The Panthers fell flat in the face of a golden opportunity on Sunday. Where do they now stand across the power rankings going into Week 16?

This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/panthers/onsi as Where the Carolina Panthers stand in NFL playoff race after Week 13 win. It's hard to believe that at one point this season the Carolina Panthers were 1-3 and their chances of making the playoffs were in the single digits.

The Panthers have an undeniably easier time knocking the four-times defending NFC South champions off of their throne if the Falcons triumph tonight. Remember, rooting for them to win doesn’t mean we’re rooting for them to look good. A win is a win, even if it comes at the “expense” of Tampa just looking plain awful on a short week.

The 2026 NFL Draft is quickly approaching. Let's get into an updated first-round mock draft as the QB supply runs low.

If the Panthers and the Bucs split these two games and are tied at the end of the regular season, Tampa takes the tiebreaker based on common games. The Panthers have not fared well against the Buccaneers of late.