The Road to the Super Bowl: Carolina’s Perspective

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It’s late January, and we once again find ourselves looking toward the Super Bowl. That the Patriots, the hottest team in the NFL, are going to the big game may not be entirely unexpected. However, their opponents, the Carolina Panthers, are a surprise to most.

Only two years ago the Panthers went 1-15, followed by a 7-9 record last season. If you had told someone, “next year the Panthers are going to the Super Bowl,” they would have said something like, “yeah right, and I’m going to marry my mom.” A struggling expansion team with one winning season, Carolina turned to coach John Fox to lead this squad. With a few additions like QB Jake Delhomme, rookie CB Ricky Manning, OLB Greg Favors and RB Stephen Davis, Fox had something to work with. Yet coming into the season, the Panthers still didn’t get attention as far as playoff predictions were concerned.

Davis came out of Washington as a free agent and exploded in Carolina. Finishing as one of the top RBs in the country and a Pro Bowler, he was the heart of this offense. Against all predictions, Jake Delhomme stepped up when needed and hooked up with WR Steve Smith, making a magical third year for Smith a reality.

Although their offense was better than expected, it was the Panthers’ defense that led them to the Super Bowl. Rookie LB Will Witherspoon, who teamed with Favors on the outside, led the team in tackles and was an important part of this talented linebacker unit. SS Mike Minter was a close second to Witherspoon in stops and was the one to anchor secondary, a very promising group composed of Minter, Manning, Deon Grant, and Reggie Howard. We all have seen how rookie Ricky Manning has played this postseason, and the future of the secondary looks bright. The defensive line is a four-man wrecking crew with Mike Rucker and Julius Peppers on the outside, and Kris Jenkins and Brentson Buckner on the inside. This defense is no Tampa Bay name-wise, but each player fits in perfectly to form a top unit.

Enough with individuals – in Carolina’s case, the whole is definitely greater than the sum of the parts. The team plays with heart, persistence, and pride. Heading into the season, bad news befell the Panthers. After Mark Fields had already been told that he was suffering from Hodgkin’s disease, linebackers coach Sam Mills was diagnosed with cancer. Word spread and the Panthers found inspiration within themselves to play with heart and desire, not for themselves, but for Fields and Mills. In their honor, the entire team wears shirts under their uniforms with the numbers 51 and 58.

Going into the season, Carolina had determination and fire inside. Every play, every drive, they fought with a vengeance. Impossible as it seemed, the Panthers bounced back to go 11-5 and reach the playoffs. No single individual brought them there, but the whole team together fighting with all their willpower, and with Mills and Fields in their hearts. Finding themselves in the Super Bowl, the Panthers are playing for a simple goal: to help the two fight their diseases by winning it all. Although they haven’t triumphed yet, they are very close, and thankfully, so are Mills and Fields in winning their battles.

Often the primary motivations in sports these days seem to be power and fame. Carolina is not about these things; they find they want to play football in their hearts, playing for each other and their team, not to be the top player in the league. This is the mentality it takes to win the Super Bowl. My pick for the Cinderella story of the year is, without a doubt, the Carolina Panthers.

 
Fifteen years old and a freshman in high school, Matt Bucey can’t live without sports … or girls. He considers Pittsburgh to be the ultimate city, but prefers Penn State over Pitt, posting in the forums as NittanyLions.