Steve Wilks and the Carolina Panthers went into Lumen Field in Week 14 with a mindset geared towards playoff football. And, sure enough, it paid off.
Carolina’s 30-24 triumph over the Seattle Seahawks, along with a 35-7 loss by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, moved Wilks’ cats just one game behind the NFC South lead. The win has also given these 5-8 Panthers control of their own destiny.
Now in second place with a 3-1 divisional record, Carolina is in a favorable position to build ahead towards a playoff spot. To get there, they’ll have to conquer a final four-game stretch—one that includes zero teams with a winning record.
So—seeing as though they toppled the seven-win Seahawks in Seattle—perhaps the likes of the 5-8 Pittsburgh Steelers, 6-7 Detroit Lions, 6-7 Buccaneers and 4-9 New Orleans Saints don’t seem all too daunting.
But, as these Panthers continue to win the day, it’s refreshing to witness such a feel-good turnaround. Wilks deserves a lot of credit for pulling a once dead-in-the-water, 1-4 team out of the depths of despair and into contention.
