Dedicated Carolina Panthers fans and casual fans alike are still in mourning following defeat in Super Bowl 50. The anticipation for the game was intense and the letdown was devastating. The Panthers are now 0-2 in Super Bowls, losing to the likes of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. The grieving period is still in session and, in some ways, it always will be.
Panthers fans, it is OK to mourn the loss, and it is OK to wear it on your sleeve. But do not forget that this season was one for the ages. This was not only the greatest season in Panthers history but also one of the greatest seasons in NFL history. The 2015 Panthers were one of four teams to ever achieve a 14-0 record; the other three are the 1972 Miami Dolphins, the 2007 New England Patriots, and the 2009 Indianapolis Colts. Of these four teams, only the 1972 Dolphins won the Super Bowl.
The list of accomplishments this season continues: Newton is the first MVP and first Offensive Player of the Year in Carolina Panthers history. He received 48 of the 50 total MVP votes. Head coach Ron Rivera won his second Coach of the Year award. The Panthers didn’t lose one regular season game for 392 days. Their Dec. 27, 2015, loss to the Atlanta Falcons was their first regular-season loss since Nov. 30, 2014. Luke Kuechly has already established himself as one of the most talented linebackers in NFL history. Josh Norman and Kurt Coleman both emerged as two of the most lethal ball hawks in the NFL today. Thomas Davis is an inspirational tale of motivation and perseverance: After three ACL injuries in the same knee and despite a broken arm in the NFC Championship game, he still played in the Super Bowl two weeks later. The Panthers had six All-Pro -- best at their position -- players and would have sent 10 players to the Pro Bowl had they not made the Super Bowl. The 2015 Carolina Panthers were one of the greatest teams in NFL history, and I encourage every Panthers fan to remember this as the team is criticized mercilessly throughout the offseason simply because they lost the big one.
The weeks following a Super Bowl loss assume the same practices year after year. The head coach will be put under a microscope, free agency and trade rumors will circulate, internet memes and trash talk will consume social media, and each player’s dedication will be questioned. Thus far, no player has been questioned more than quarterback Cam Newton.
As a quarterback, you must acknowledge early on that you will receive all the praise for winning, but all the blame for losing. The quarterback is usually the leader of the team, and this is no different with Newton. Newton has been heavily criticized for his postgame press conference actions following the Super Bowl loss. The brief session was full of one-word answers and shoulder shrugs. Newton has since been stripped of his leadership title by many and has instead adopted the title of “sore loser.” But I would like to point out a discrepancy here. Newton is not the only person to soil a press conference. When Bill Belichick and Marshawn Lynch openly mock press conferences, it’s funny, but when Newton does it, he’s a bad leader?
Just weeks into the 2014 NFL season, the New England Patriots were stomped by the Kansas City Chiefs 41-14. At the press conference following the loss, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick delivered one of his many emotionless, uninformative displays. He answered every question with "we're on to Cincinnati," referring to the following week’s appointment with the Cincinnati Bengals, and paid no mind whatsoever to any of the questions. Similarly, recently retired running back Marshawn Lynch also took advantage of a press conference to show just how little he cared about being there. On “media day” in Arizona leading up to a Super Bowl XLIX matchup between Belichick’s Patriots and Lynch’s Seattle Seahawks, Lynch actually topped Belichick’s aforementioned performance. Lynch answered every single question addressed to him with "I'm here so I won't get fined." This refers to the NFL rule stating that any player that skips a press conference will be fined. The point is, Newton was devastated and distraught having lost the biggest game of his life. So, given the situation, I do not have a problem with his actions at all. What I do have a problem with are men like Belichick and Lynch that seek to only make a complete mockery of the obligation.
The loss in Super Bowl 50 is one to forget, but the 2015 season is one to always remember. The Carolina Panthers are no longer a laughing stock. Never have North Carolina and South Carolina been so united over a team. Owner Jerry Richardson deliberately located the Panthers in Charlotte because it is only about 20 minutes from the South Carolina state line. The Panthers play in Charlotte, North Carolina, but training camp is held at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. They are the Carolina Panthers, not the North Carolina Panthers. There are many former Panthers fans that gave up on the team after the Super Bowl XXXVIII loss to the Patriots in 2004. This season allowed former fans and Carolina residents that never really cared about football before to unite and cheer on the Panthers together. This season did not end in loss -- it was a victory.
