|
|
December 15, 2003
Panthers edge Cardinals, clinch division title
Carolina wins 20-17, will return to playoffs for first time since '96
By Joe Menzer | JOURNAL REPORTER
It began, appropriately enough, with a 35-yard interception return by longtime Panthers safety and acknowledged team leader Mike Minter. It ended, appropriately enough, with a winning 49-yard field goal by John Kasay, the last remaining player from the original Panthers.
What happened in between wasn't always pretty for the Panthers yesterday, but it was enough to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 20-17 before a sparse Sun Devil Stadium crowd of 23,217 - the majority of whom could not appreciate the magnitude of the win from the Panthers' perspective.
They could not possibly understand the pure joy experienced by a Panthers organization that clinched its first division title, its first playoff berth and its first winning season in seven years. Now 9-5, the Panthers secured the NFC South division title with two regular-season games left to play, assuring that, as a division winner, they will have at least one playoff game at home in early January.
John Fox, in only his second season as head coach, has taken the Panthers from the depths of a 1-15 record the year before he arrived in 2001 to a division championship.
"It was a big goal of ours in the off-season. We talked early in the season in our preparation about how we wanted to close the gap in our division. I would say that's doing that," Fox said of wrapping up the division title.
"This was a huge win for our organization."
General Manager Marty Hurney agreed, and said that it was an especially gratifying day for owner Jerry Richardson.
"I think it's very special. We've been through a lot. He's been through a lot," Hurney said of Richardson. "I think it's extremely special for him, and it's special for us to give it to him - because he's a tremendous owner who gives us everything we need. It's great to see him get this because he deserves it.
"There was a lot of pacing being done today. But this is tremendous."
The nervous pacing by Fox on the sideline and by Hurney high above in the press box was necessary because this Panthers' win was in doubt almost from start to finish, despite the Cardinals' 3-10 record entering the game.
The Panthers needed yet another winning drive in the waning moments from quarterback Jake Delhomme, who was at his best on a day when the team was often forced to suffer through much of his worst. He responded with his seventh winning, fourth-quarter drive of the season.
The score was tied at 17 following a 44-yard field goal by Neil Rackers of the Cardinals with just 1:15 remaining, and it looked as if overtime was looming. But the talk on the Carolina sideline turned to winning in regulation on a Kasay field goal.
Delhomme asked Fox how far into Arizona territory he needed to march the team to win the game.
"He said, 'Get a touchdown.' But then he said that he'd take it around the 35. And I talked to John and he said the 35, too," Delhomme said.
So Delhomme started peppering the weary Cardinals' defense with quick out passes to wide receiver Steve Smith, who picked up 9 yards here, 7 yards there, and even 13 yards on one pattern before ducking out of bounds to stop the clock. Throw in an 11-yard gain on a short pass to running back DeShaun Foster on third-and-3 from the Carolina 38-yard line - when Delhomme took the snap out of the Shotgun formation - and suddenly the Panthers were well inside the opportunity window that Fox and Kasay had prescribed for a winning field-goal attempt.
With eight seconds left and the ball resting on the Arizona 31, Kasay trotted out onto the field to exorcise demons of two weeks past. That was when Kasay missed three field-goal tries and an extra-point attempt during a 25-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
This time, he did not miss.
"It's not rocket science. Sometimes we can make it more difficult than it really is," Kasay said.
The Panthers felt like they had done that by losing their previous three games, which delayed their division- and playoff-clinching celebration. They attempted to make it easier on themselves yesterday when Minter, a seven-year veteran who yesterday helped assure his first winning season with the Panthers, intercepted quarterback Josh McCown of the Cardinals and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown on Arizona's second possession of the game.
But the 7-0 lead that Minter's play produced was short-lived. The Cardinals tied it at 7 on a 16-yard touchdown run by McCown late in the first quarter and took a 14-7 lead on a 4-yard touchdown run by Emmitt Smith in the second quarter.
The Panthers did not take their first lead until Foster caught a 31-yard touchdown pass from Delhomme 3 1/2 minutes into the fourth quarter. And even that did not hold up, forcing Kasay's last-second heroics.
But in the end, the Panthers were victorious. The NFC South division title was secure, and so was their first spot in the NFC playoffs since 1996 when they won the NFC West division and ultimately advanced to within one win of the Super Bowl.
And while the Panthers did not pretend that they played their finest game of the season, they did assert they now are in position to accomplish much more.
"Everybody's dangerous once you get in the playoffs," Delhomme said. "You get your foot in the door and it doesn't matter. As long as you get your foot in the door, anything can happen.
"Are we playing our best football right now? Probably not. But we still got this win and that's an encouraging sign. We did some things early (this season) to put ourselves in a good position where we could almost, and I hate to say this, but blow a couple of games. But we always controlled our own destiny, and if we can build momentum now, it's anybody's game once we get to the playoffs."
Jubiliant players donned NFC South championship hats in the Panthers' locker room. But tackle Todd Steussie made another point.
"It's great to win the division championship," Steussie said. "But hopefully that's not the only thing on our cap after the season is over."
• Joe Menzer can be reached at jmenzer@wsjournal.com