Opinion articles provide independent perspectives on key community issues, separate from our newsroom reporting.
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, center, stands in the tunnel with his teammates prior to action against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL. on Saturday, January 3, 2026. The Buccaneers defeated the Panthers 16-14. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
Our Take offers shorter, urgent opinion from the Editorial Baord on topics our community is buzzing about now:
We’ve had some discussion this past week in our household about whether you’d rather be a fan of the Carolina Panthers or Charlotte Hornets. More specifically, would you rather have a team that makes the playoffs with no chance of a title, or a losing team with a chance at the kind of draft pick that ultimately can bring a championship?
The Panthers, of course, are the team that’s in the playoffs. It’s not a very pretty accomplishment, given that the Panthers have fewer wins than losses and had to rely on one of their rivals beating another rival so that Charlotte could sneak past a third rival to a NFC South Division title.
As you might imagine, the football world is not impressed. The internet was not kind Sunday. The NFL has given the Panthers’ first-round game the nobody-wants-this Saturday afternoon time slot. The bookies have dismissed them as a 10-point underdog, at home.
In other words: a joke.
We get it. The Panthers are not, at this point, a serious playoff contender. But when you spend a decade in sports darkness — as Charlotte has with its major sports teams — you learn to savor different kinds of things, like progress and pleasant surprises. And when you’ve been as parched as we have, a taste of relevance is pretty sweet.
Which brings us back to that Panthers-Hornets debate. Yes, the Hornets have been making strong trades that build for the future, and losing badly this year could result in the kind of player who could bring a deep playoff run. It makes strategic sense, even if it can be as exciting as aerating your lawn.
Give me the kind of season the Panthers are having, one that has fun moments and consequential games. Give us the team store selling playoff merch the Monday after the regular season ends. Give us a little joy, even if we’re the butt of some jokes.
Sure, it’ll probably be over a week from now. And don’t even look at that brutal 2026-27 schedule.
But guess who we’re still talking about today?
What’s your take on this topic? Let us know with an email to opinion@charlotteobserver.com, and put “My Take” in the subject line.