Are you ready for something special?
December 22
Charlotte Observer columnist Tom Sorensen
"Now it gets good.
I don't mean it hasn't been good. Carolina has won 11 of 15 and here's how close the Panthers came to winning 12.
Sunday's game is tied, time is running out and John Kasay lines up to kick the 50-yard field goal that will win the game and give the Panthers home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Kasay, who had converted 24 of 25 field-goal attempts this season, was about to be 25 of 26. The kick looked perfect. The kick was perfect. And then, as the ball approached the crossbar, the wind reached out like a goalie and slapped the ball left. The thing went sideways.
So the game went to overtime and when it did the Giants did to Carolina what Carolina has been doing to everybody. New York's offensive line dominated the worn-down and, without 345-pound tackle Maake Kemoeatu suddenly undersized Carolina defensive line. New York's backs refused to be tackled, and the Giants won 34-28.
This was a game and the Panthers easily could have won it but they failed. And instead of being the NFC's top seed, the Panthers could, with a loss at New Orleans on Sunday and an Atlanta victory at home against bottom-feeding St. Louis, tumble to fifth.
One strange gust of wind at a stadium known for its unpredictable wind could force the Panthers to open the playoffs on the road and stay here.
So here's why it gets good.
The Panthers have something special. I've written this so frequently this season and so frequently during training camp that I ought to be able to hit a button and, like a byline, have the sentences immediately appear.
They had a chance to prove it Sunday night, and they came as close as team can without doing it. The mistake they made is that they drew in. They overwhelmed the Giants early with their big passes as well as their trademark runs. But as the game went on, they drew in, played safe and, rather than attempt a forward pass, they handed the ball off."
Link
Calendar
