1995 Carolina Panthers season
| 1995 Carolina Panthers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jerry Richardson |
| General manager | Bill Polian |
| Head coach | Dom Capers |
| Home field | Memorial Stadium Clemson, South Carolina |
| Results | |
| Record | 7–9 |
| Division place | 3rd NFC West |
| Playoff finish | did not qualify |
The 1995 Carolina Panthers season was the inaugural season for the team in the National Football League. They went a surprising 7–9, given their status as an expansion team, and finished 3rd in the NFC West. The Panthers were already a playoff team in 1996.
Offseason
The Panthers were jokingly called "Buffalo Bills South" because of the large number of former Bills on the roster. Quarterback Frank Reich, wide receiver Don Beebe, tight end Pete Metzelaars and linebacker Carlton Bailey had played key roles in the Bills' run of four consecutive Super Bowls earlier in the 1990s and were on the Panthers' inaugural roster. Furthermore, the team's general manager was longtime Bills GM and executive Bill Polian. (See also the 2001 San Diego Chargers season, in which a similar situation arose when John Butler brought several former Bills with him to San Diego after being fired.)
Expansion Draft
| Draft order | Player name | Position | Former NFL team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Overall | |||
| 1 | 2 | Rod Smith | Cornerback | New England Patriots |
| 2 | 4 | Harry Boatswain | Offensive tackle | San Francisco 49ers |
| 3 | 6 | Kurt Haws | Tight end | Washington Redskins |
| 4 | 8 | Tyrone Rodgers | Defensive end | Seattle Seahawks |
| 5 | 10 | Mark Thomas | Defensive end | San Francisco 49ers |
| 6 | 12 | Tim McKyer | Cornerback | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 7 | 14 | Curtis Whitley | Center | San Diego Chargers |
| 8 | 16 | Howard Griffith | Fullback | Los Angeles Rams |
| 9 | 18 | Greg Kragen | Nose tackle | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 10 | 20 | Cary Brabham | Safety | Los Angeles Raiders |
| 11 | 22 | Dave Garnett | Linebacker | Minnesota Vikings |
| 12 | 24 | Andre Powell | Linebacker | New York Giants |
| 13 | 26 | Dewell Brewer | Running back | Indianapolis Colts |
| 14 | 28 | Bob Christian | Fullback | Chicago Bears |
| 15 | 30 | Fred Foggie | Safety | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 16 | 32 | Mark Carrier | Wide receiver | Cleveland Browns |
| 17 | 34 | Mark Rodenhauser | Center | Detroit Lions |
| 18 | 36 | Steve Hawkins | Wide receiver | New England Patriots |
| 19 | 38 | Brian O'Neal | Running back | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 20 | 40 | Derrick Lassic | Running back | Dallas Cowboys |
| 21 | 42 | Richard Buchanan | Wide receiver | Los Angeles Rams |
| 22 | 44 | Doug Pederson | Quarterback | Miami Dolphins |
| 23 | 46 | Vince Marrow | Tight end | Buffalo Bills |
| 24 | 48 | Larry Ryans | Wide receiver | Detroit Lions |
| 25 | 50 | Baron Rollins | Guard | New Orleans Saints |
| 26 | 52 | Williams Sims | Linebacker | Minnesota Vikings |
| 27 | 54 | Paul Butcher | Linebacker | Indianapolis Colts |
| 28 | 56 | Jack Trudeau | Quarterback | New York Jets |
| 29 | 58 | Charles Swann | Wide receiver | Denver Broncos |
| 30 | 60 | David Mims | Wide receiver | Atlanta Falcons |
| 31 | 62 | Shawn Price | Defensive end | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 32 | 63 | Eric Guliford | Wide receiver | Minnesota Vikings |
| 33 | 64 | Bill Goldberg | Defensive tackle | Atlanta Falcons |
| 34 | 65 | Eric Ball | Running back | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 35 | 66 | Mike Teeter | Defensive tackle | Houston Oilers |
NFL Draft
| 1995 Carolina Panthers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Kerry Collins * | Quarterback | Penn State | |
| 1 | 22 | Tyrone Poole | Defensive back | Fort Valley State | |
| 1 | 29 | Blake Brockermeyer | Offensive tackle | Texas | |
| 2 | 36 | Shawn King | Defensive end | Northeast Louisiana | |
| 4 | 132 | Frank Garcia | Center | Washington | |
| 5 | 135 | Mike Senters | Defensive back | Northwestern | |
| 5 | 171 | Andrew Peterson | Offensive tackle | Washington | |
| 6 | 188 | Steve Strahan | Defensive tackle | Baylor | |
| 6 | 191 | Jerry Colquitt | Quarterback | Tennessee | |
| 7 | 209 | Chad Cota | Defensive back | Oregon | |
| 7 | 249 | Michael Reed | Defensive back | Boston College | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Personnel
Staff
|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Roster
Schedule
Preseason
| Week | Date | Opponent | Results | Game site | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final score | Team record | |||||
| HOF | July 29 | at Jacksonville Jaguars | W 20–14 | 1–0 | Fawcett Stadium | 24,625 |
| 1 | August 4 | at Chicago Bears | L 15–18 | 1–1 | Soldier Field | 50,300 |
| 2 | August 12 | Denver Broncos | W 19–10 | 2–1 | Memorial Stadium | 57,017 |
| 3 | August 19 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 10–17 | 2–2 | 3Com Park | 51,185 |
| 4 | August 26 | New York Giants | W 6–3 | 3–2 | Memorial Stadium | 49,114 |
Regular season
| Week | Date | Opponent | Results | Game site | Attendance | TV Time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final score | Team record | ||||||
| 1 | September 3 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 23–20 OT | 0–1 | Georgia Dome | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 2 | September 10 | at Buffalo Bills | L 31–9 | 0–2 | Rich Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 3 | September 17 | St. Louis Rams | L 31–10 | 0–3 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 4 | Bye | ||||||
| 5 | October 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 20–13 | 0–4 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 6 | October 8 | at Chicago Bears | L 31–27 | 0–5 | Soldier Field | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 7 | October 15 | New York Jets | W 26–15 | 1–5 | Memorial Stadium | NBC 4:00pm EST | |
| 8 | October 22 | New Orleans Saints | W 20–3 | 2–5 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 9 | October 29 | at New England Patriots | W 20–17 OT | 3–5 | Foxboro Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 10 | November 5 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 13–7 | 4–5 | Candlestick Park | FOX 4:00pm EST | |
| 11 | November 12 | at St. Louis Rams | L 28–17 | 4–6 | Trans World Dome | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 12 | November 19 | Arizona Cardinals | W 27–7 | 5–6 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 13 | November 26 | at New Orleans Saints | L 34–26 | 5–7 | Louisiana Superdome | ESPN 8:00pm EST | |
| 14 | December 3 | Indianapolis Colts | W 13–10 | 6–7 | Memorial Stadium | NBC 1:00pm EST | |
| 15 | December 10 | San Francisco 49ers | L 31–10 | 6–8 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 16 | December 17 | Atlanta Falcons | W 21–17 | 7–8 | Memorial Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
| 17 | December 24 | at Washington Redskins | L 20–17 | 7–9 | RFK Stadium | FOX 1:00pm EST | |
Standings
| NFC West | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (2) San Francisco 49ers | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 457 | 258 | L1 |
| (6) Atlanta Falcons | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 362 | 349 | W1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 309 | 418 | L3 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 289 | 325 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 319 | 348 | W1 |
Records
- Most victories by an expansion team (7)[4]
- First expansion team to have a winning record at home (5–3)[4]
- First expansion team to have a four-game winning streak (weeks 7–10)[4]
- First expansion team to defeat a defending Super Bowl champion in its inaugural season (13–7 over the San Francisco 49ers in San Francisco)[4]
- First expansion team in NFL history to win its inaugural contest (20–14 over the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Hall of Fame Game).
References
- ^ "NFL Expansion Draft". Hartford Courant. February 16, 1995. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
- ^ "NFL Draft — Team by Team". Hartford Courant. April 24, 1995. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
- ^ "Assistant Coaches". Panthers.com. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ a b c d NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 92