With a new head coach, a division that no longer includes Tom Brady, and most importantly, the No. 1 overall pick in this month's NFL Draft, there is legitimate optimism around the Carolina Panthers this offseason. And while mobile and online North Carolina sportsbooks aren't yet live to bet on the team's future, fans can rest somewhat easy that improvement from the Matt Rhule-era is likely inevitable.
Of course, there is still data trickling in from the team's underwhelming 7-10 season, one in which Rhule was fired after starting 1-4 out of the gate. Interim coach Steve Wilks did an admirable job going 6-6, but a new survey reveals just how frustrated Panthers fans were in the midst of last season.
BetCarolina.com wanted to find out how the ups and downs of NFL games affect supporters. And which fanbases across the entire NFL were the most affected by their team’s results during the 2022-23 season?
How did we get here? We surveyed 2,000 NFL fans of different ages and genders to discover which fans are the happiest when their team wins, and which teams’ supporters feel the most downbeat after losing a close one. A simple average of responses from those fans provided a score between 1-10 for each question, where 1 = not happy/not sad and 10 = very happy/very sad.
Keep it here at BetCarolina for more NFL analysis, plus updates on the Panthers playoff chances.
- — The Bengals outpaced the Bills at 5.924 to 5.921.
Panthers Ranked As Least Happy Fanbase Last Season
Unfortunately for those eagerly awaiting the arrival of North Carolina betting apps, the Panthers came in as the least happy fanbase during the 2022-2023 NFL regular season with an index score of 6.62, pacing ahead of the Arizona Cardinals (6.61) and the NFC South rival New Orleans Saints (6.51).
The 4-13 Cardinals were forced to confront the fact Kyler Murray may not be the franchise quarterback they thought he was, while the 7-10 Saints were slow to adjust to life without Sean Payton.
Why the disgruntlement among the Panthers faithful? While things did get better over the course of the season under Wilks and eventual quarterback Sam Darnold, the season was supposed to be all about household names Christian McCaffrey and newly acquired Baker Mayfield.
Unfortunately, those two only ended up playing five games together before Mayfield was shown to the bench, Rhule was fired and McCaffrey was traded to the 49ers with an eye to the future. Sportsbooks such as Caesars Sportsbook North Carolina consistently set the Panthers as underdogs.
A couple weeks later, high-priced wide receiver Robbie Anderson threw a tantrum mid-game (he'd also be traded days later), and the Panthers fanbase truly hit rock bottom.
But look on the brightside Panthers fans. Wilks helped restore some pride by getting the team to still contend in a weak division, and now owner David Tepper has made the move up in the draft to land the franchise quarterback the Panthers have sorely lacked since Cam Newton.
At BetCarolina, home to the best North Carolina sportsbook promos, we'd be surprised if the Frank Reich-coached Panthers topped this list again following the upcoming NFL season.
