ATLANTA -- Observed and heard in the locker room after the Carolina Panthers' 34-3 victory over the Atlanta Falcons:
Fullback Mike Tolbert was playing the role of reporter for the team television network and interviewing running back Jonathan Stewart, who summed up what many in the locker room felt after Carolina (7-8-1) wrapped up its second consecutive division title. "We repeated as NFC South champions," Stewart said. "But we aren't going to repeat what we did last year." In case you forgot, the Panthers lost a home divisional playoff game to San Francisco.
Tolbert, linebacker Thomas Davis and Stewart -- and perhaps a few others -- were dancing and singing "CoCo." The O.T. Genasis song about cocaine was banned by the NBA's Golden State Warriors earlier this month, when the team sang it after wins. The Panthers seemed to have fun with it, though. Said Tolbert, "It's just a song a lot of guys on the team like."
As strong safety Roman Harper shared how rookie safety Tre Boston predicted on the bus ride to the Georgia Dome that the Panthers would return two interceptions for touchdowns -- a feat that had never been done in team history -- Davis interjected, "Should have been three." Harper returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown in the first half, and Boston returned one 84 yards for a score in the second half. Davis had one called back because of a late flag for contact before the ball arrived. He agreed the official got the call right but hated that it cost him a touchdown.
Cornerback Josh Norman was on a roll, talking about all the naysayers, particularly television analysts, who gave up on the Panthers when they were 3-8-1. Said Norman, "You can't put no crown on top of their heads. They don't know."
Quarterback Cam Newton was relatively reserved about the victory, but it brought a big smile to his face when he was asked about giving team owner Jerry Richardson consecutive trips to the playoffs for the first time in the team's 20-year history. "For a man that is a great person, a great human being, and runs a top-notch organization, what better way [to show our appreciation] than to give him this type of win today," Newton said.
Coach Ron Rivera, when asked if he believed the Panthers would be here last month when the team had only three wins: "Yes, I believe it. I believed in those guys. ... I just felt if we kept playing and kept taking care of our business, we would get that opportunity."
