Thanks to 16 wins in 17 attempts this season, the Carolina Panthers are a confident bunch. For the second week in a row, Roman Harper has alerted the masses that Carolina has the better team.
According to Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer, Harper believes the Panthers have the edge on the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship.
“Yeah, we’re better. We’ve just got to go out there and play. I feel like we’re the best team. We’ve been the best team all year long. We’re not going to shy away from that. We’re going to continue to be who we are.”
Perhaps Harper’s comment comes across as cocky, but confidence is absolutely more intriguing than “we’ll go give it our best shot and see what happens.”
Arizona doesn’t need bulletin-board material to be motivated. Suggesting otherwise would be a disservice to the talent on the Cardinals roster. They went 13-3 for a reason.
Carolina, on the other hand, wants to continue proving the 15-1 regular-season record and 31-24 victory over the streaking Seattle Seahawks wasn’t for nothing. If the Panthers lose before the Super Bowl, they’ll be remembered as one of the winningest teams in NFL history to fall short.
But they’ll have a chance to avoid that label and eliminate a lingering doubt in the process.
Last season, Carolina bounced the Cardinals from the Wild Card Round. However, Carson Palmer and backup quarterback Drew Stanton were both sidelined due to ACL injuries, leaving Ryan Lindley as Arizona’s starter.
For reference, Lindley wasn’t on an NFL roster in 2015 until the Indianapolis Colts needed a fifth quarterback. It’s fair to say the Cardinals were shorthanded that day.
But that doesn’t mean it’s right to discount the Panthers’ improvement this season. On 16 occasions in 17 tries, Carolina has been the better team.
One more win should silence the naysayers. But if it doesn’t, you can bet Harper is willing to say the Panthers are better than whichever AFC franchise will appear on the other sideline in Super Bowl 50.