| 1995 Carolina Panthers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jerry Richardson |
| General manager | Bill Polian |
| Head coach | Dom Capers |
| Home stadium | Memorial Stadium (Clemson, South Carolina) |
| Results | |
| Record | 7–9 |
| Division place | 4thNFC West |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | None |
The1995 Carolina Panthers season wasthe franchise's inaugural season in theNational Football League and the first underhead coachDom Capers. They went 7–9, the best debut year for any expansion franchise since the NFL's inception. The Panthers played their first season's home games atClemson University because what would becomeEricsson Stadium was still under construction after a deadline point in 1995 for scheduling Carolina's first set of NFL games.
The Panthers were jokingly called "Buffalo Bills South" because of the large number of former Bills on the roster. QuarterbackFrank Reich, wide receiverDon Beebe, tight endPete Metzelaars and linebackerCarlton Bailey had played key roles in the Bills' run of four consecutiveSuper Bowls earlier in the 1990s and were on the Panthers' inaugural roster. Furthermore, the team's general manager was longtime Bills GM and executiveBill Polian. (See also the2001 San Diego Chargers season, in which a similar situation arose whenJohn Butler brought several former Bills with him to San Diego after being fired.)
^ Made roster.[1]
| 1995 Carolina Panthers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Kerry Collins * | QB | Penn State | fromCincinnati[A] |
| 1 | 22 | Tyrone Poole | CB | Fort Valley State | fromGreen Bay[B] |
| 1 | 29 | Blake Brockermeyer | OT | Texas | fromSan Diego[C] |
| 2 | 36 | Shawn King | DE | Louisiana–Monroe | fromCincinnati[A] |
| 4 | 132 | Frank Garcia | C | Washington | |
| 5 | 135 | Michael Senters | WR | Northwestern | |
| 5 | 171 | Andrew Peterson | OT | Washington | |
| 6 | 188 | Steve Strahan | DT | Baylor | |
| 6 | 191 | Jerry Colquitt | QB | Tennessee | fromKansas City[D] |
| 7 | 209 | Chad Cota | SS | Oregon | |
| 7 | 249 | Michael Reed | SS | Boston College | |
| Made roster * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
Draft trades
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) | Practice squad 53 active, 11 inactive, 4 practice squadReserve
Rookies in italics , 4 practice squad |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOF | July 29 | atJacksonville Jaguars | W 20–14 | 1–0 | Fawcett Stadium | 24,625 |
| 1 | August 4 | atChicago 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 | atSan 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 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 3 | atAtlanta Falcons | L 20–23(OT) | 0–1 | Georgia Dome | Recap | |
| 2 | September 10 | atBuffalo Bills | L 9–31 | 0–2 | Rich Stadium | Recap | |
| 3 | September 17 | St. Louis Rams | L 10–31 | 0–3 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 4 | Bye | ||||||
| 5 | October 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 13–20 | 0–4 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 6 | October 8 | atChicago Bears | L 27–31 | 0–5 | Soldier Field | Recap | |
| 7 | October 15 | New York Jets | W 26–15 | 1–5 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 8 | October 22 | New Orleans Saints | W 20–3 | 2–5 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 9 | October 29 | atNew England Patriots | W 20–17(OT) | 3–5 | Foxboro Stadium | Recap | |
| 10 | November 5 | atSan Francisco 49ers | W 13–7 | 4–5 | Candlestick Park | Recap | |
| 11 | November 12 | atSt. Louis Rams | L 17–28 | 4–6 | Trans World Dome | Recap | |
| 12 | November 19 | Arizona Cardinals | W 27–7 | 5–6 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 13 | November 26 | atNew Orleans Saints | L 26–34 | 5–7 | Louisiana Superdome | Recap | |
| 14 | December 3 | Indianapolis Colts | W 13–10 | 6–7 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 15 | December 10 | San Francisco 49ers | L 10–31 | 6–8 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 16 | December 17 | Atlanta Falcons | W 21–17 | 7–8 | Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| 17 | December 24 | atWashington Redskins | L 17–20 | 7–9 | Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium | Recap | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 13 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 20 |
| Falcons | 3 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 23 |
atGeorgia Dome,Atlanta, Georgia
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Bills | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | 31 |
atRich Stadium,Orchard Park, New York
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rams | 0 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 31 |
| Panthers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
atMemorial Stadium,Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 27 |
| Bears | 7 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 31 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jets | 0 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 15 |
| Panthers | 3 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 26 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Players dumped Gatorade onDom Capers after the win.[4]
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saints | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Panthers | 0 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 20 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
| Patriots | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 17 |
atFoxboro Stadium,Foxborough, Massachusetts
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| 49ers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
| Rams | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 | 28 |
atTWA Dome,St. Louis, Missouri
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Panthers | 0 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 27 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 26 |
| Saints | 7 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 34 |
atLouisiana Superdome,New Orleans, Louisiana
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colts | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Panthers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49ers | 7 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 31 |
| Panthers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Redskins | 7 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
atRobert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium,Washington, D.C.
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| 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 |
