Panthers avoid collapse, clinch No. 2 seed in NFC
December 29
Charlotte Observer
"Carolina's 20-point fourth-quarter lead was gone. New Orleans was ahead by a point.
Barely over three minutes remained. The Panthers had the ball at the Saints' 18. The Superdome was super loud.
The NFC South title, first-round playoff bye and home playoff game the Panthers wanted so much was slipping from their grasp.
When quarterback Jake Delhomme walked into the huddle, his offensive teammates were quiet. His words were brief and to the point: "Alright, let's go do this."
Tackle Jordan Gross believed, but knew the odds - and the momentum - favored the Saints.
"We had our fingers crossed," Gross said. "We've seen Jake do that a million times and we have all the faith in the world in (kicker) John Kasay, but that's a long way to go."
The Panthers covered most of the distance needed to get Kasay into field goal range on a single play - a heave of a pass from Delhomme to wide receiver Steve Smith, who jumped over Saints defender Jason David to catch the ball for a 39-yard gain.
Moments later, with six seconds remaining, Kasay came on the field to try a field goal to win the game.
He was in a similar position last week on the final play of regulation, but missed a 50-yarder in a game that Panthers eventually lost in overtime. The big difference between the two kicks, said Delhomme, was this one was indoors and not outside on a blustery northeast night.
"I'm very confident in John, but I was on that field in the third and fourth quarter (last week against the Giants)," said Delhomme. "That wind was blowing the exact same way (left) it pushed the football, so I knew it was going to be an extremely difficult kick.
"But this one, with no elements, I was just waiting on it to go through."
Indeed, this Kasay kick split the uprights with one second left and the Panthers escaped with a thrilling 33-31 victory that seemed more difficult that it should have been.
"We're the Panthers," said Gross. "We've got to make it interesting."
Said Kasay to reporters: "You guys dubbed us the Cardiac Cats a few years ago, right? Well, I think you can bring out the hats and the t-shirts and get ready for the ride."
The win made the Panthers (12-4) champions of the NFC South and means they will play at Bank of America Stadium on Jan. 10 against Arizona (9-7), Atlanta (11-5) or Minnesota (10-6), depending on the outcome of next week's first-round games.
Carolina has played all three teams this season and is a combined 3-2 against them.
One of the sweetest things about Sunday's win for the Panthers was the bye that gives them next weekend off. If they'd lost to New Orleans, they would've had to travel to Arizona for a first-round game.
"We need the bye this week," said Delhomme. "We really and truly do."
The break will allow four injured Panthers' linemen to heal. Starting defensive tackles Maake Kemoeatu (ankle) and Damione Lewis (shoulder) sat out Sunday's game w
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