The Carolina Panthers had their worst year in 2001, going 1-15, losing fifteen consecutive games which eventually became a National Football League (NFL) record. They quickly turned the whole fiasco around two seasons later under the guidance of head coach John Fox, finishing the regular season with an 11-5 record. The Panthers advanced to the Playoffs after winning the National Football Conference's South Division title.

The Carolina Panthers finally got to the Super Bowl and as they had done during the regular season and the playoff, winning by coming from behind, they were about to generate history but it was all undone by a field goal with four seconds left on the clock. The Carolina Panthers lost Super Bowl XXXVIII to the New England Patriots. Carolina Panthers are a professional football team and one of four teams playing in the Southern Division of the National Football Conference (NFC), which is part of the National Football League (NFL). The Carolina Panthers play at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, and wear uniforms of black, blue, and silver.

During the 1996 season the Carolina Panthers won their division and qualified for the playoffs. It was only their second year of existence, and this was the earliest an NFL development team had ever encountered such success. Throughout the previous year, the team won seven games-the most ever by an NFL expansion team. In 1993 Carolina Panthers founder and owner Jerry Richardson was awarded the first new NFL franchise since 1976, when the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers had joined the league. Two years later, Carolina Panthers and man expansion team Jacksonville Jaguars began play. Former Pittsburgh Steelers assistant coach Dom Capers was named the Panthers’ first head coach. After losing the first 5 games of the 1995 season, Carolina Panthers won 7 of its last 11 games behind wide receivers Mark Carrier and Willie Green.

Throughout the season the Panthers defeated the San Francisco 49ers to become the primary expansion team ever to beat a defending league champion. In 1996 the Carolina Panthers stunned the National Football League (NFL) by winning 12 games and capturing the NFC Western Division title. Quarterback Kerry Collins and running back Anthony Johnson anchored the crime. Carolina put together the second-best defense in the National Football Conference (NFC), featuring three Pro Bowl linebackers: Kevin Greene, Lamar Lathon, and Sam Mills. Michael Bates was the league’s top kickoff returner, averaging 30.2 yards per return. Placekicker John Kasay led the league in scoring, convert on a league-record 37 field goals. Capers were named coach of the year. After capture the division title, Carolina Panthers defeated the Dallas Cowboys in the playoffs before losing the NFC Championship Game to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Green Bay Packers.

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Panthers stun Chargers 26-24 as time expires (AP)

Their eyes met -- the tight end under the goal posts and the quarterback who was moving up in the pocket, trying to keep the play alive. Antonio Gates and Philip Rivers? Oh no, try Jake Delhomme and Dante Rosario of the Carolina Panthers. Delhomme came back from an elbow injury with the kind of impact the San Diego Chargers won't soon forget, throwing a 14-yard touchdown pass to Rosario as time...

Panthers LT Otah leaves game with injury (PA SportsTicker) Carolina Panthers rookie left tackle Jeff Otah left Sunday's game against the San Diego Chargers with an injury to his lower left leg.

Panthers Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

Typically, the Carolina Panthers don't fare well when wide receiver Steve Smith is not on the football field.

Since Smith's arrival in 2001, the Panthers are 7-13 in games in which Smith doesn't play.

On Sunday, Smith will be back in Charlotte when his teammates visit the San Diego Chargers, serving a two-game suspension for punching teammate Ken Lucas in the nose during training camp.

This isn't the first time the Panthers have started the season with Smith on the shelf either.

In 2006, he sat out the first two games with a hamstring pull and Carolina began the season 0-2, losing to Atlanta and Minnesota. When Smith returned the Panthers offense caught fire and won four straight.

The NFL's Most Valuable Coaches (Yahoo! Sports) These 10 deliver the most for the money.