Update: The Saints beat the Panthers, 20-17, in Week 15. The loss drops Carolina to 7-7, and leaves them with a tie atop the NFC South with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa Bay wins the tiebreak over Carolina on Common Games (5-5 vs 4-6). The Panthers and Bucs still have two matchups this season: Carolina hosts next week, and then Tampa hosts for the season finale. If the teams split, Tampa would have the tiebreaker if they end with the same record.
NFL playoff picture: What Panthers loss to Saints means
The Panthers face the Saints in New Orleans on Sunday. We break down what the game means for the NFL playoff picture in Week 15.
Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
The Carolina Panthers travel to face the New Orleans Saints in a critical Week 15 showdown. The Panthers won a wild one over the Rams last week, forcing Matthew Stafford to commit three turnovers that cost LA the game. They improved to 7-6 with the win. They face a Saints squad that stunned the Buccaneers in Tampa with a strong defensive showing. They entered the game at 2-10 and having lost two straight.
Carolina is a 2.5-point favorite as they head down to the Big Easy. After winning four of five games in September and October, they’ve alternated loss and wins each week since.
Carolina Panthers playoff picture
The Panthers are tied with the Bucs atop the NFC South. Carolina and Tampa Bay have not played yet this season, and so the Bucs get the tiebreaker based on common games (5-4 vs. 4-5). The Panthers and Bucs face off in Charlotte in Week 16 and in Tampa in Week 18. No matter what happens this week, both teams can control their own divisional destiny. The Bucs host the Falcons in Week 15 and are a 4.5-point favorite.
NFC South standings
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-6
- Carolina Panthers: 7-6
- Atlanta Falcons: 4-9
- New Orleans Saints: 3-10
The Panthers are in ninth place in the overall NFC standings. They are one game behind the eighth place Lions and two games back of the Bears and 49ers for the final two wild card spots. They sit a half game up on the tenth place Cowboys. On Sunday, the 49ers are huge favorites at home against the Titans, the Bears are a touchdown home favorite against the Browns, the Lions are 5.5-point road dogs against the Rams, and the Cowboys are 6.5-point home favorites against the Vikings on Sunday Night Football.
NFC playoff standings
- Los Angeles Rams: 10-3
- Green Bay Packers: 9-3-1
- Philadelphia Eagles: 8-5
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-6
- Seattle Seahawks: 10-3
- San Francisco 49ers: 9-4
- Chicago Bears: 9-4
- Detroit Lions: 8-5
- Carolina Panthers: 7-6
- Dallas Cowboys: 6-6-1
Tiebreaker implications
The Panthers and Bucs have both of their matchups remaining, which could easily swing the division in a hurry. But, if they were to split, the tiebreaker would then move to division record. They’re both tied so that coupled with the state of the rest of the season makes this a must-win for the Panthers.
See More:
