The Arizona Cardinals and the Carolina Panthers will kick off the NFL Playoff seasons on Sunday (4:20 p.m US Eastern Time) at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
In a Playoff match-up only few expected to take place, the Cardinals and the Panthers are out to turn doubters into believers after this intriguing showdown between teams that took different paths in the final month of the regular-season.
The Cardinals started the season on a rampage, winning nine of the first 10 games to become the best team in the NFL at that point. Unfortunately, injuries to quarterback Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton put the Cards in a very tough situation, as they dropped four of their last six games, relegating them to the Wildcard playoff game instead of booking a first-round bye.
The Panthers, on the other hand, booked a playoff spot in a dramatic way. On the verge of missing the postseason with an 8-3 record, Carolina turned it around in December as they won all four games in that month - including the division clinching victory over the Atlanta Falcons 34-3 on the final day of the regular-season.
Cam Newton, who almost missed the remainder of the season after suffering back injury in a car accident near the Panthers training facility, stepped on the gas pedal the final three outings, but it was Carolina's defense that proved to be the big difference in those important ball games.
"It tells you that no matter what you do during the regular season, it just doesn't matter," running back Jonathan Stewart said. "Things amp up to a whole different notch in the playoffs."
The Panthers are trying to erase the memory of a 33-13 loss to the Cardinals in a 2008 divisional matchup, a game in which wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald recorded eight catches for 166 yards and a touchdown.
Live Stream, TV Schedule, Box Score Update & Updates
Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers game will start at 4:20 p.m US Eastern Time live on ESPN / ESPN Watch. The game can also be watched via live stream on Red Zone and Sports Stream, while box score stats, play-by-play info and update are available on NFL Red Zone.
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