Shock. Anger. Sadness. Depression. Those are the four feelings that every member or fan of the Carolina Panthers football organization has gone through in the past weeks. The panic that was felt last week has evolved into total and complete melancholy. The Panthers already having more than twice their losses of all of last year with a start like this, it can be inferred that this will be a long season for Panther fans, but don’t hang your head just yet. You have more to cheer for.

It seems like just a short while ago the Panthers’ jerseys donned the “Super Bowl 50” patch. We all know how that played out, but even making it to the Super Bowl is a huge accomplishment. With last year’s season ending on the highest stage, one would choose to believe the next season would pick up right where the last left off. The Panthers were preseason favorites to win the NFC and make a return to the Super Bowl, as most players returned to form a similar team to last year’s.The Panthers re-signed all free agents aside from All Pro corner Josh Norman, who left for the

Washington Redskins, forcing second round pick James Bradberry out of Samford into his starting spot. But after all the off season wait, Panther fans were anxious to get back to football.

The Panthers opened the season with a one point loss to Denver in a Super Bowl rematch where Graham Gano had a fifty-one yard field goal to win it, but missed. The Panthers however still looked strong in the performance, and they bounced back the next week to blowout the San Francisco 49’ers. The Panthers were back to winning form and fans were back to flaunting their team’s victories. Little did they know, this would be the last win for weeks to come.

The Panthers lost to the now undefeated Vikings in a defensive battle that left Panther fans wanting more.The following week brought a loss again at the hands of the NFC South leaders Atlanta Falcons. Right when Panthers fans thought nothing else could go wrong, Cam Newton suffered a concussion in the week four match-up and had to sit out a week five clash with division rival Tampa Bay which saw yet another Panthers loss. Both Cam and running back Jonathan Stewart returned this past Sunday, but not even that was enough to propel the Panther to a win over division rival Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints.

So here we are now, sitting with a 1-5 record and a schedule that will only gets harder as the weeks come. The offense hasn’t been able to put up consistent points and the defense has more holes than a golf course. The team as a whole looks completely out of sync with no answers to this seasons problems. While our playoff odds are stacked against Panther fans, it is not yet out of the picture. The Panthers are coming off of a bye this past week, so hopefully the team have got their game together before re-matching last year’s NFC Championship that sees the struggling Arizona Cardinals come to Bank of America Stadium.

Times are tough right now for faithfuls of the Panthers, but if you are a true fan, you will stick by the Panther motto and “Keep Pounding.” Win, lose, or tie: Panthers till we die.