2003 Carolina Panthers
The 2003 Carolina Panthers went 11–5, finishing 1st in the NFC South, and lost the Super Bowl. They scored 325 points and allowed 304.
- Record
- 11–5
- Home
- 6–2
- Road & neutral
- 5–3
- Points
- 325–304
- NFC South
- Place 1 of 4
- Postseason
- Lost Super Bowl
Where the season ranked
They scored 325 points, the 15th-most among the 32 teams, and allowed 304, the tenth-fewest. Their point differential was +21.
How the season unfolded
The Panthers opened with four straight wins and were 6–2 after eight games. They went 3–1 over the final four weeks to finish 11–5.
Their longest winning streak was five games, from Week 1 to Week 6.
Their longest losing streak was three games, from Week 12 to Week 14.
Best and worst games
Their biggest win was 23–3 over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4 (September 28, 2003).
Their heaviest loss was 37–17 to the Tennessee Titans in Week 7 (October 19, 2003).
They scored a season-high 37 points against the New York Giants in Week 17 (December 28, 2003), winning 37–24.
In games decided by eight points or fewer, they went 9–3.
They played five games that went to overtime and went 4–1 in them.
Division and playoff opponents
They went 5–1 against the NFC South, sweeping the Buccaneers and the Saints and splitting with the Falcons.
Against teams that reached the playoffs, they went 1–3 in the regular season.
Postseason
In the Wild Card round, they beat the Dallas Cowboys 29–10 at home.
In the Divisional round, they beat the St. Louis Rams 29–23 on the road.
In the NFC Championship Game, they beat the Philadelphia Eagles 14–3 on the road.
They lost Super Bowl XXXVIII to the New England Patriots, 32–29.
Before and after
That was a four-win improvement on 2002, when they went 7–9.
It was the franchise’s first playoff appearance in any season from 1999 on.
In 2004, they went 7–9 and missed the playoffs.
2003 schedule and results
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Sep 7, 2003 | vs Jacksonville Jaguars | W 24–23 |
| Week 2 | Sep 14, 2003 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 12–9 (OT) |
| Week 4 | Sep 28, 2003 | vs Atlanta Falcons | W 23–3 |
| Week 5 | Oct 5, 2003 | vs New Orleans Saints | W 19–13 |
| Week 6 | Oct 12, 2003 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 23–20 (OT) |
| Week 7 | Oct 19, 2003 | vs Tennessee Titans | L 17–37 |
| Week 8 | Oct 26, 2003 | at New Orleans Saints | W 23–20 (OT) |
| Week 9 | Nov 2, 2003 | at Houston Texans | L 10–14 |
| Week 10 | Nov 9, 2003 | vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 27–24 |
| Week 11 | Nov 16, 2003 | vs Washington | W 20–17 |
| Week 12 | Nov 23, 2003 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 20–24 |
| Week 13 | Nov 30, 2003 | vs Philadelphia Eagles | L 16–25 |
| Week 14 | Dec 7, 2003 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 14–20 (OT) |
| Week 15 | Dec 14, 2003 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 20–17 |
| Week 16 | Dec 21, 2003 | vs Detroit Lions | W 20–14 |
| Week 17 | Dec 28, 2003 | at New York Giants | W 37–24 |
| Wild Card | Jan 3, 2004 | vs Dallas Cowboys | W 29–10 |
| Divisional | Jan 10, 2004 | at St. Louis Rams | W 29–23 (OT) |
| Conference championship | Jan 18, 2004 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 14–3 |
| Super Bowl | Feb 1, 2004 | vs New England Patriots | L 29–32 |
Counted by WHYNFL from the final score of every 2003 game. Division place uses win percentage, then point differential; the NFL's full tiebreaker procedure is not applied.