Cat Scratch Reader
We bring you another edition of this week’s mailbag. Not so many questions so we’ll get a bit deeper with the answers!
Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! We approach the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, and the NFC South is eliminated. It's the offseason for Panthers fans, but I called on any participants who wanted to to share their favorite NFC South memories from this season as the topic of the week. I’m going to share mine, just for fun!
My favorite part of this season for the NFC South, was the hype the Saints gathered following their 40+ point performances against the Panthers and the Cowboys in the first two weeks of the season. Early on, the Saints had crept into the playoff discussion and were definitely in the conversation for early favorites in the NFC South. Could it be that the Saints long tested formula of kicking the cap space can down the road to try and win now would get them back to a Super Bowl? Nope, instead the Saints went on to lose SEVEN straight games, with the Panthers getting their win back at the end of that skid. The Saints then fired their head coach Dennis Allen following that loss, and only mustered 3 more wins for the rest of the season. Now, they face another season over the cap ceiling, as they enter 2025 nearly $50 million over the cap. But hey, at least they have the 9th overall pick and 8 draft picks!
Let’s highlight the other response to this week’s topic of the week:
GooseCreek: Well, I have a mental block on the first half of the season but the second half was mostly positive. Being blown out by Dallas at BoA and Tampa Bay were painful but the 1 point win over New Orleans seemed to have triggered something inside the team. Possibly the memory of the beating inflicted upon them in New Orleans to start the regular season was purged with that win.
The Panthers being competitive with a depleted roster, including their under-manned defense was enough to turn the early season despair invisioning a better future in Carolina. Their was a feeling of hope attached to the team as they continued to play hard after a dismal early season, especially with taking 4 late season games into overtime and then winning 3 of those.
Bryce Young’s improved play was well received but my favorite memories of this season will be of how the team stayed together and fighting for each other when it would have been very easy to mark the season off as a lost cause.
The New Orleans Saints losing and kick-starting a Panthers rally to end the season? Golly, that just warms my cold, dead heart.
Now, let’s get into YOUR questions. To recap, Brian Answers is where we answer all your burning questions each week, whether they be Panthers related, football related, or...
