CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The cold rain, the inconsistency over the past 12 weeks, being a 10.5-point underdog to arguably the best team in the NFC at home on a short week after a Monday night loss in San Francisco, mounting injuries -- none of that mattered to the Carolina Panthers after Sunday's improbable 31-28 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.
Players recognized they made a huge statement for a young team trying to end seven straight years of losing.
"That we can play with the best of them," running back Rico Dowdle said of what the win over the now 9-3 Rams meant. "We came in facing what they say is the top NFC team. When we went into Green Bay [and won 16-13], it was the same thing.
"We've got everything we need in this locker room to do what we need to do and make that push coming up in these next couple of weeks."
The Panthers improved to 7-6 heading into their bye week. They are half a game behind NFC South-leading Tampa Bay (7-5) with two of their last four games against the Buccaneers.
Though figures will change as other games are completed, Carolina improved its chances of making the playoffs for the first time since 2017 to 27% from 18%.
Sunday's win at least gave the Panthers hope.
"It's awesome to be in this position," said tight end Tommy Tremble, who has had only a couple of meaningful December games since being selected in the third round of the 2021 draft. "It's fun to play winning football.
"It's in the palm of our hands, and we've just got to do our job. ... It's amazing. It's been a pretty long drought for us. And to have winning football at Carolina, there's no better feeling."
When the Panthers return from their bye, they will face a New Orleans Saints (2-10) team that beat them 17-7 earlier this year at Bank of America, magnifying Carolina's inconsistencies.
Then the Panthers will host the Bucs, who defeated the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, followed by a home game against the Seattle Seahawks and the regular-season finale at Tampa Bay.
The time off will help the defense in particular get back key players -- Pro Bowl cornerback Jaycee Horn (concussion) and safety Tre'von Moehrig (suspended) -- that made Sunday's win without them even more improbable.
But others stepped up. Cornerback Mike Jackson had his first career pick-six, a 48-yard touchdown that gave Carolina a 14-7 lead in the first quarter.
Pro Bowl defensive tackle Derrick Brown had a strip sack with 2:25 remaining that allowed Carolina to run out the clock after the Rams appeared ready to tie the score or take the lead after driving to the Panthers' 22.
Running back Chuba Hubbard, who lost his starting job earlier in the season to Dowdle, led a running game that produced 164 yards with 83 yards on 17 carries. He also had a 35-yard touchdown on a catch-and-run in the first quarter.
Quarterback Bryce Young, who had a 60.8 passer rating in the Monday night loss, bounced back with a season-high 147.1 passer rating. That included two fourth-down touchdown passes, a 33-yarder to Jalen Coker on the first drive of the third quarter and a game-winning 43-yarder to Tetairoa McMillan with 6:34 to play.
"It's the NFL," Jackson said. "Everybody's good. So records matter, but it's not like college. It's not like you've got Ohio State going against Division II schools."
The Rams concurred.
"When your head gets too high, you got to realize it's a league," Rams linebacker Jared Verse said. "Those dudes get paid, too. It's not some run-of-the-mill random dudes you're going up against. These are all NFL players. They got first-round picks, they got top dogs. We just got to be better. We can't overlook anything."
All that said, for most of the past seven years, the Panthers have looked like a Division II team. They entered the season tied with the New York Jets for the worst record in the league since 2018.
Now, they have a chance to make the playoffs, and Sunday's win showed why.
"We needed that kind of challenge so our guys could rise to the occasion, make plays, have a more balanced attack and be able to play the type of offensive football we know we're capable of," second-year Carolina coach Dave Canales said after vowing to be more balanced in his playcalling after calling only 13 runs on Monday night.
The home crowd, which outnumbered the visitors for one of the few times this season, seemed to recognize that this isn't a typical late-season Carolina team.
"It was wet, they were loud and it was noticeable on third downs," Canales said.
It was especially noticeable on the Rams' delay of game penalty on third-and-5 from the Carolina 17 right before Brown's strip sack and edge rusher D.J. Wonnum's recovery.
"We've seen the Rams' best football," Canales said. "No one's seen our best yet."
Dowdle agreed, which makes Sunday's statement even bigger in his mind.
"It's been a lot of up and downs this year," he said. "But it's playoff football now. ... We've got the team to build off this huge win for us."