1995 Carolina Panthers season | |
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Head coach | Dom Capers |
General manager | Bill Polian |
Owner | Jerry Richardson |
Home field |
Memorial Stadium Clemson, South Carolina |
Results | |
Record | 7–9 |
Division place | 3rd NFC West |
Playoff finish | did not qualify |
The 1995 Carolina Panthers season was the inaugural season for the team in the National Football League. They went a surprising 7–9, given their status as an expansion team, and finished 3rd in the NFC West. The Panthers were already a playoff team in 1996.
The Panthers were jokingly called "Buffalo Bills South" because of the large number of former Bills on the roster. Quarterback Frank Reich, wide receiver Don Beebe, tight end Pete Metzelaars and linebacker Carlton Bailey had played key roles in the Bills' run of four consecutive Super Bowls earlier in the 1990s and were on the Panthers' inaugural roster. Furthermore, the team's general manager was longtime Bills GM and executive Bill Polian. (See also the 2001 San Diego Chargers season, in which a similar situation arose when John Butler brought several former Bills with him to San Diego after being fired.)