiral. However, try to remember ANY year when the Panthers were recognized as a genuinely good team before the season started, or even at a point early in the season. I will contend that it has never happened. Even when the Panthers were going 12-4, 11-5, 15-1 -- all of the talk was about how they were going to "fold". "Just a lucky streak". "No way they win anything...".
So to close this missive, I'll throw this bit of information out there. You may not be aware, BUT.....
In the history of the NFL: There are currently twelve teams that have never won a Super Bowl game. Those teams are.... The Cleveland Browns; Detroit Lions; Houston Texans; Jacksonville Jaguars; Arizona Cardinals; LA Chargers; Tennessee Titans; Atlanta Falcons; Cincinnati Bengals; Minnesota Vikings; Buffalo Bills; and the Panthers.
There are four teams that have NEVER BEEN to a Super Bowl.!! Those are.... The Browns; Lions; Texans; Jaguars.
The Vikings have been to four SBs; The Bills have been to four SBs; The Bengals have been to three SBs; --- All of them have NEVER won...
The Cardinals, Chargers, and Titans have been to one SB, and the Falcons and the Panthers who have been to two SBs each. (NO wins..)
So, in retrospect, it would seem that there are quite a few teams that are worse off than the Panthers. As one of the youngest teams, at least we have BEEN THERE a couple of times..... which is more than some teams can say. And three teams have been there 3-4 times and NEVER WON.!!
I don't know about you, but AFAIAC the Panthers don't look too bad, everything considered. (*** Of course, I'll admit that the last few years have been pretty depressing..).
This post was last modified: 05-14-2024, 07:33 PM by Hobbit99.
"A Reasoned Response From A Reasonable Mind"
