No matter what the win-loss column dictates, one team must represent their division in the playoffs. That notion drives as strong of a point as ever as the 7-8-1 Carolina Panthers will host a playoff game while teams with better records will watch from home. The NFC playoffs kickoff this afternoon as the Panthers will go head-to-head with the Arizona Cardinals from Bank of America Stadium.
The Panthers come into the match-up under the direction of head coach Ron Rivera, who helped the franchise turn around last season and finish as one of the top seeds in the NFC. This season, Rivera and the Panthers have not matched their success of 2013. Their downfall is largely attributed to the loss of weapons such as Steve Smith, as well as a running game marked with multiple injuries.
Despite their struggles, one constant still remains in Charlotte: quarterback Cam Newton. Newton has spent much of the 2014 season banged up. Off-season ankle surgery and a later-suffered hairline fracture of his ribs kept him out of the season opener. The rib fracture was an injury Newton played through for much of his 2014 campaign. Just a few weeks ago, Newton suffered another setback after a devastating car accident left him with two spinal fractures.
Despite career-low numbers across the board, Newton’s presence and leadership is still a threat to not be taken lightly.
The vising Arizona Cardinals come in with an 11-5 record under second-year head coach Bruce Arians. Despite a successful record for the 2014 season as well as maintaining one of the league’s top defenses, the Cardinals have a lot to worry about heading into today’s game.
Shortly after receiving a hefty contract extension, quarterback Carson Palmer suffered a season-ending ACL tear. After getting five wins of his own, second-string quarterback Drew Stanton went down with a knee injury. Arians confirmed that Stanton will not return for today’s game, putting the fate of the Cardinals in the hands of Ryan Lindley who has not seen much success since relieving Stanton.
Arizona will have to rely heavily on their defense to stop Newton and give Lindley a chance to put points on the board. This however is not a simple task against Carolina’s strong defense.
Could today’s game be a repeat of 2011’s first wild-card match-up that saw an underdog Seattle Seahawk team upset the Superbowl XLIV champion New Orleans Saints? While DeAngelo Williams or Jonathan Stewart may not put up a game-changing Marshawn Lynch-like run, the team with the losing record could be seeing another day in the NFC road to the big game.
The game will air on ESPN at 4:20 p.m.
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