2018 NFC Wild Card: Panthers vs. Buccaneers

Lore & Background

The NFL awarded the Carolinas its 29th franchise in 1993, and the Panthers began play in 1995 under founder Jerry Richardson. They reached the NFC Championship Game in their second season. The Panthers have won seven division titles and two NFC championships, advancing to Super Bowl XXXVIII after the 2003 season and Super Bowl 50 after the 2015 season, losing both. The 2015 team finished 15–1, and quarterback Cam Newton was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player. In 2025, Carolina won the NFC South with an 8–9 record and returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2017, losing 34–31 to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round.

In Their Own Story

Inside the Panthers' locker room, the silence was different from other years. There was no hand-wringing, no whispered prayers that the season would end in another loss. Matt Rhule's words had been simple: *we earned this, now go play.*

On the field, the gridiron glowed under the stadium lights, the green and black of Carolina paint on the end zones looking almost defiant against the white of the Buccaneers' helmets. Cam Newton stood in the huddle, jaw set, eyes scanning the Tampa Bay defense the way he always did—searching for the seam, the mistake, the moment to make it his. Across the field, Jameis Winston barked cadences, his young voice cutting through the noise. The first drive was tentative. Both offenses felt the weight of the occasion. But by the second quarter, the game had found its rhythm—long passes, big hits, the thud of shoulder pads and the crack of the ball meeting a helmet. When Newton hit a receiver in the flat for a first down, the stadium exhaled and then roared, a sound that rolled off the concrete walls and into the Charlotte night. The Buccaneers answered. The Panthers answered back. In the fourth quarter, with the game on a knife's edge, the Panthers' defense made the play. A tackle at the line. A strip. A recovery. The noise that followed was not a cheer so much as a release—a two-year breath finally let out. Newton walked off the field with the quiet intensity of a man who knew this might be his last season in this building, in this city, wearing this helmet. He did not celebrate. He nodded to the crowd, once, and the crowd nodded back. Later, in the emptying stadium, a single fan in the upper deck still stood, phone in hand, tears cutting through the cold. She had missed the 2015 run. She had sat through the 1-15. She had almost stopped going. But tonight, she was here, and the Panthers had won, and the roar was still echoing in her ears like a promise that this city would not stop believing.

Reader's Guide

The Panthers first competed in the 1995 NFL season; they were one of two expansion teams to begin playing that year, the other being the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Panthers were put in the NFC West to increase the size of that division to five teams. Former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dom Capers was named the first head coach. The team finished its inaugural season 7–9, the best performance ever from a first-year expansion team. They performed even better in their second season, finishing with a 12–4 record and winning the NFC West division, as well as securing a first-round bye. The Panthers beat the defending Super Bowl champions Dallas Cowboys in the divisional round 26–17 before losing the NFC Championship Game to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Green Bay Packers 30–13. After the NFL's expansion to 32 teams in 2002, the Panthers were relocated from the NFC West to the newly created NFC South division. The Panthers' rivalries with the Falcons and Saints were maintained, and they would be joined by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. New York Giants defensive coordinator John Fox was hired to replace Seifert and led the team to a 7–9 finish in 2002. Prior to the 2003 season, the team signed quarterback Jake Delhomme. The Panthers improved to 11–5 in the 2003 regular season, winning the NFC South. The Panthers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 29–10 in the Wild Card Round, the St. Louis Rams 29–23 in the Divisional Round, and the Philadelphia Eagles 14–3 in the NFC Championship. They advanced to Super Bowl XXXVIII before losing to the New England Patriots, 32–29. In 2008, the Panthers rebounded with a 12–4 regular season record, winning the NFC South and securing a first round bye. They were eliminated in the divisional round of the playoffs, losing 33–13 to the eventual NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals after Delhomme turned the ball over six times.

Did You Know?

• The Panthers played their inaugural 1995 season at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina while Bank of America Stadium was under construction.
• The 2015 Panthers finished 15–1, and quarterback Cam Newton was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player.
• In 2025, Carolina won the NFC South with an 8–9 record and returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.