Jansen, Moton only vets who experienced Panthers in playoffs
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Carolina Panthers long-snapper JJ Jansen glanced around the locker room earlier this week and noticed something he hadn't seen ahead of a regular-season finale in seven years.
It was an energy not experienced since 2017, the last time the Panthers made the playoffs, as Carolina (8-8) prepares to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9) on Saturday (4:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN) with a chance to win the NFC South.
He felt hope.
"It's a special thing,'' said Jansen, one of two current Panthers who were with Carolina the last time the team reached the playoffs. "It gives guys a lot of extra motivation.
"There's a lot of teams that wish they were in our position. A lot of them are packing up and getting ready to leave [for the offseason]. We still have something to play for.''
Beat or tie the Bucs, and Carolina will win the NFC South and host a playoff game for the first time since 2015. Lose, and the Panthers will still win the division if the Atlanta Falcons (7-9), who are a 3-point favorite according to DraftKings, defeat the New Orleans Saints(6-10) on Sunday. In that scenario, there would be a three-way tie atop the division, and Carolina would win the tiebreaker with the best head-to-head record among those teams (3-1).
The postseason hope has created a buzz not only in the locker room, but also in a city that has had fans starving for a winner since the Panthers reached the playoffs in four of five seasons from 2013 to 2017 with Cam Newton at quarterback.
For right tackle Taylor Moton, who was on the 2017 playoff team as a rookie, it seems like an eternity since he felt this way heading into the finale.
"It's a huge opportunity to go to the playoffs,'' he said. "It's definitely more meaningful than any last game I've played the last years.''
It's also meaningful for those who haven't been to the playoffs at all, such as fifth-year running back Chuba Hubbard.
"I've prayed for this a multiple other times,'' he said. "Me and [corner] Jaycee [Horn] were just talking in practice about the highs and lows and everything it took to get to this point.
"So we're thankful and blessed, but we're hungry. Like we know what this means to us and Carolina. So, it's all or nothing.''
Carolina might have the upper hand, since it beat the Bucs 23-20 in Week 16 and Tampa has lost four straight and seven of eight. But the Bucs are the four-time reigning NFC South champs and playing at home, though they are 3-4 in Tampa this season. The Bucs are a 2.5-point favorite, according to DraftKings.
"You've got something to play for,'' backup quarterback Andy Dalton said. "Being able to accomplish something that hasn't been done for a long time, what else do you need?''
Quarterback Bryce Young, who had a career-low 54 passing yards in Sunday's 27-10 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, saidcoach Dave Canales has talked about having a "championship opportunity'' on Saturday.
"We take that to heart,'' Young said. "We want to go 1-0. That's all that matters. That's what it's all about.''
For Jansen, this week reminds him of the 2013 regular-season finale. The Panthers had already locked up a playoff berth the week before, ending a four-year postseason drought, but beating the Falcons in Week 17 would secure the division title.
The city of Charlotte was abuzz, as it is now. So was the locker room, as players anticipated the big moment that seemed like it would never come for those who endured the losing.
The common denominator in Jansen's eyes was the hope the regular-season finale offered.
"This feels very much like 2013 to me,'' he said. "We were still trying to figure ourselves out, growing as a group.''
Carolina beat Atlanta 21-20 to win the NFC South.
The 2025 Panthers have been good enough to beat two playoff teams -- the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and Los Angeles Rams at home -- yet inconsistent enough to lose twice to the Saints.
Guard Robert Hunt is so excited about the possibilities this week that he's pushing to get back on the field for the first time since suffering a torn biceps in Week 2. He admitted the chance to make the playoffs is a motivation to play through something he normally might let recover through the offseason.
"You got hope, you've got a chance to fight,'' he said. "There is hope. There is really opportunity.''
It's an opportunity that had Jansen and Moton savoring the buzz in the locker room.
"We've been here the last handful of years, and you knew it was the last game of the year, so you were just trying to finish strong,'' Moton said. "But now you're playing meaningful football.
"It'll be fun, right?''br/]
