2005 Carolina Panthers

Round Three of the NFL Playoffs determines the two conference champs - and who's on their way to the Super Bowl! The battle for the National Football Conference Championship has come down to the Seattle Seahawks and the Carolina Panthers. Have you been rooting for Carolina all year long? Then you deserve NFL Playoffs tickets for Sunday's game. Let Coast to Coast put you in the stands to cheer the Panthers on the rest of the way to Super Bowl XL!

The Carolina Panthers saw their fortunes fade last year, when they finished with a 7-9 record in 2004 after a heartbreaking loss in Super Bowl XXXVIII the previous season. Quarterback Jake Delhomme is ready to lead the team back to its former success, and with home games played in the historic city of Charlotte, it's no wonder that Carolina Panthers tickets are such a coveted item. Be sure to get your tickets before there are none to get.

When the National Football League expanded to the southeastern coast of the United States, no one knew if the move would be a success or not. It did not take the Carolina Panthers long to prove that the NFL had made the right decision. During the 1996 season the Panthers won their division and qualified for the playoffs. It was only their second year of existence, and this was the earliest an NFL expansion team had ever encountered such success. During the previous year, the team won seven games—the most ever by an NFL expansion team.

The dream to establish a team in the Carolinas began in the late 1980s, and the Carolinas made the first cut in the NFL expansion selection. In 1993 Panthers founder and owner Jerry Richardson was awarded the first new NFL franchise since 1976, when the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers had joined the league. Two years later, Carolina and fellow expansion team Jacksonville Jaguars began play. Former Pittsburgh Steelers assistant coach Dom Capers was named the Panthers' first head coach.

After losing the first 5 games of the 1995 season, Carolina won 7 of its last 11 games behind wide receivers Mark Carrier and Willie Green. During the season the Panthers defeated the San Francisco 49ers to become the first expansion team ever to beat a defending league champion.

In 1996 the Panthers stunned the NFL by winning 12 games and capturing the NFC Western Division title. Quarterback Kerry Collins and running back Anthony Johnson anchored the offense. Carolina put together the second-best defense in the NFC, featuring three Pro Bowl linebackers: Kevin Greene, Lamar Lathon, and Sam Mills. Michael Bates was the league's top kickoff returner, averaging 30.2 yards per return. Placekicker John Kasay led the league in scoring, converting on a league-record 37 field goals. Capers was named coach of the year. After capturing the division title, Carolina defeated the Dallas Cowboys in the playoffs before losing the NFC Championship Game to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Green Bay Packers.

The 2003 season was as exciting as one can get, with the Panthers dispensing with the Dallas Cowboys, the St. Louis Rams and the Philadelphia Eagles to grab the conference crown. It took a New England field goal with nine seconds to play to cost the Panthers a Super Bowl XXXVIII championship in Houston.

With an equally strong team in 2004, the Carolina Panthers look to visit the Super Bowl again. Make sure you have tickets to see this exciting team this season.

• 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII Lost to New England Patriots, 32-29