| 2001 Carolina Panthers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jerry Richardson |
| Head coach | George Seifert |
| Home stadium | Ericsson Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 1–15 |
| Division place | 5thNFC West |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | TEWesley Walls WRSteve Smith PTodd Sauerbrun |
The2001 Carolina Panthers season wasthe franchise's 7th season in theNational Football League (NFL) and the 3rd and final underhead coachGeorge Seifert. They tried to improve upon their 7–9 record in2000, and make it to the playoffs for the second time in franchise history; however, the Panthers instead suffered one of the worst seasons in NFL history, en route to going 1–15.
The Panthers defeated theMinnesota Vikings in their opening game of the season, and then became the first team in theSuper Bowl era to lose fifteen consecutive games afterwards. The Panthers were the only team since the expansion to 16 games in 1978 to win their 1st game and then lose every one afterwards until the2020 Jacksonville Jaguars duplicated this embarrassing feat.[1]
The Panthers consequently beat the record for most consecutive losses during a single NFL season that had been shared by the1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers,1980 New Orleans Saints,1981 Baltimore Colts and1990 New England Patriots. This record has since been broken by two winless teams: the2008 Detroit Lions and2017 Cleveland Browns. The 2001 Panthers also became the seventh team to finish 1–15.
Despite having the worst record in the league, the Panthers did not have the number-one overall draft pick in the2002 NFL draft because it had been allocated to the incoming expansionHouston Texans (per NFL rules, an expansion team would automatically received the first pick in their first draft, unless they decide to trade it away); nonetheless, they used the second overall pick to draftdefensive endJulius Peppers, the first Panthers draftee to enter thePro Football Hall of Fame. This feat would be repeated in2023, when the Panthers traded their number-one overall draft pick to theChicago Bears.
In2015, the Panthers went 15–1, becoming the first team in NFL history to have both 15 losses and 15 wins in a season; the2023 team also went on to have a 15 loss season, finishing 2–15. To date, this remains the Panthers' worst season in franchise history.
| Additions | Subtractions |
|---|---|
| TTodd Steussie (Vikings) | QBSteve Beuerlein (Broncos) |
| CJeff Mitchell (Ravens) | LBLee Woodall (Broncos) |
| GKevin Donnalley (Dolphins) | GMatt Campbell (Redskins) |
| RBRichard Huntley (Steelers) | DEReggie White (retirement) |
| DTBrentson Buckner (49ers) | CBEric Davis (Broncos) |
| PTodd Sauerbrun (Chiefs) | SEugene Robinson (retirement) |
| DTLarry Chester (Colts) | CFrank Garcia (Rams) |
| LBChris Slade (Patriots) | RBMichael Bates (Redskins) |
| 2001 Carolina Panthers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Dan Morgan * | Linebacker | Miami (FL) | |
| 2 | 44 | Kris Jenkins * | Defensive tackle | Maryland | |
| 3 | 74 | Steve Smith * | Wide receiver | Utah | |
| 4 | 106 | Chris Weinke | Quarterback | Florida State | |
| 5 | 143 | Jarrod Cooper | Defensive back | Kansas State | |
| 6 | 175 | Dee Brown | Running back | Syracuse | |
| 7 | 211 | Louis Williams | Center | Louisiana State | |
| 7 | 227 | Mike Roberg | Tight end | Idaho | |
| Made roster * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Nick Goings | Running back | Pittsburgh |
| Nathan Hodel | Long snapper | Illinois |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Reserve lists
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 7 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Vikings | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
atHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome,Minneapolis, Minnesota
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
This would be Carolina's only victory of the 2001 season. The Panthers would not win again until week 1 of the2002 season.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Falcons | 7 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
atGeorgia Dome,Atlanta, Georgia
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 0 | 6 | 15 | 7 | 28 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
atEricsson Stadium,Charlotte, North Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| 49ers | 0 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 24 |
at3Com Park,San Francisco, California
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saints | 10 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 27 |
| Panthers | 0 | 6 | 6 | 13 | 25 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Redskins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 17 |
atFedEx Field,Landover, Maryland
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jets | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 13 |
| Panthers | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 12 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Both offenses struggled throughout the game as the Jets gained 358 yards of total offense, but turned the ball over four times; conversely, the Panthers only had one turnover, but only gained 162 yards of total offense. Carolina scored first, withRashard Anderson recovering a fumble and returning it 94 yards for a touchdown, butJohn Kasay missed the extra point. New York would respond late in the second quarter, withChris Hayes returning a blocked punt 7 yards for a touchdown. The Panthers would score six unanswered points with a pair of 45-yard field goals from Kasay to go up 12–7 early in the third. However, Kasay's missed extra point would prove to be costly as the Jets would respond with two field goals of their own to win 13–12.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Dolphins | 3 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 23 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Rams | 21 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 48 |
atDome at America's Center,St. Louis, Missouri
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49ers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 25 |
| Panthers | 7 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 22 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
With their 10th straight loss, in yet another low scoring affair, the Panthers were eliminated from playoff contention at 1-10.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 23 |
| Saints | 0 | 10 | 3 | 14 | 27 |
atLouisiana Superdome,New Orleans, Louisiana
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Bills | 3 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 25 |
atRalph Wilson Stadium,Orchard Park, New York
The Panthers, despite being up 24-13 at halftime, would be shut out in the second half losing 25-24 to the Bills. This marked their 12th consecutive loss and they finished the season 1-7 on the road.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rams | 7 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 38 |
| Panthers | 7 | 6 | 10 | 9 | 32 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
With the close loss, the Panthers fell to 1-13 while finishing 0-8 against the NFC West.
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 7 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 30 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patriots | 10 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 38 |
| Panthers | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
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With the loss, the Panthers lost their 15th game in a row and finished the season at 1–15. The Panthers finished with the worst record in the NFL, but only received thesecond overall pick in the2002 NFL draft due to thefirst overall pick being awarded to theHouston Texans, an expansion team. This would be the last game the Panthers played as a member of the NFC West as they were moved to the newly formed NFC South starting next season. Carolina was joined by New Orleans, Atlanta (both also coming from the NFC West), and Tampa Bay (from the NFC Central, which was renamed to the NFC North).
Head coachGeorge Seifert would be fired the following day, finishing his tenure at Carolina with a record of 16–32 and zero playoff appearances.[4]
| NFC West | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (1)St. Louis Rams | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | 503 | 273 | W6 |
| (5)San Francisco 49ers | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 409 | 282 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 333 | 409 | L4 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 291 | 377 | L2 |
| Carolina Panthers | 1 | 15 | 0 | .063 | 253 | 410 | L15 |
