CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Carolina Panthers quarterback Andy Dalton lost back-to-back games against two of his former teams, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Chicago Bears.
Dalton will remarkably have two more chances against teams he once started for, the New Orleans Saints in Week 9 and the Dallas Cowboys in Week 15.
Carolina's losses to the Bengals and Bears can be attributed to defensive miscues, turnovers, and other issues, but a historic anomaly may have also plagued Dalton and the Panthers.
The Panthers are now 3-11 when their starting quarterback faces a former team for the first time as a Carolina QB. The team is 0-4 when facing former Panthers starting quarterbacks for the first time, making the franchise 3-15 in QB revenge games. The numbers slightly improve to 10-21 when every matchup against a former team or quarterback is included, thanks largely to Jake Delhomme's 8-3 record against the Saints.
Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Taylor Heineke, and Will Grier are the only active former Panthers starting quarterbacks. Mayfield and the Buccaneers play the Panthers twice this season, giving Carolina its best chance to finally beat a former QB.
The Panthers' QB revenge games have ranged from high-profile -- Darnold's start against the New York Jets in 2021 -- to wonderfully obscure -- Brian St. Pierre's lone Carolina start against the Baltimore Ravens in 2010.
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Jake Delhomme vs Saints (2003)
One of the few QB revenge game victories in Panthers history came against the Saints in Week 5 of 2003.
Delhomme spent six years in the Saints system after going undrafted in 1997, only starting two games in 1999 -- coincidentally one of those was against the Panthers. Delhomme signed with the Panthers ahead of 2003 and took over the starting role in Week 1.
The Panthers were undefeated when they met the 1-3 Saints in Week 5 and quickly controlled what proved to be a low-scoring game. Carolina won 19-13 to improve to 4-0. Delhomme had just 124 yards passing and zero touchdowns but committed no turnovers as the running game carried the team to the win.
Delhomme's split with New Orleans was cordial and he had no ill intent when he faced the Saints that week, according to newspaper reports from the time. But Panthers fans can lament the fact that Delhomme took the Panthers to the Super Bowl in his first year in Carolina.
Delhomme went 8-3 against the Saints during his time with the Panthers. His best game against New Orleans was arguably a 200-yard, two-touchdown performance in a 31-21 win where he completed 85% of his passes for a 123 QB rating.
Panthers vs Jake Delhomme (2010)
The Panthers were not so lucky when they played against Delhomme after his tenure with the team. Delhomme started for the Cleveland Browns in 2010 after leaving the Panthers. The two teams met in Week 12 both holding losing records.
The 1-10 Panthers were led by rookie quarterback Jimmy Clausen and fell behind 21-7 after three Peyton Hillis touchdown runs. The Panthers came back in the second half, taking a 23-21 lead in the fourth quarter. But Delhomme drove the Browns into position for a game-winning field goal.
Delhomme threw two interceptions and no touchdowns but passed for 245 yards in the game. He told newspapers leading up to the game that he would always consider himself a Panther.
Sam Darnold vs Jets (2021)
The NFL world turned against Sam Darnold quickly after the Jets chose him third overall in the 2018 draft. Darnold struggled with the Jets and was traded to Carolina ahead of the 2021 season.
NFL schedule makers placed Darnold and the Panthers against his old team for a Week 1 contest. Darnold dodged the chance to label the game as "revenge" and said he was excited to play for the Panthers.
Darnold had 279 yards passing and a touchdown pass as the Panthers won 19-14. The Panthers were up 16-0 until late in the third quarter as Darnold kept the Panthers in complete control.
He took the Panthers to a 3-0 start before things unraveled for a 5-12 finish. Darnold was off the Panthers by 2023 and now has the Minnesota Vikings off to a 5-0 start.
The Panthers do not face the Vikings this year. The two teams are not scheduled to meet until 2026.
Panthers vs Kerry Collins (2004)
Carolina's first franchise quarterback had a 17-year NFL career. The only problem for Panthers fans was most of that time was spent with other teams.
The Panthers drafted Collins in the first round of the team's first draft in 1995. Collins' first two years went well before things imploded and he was off the team midway through the 1998 season.
Collins rebounded and put together a respectable career playing with the New York Giants, Oakland Raiders, and Tennessee Titans, among others. Across all of those years and rosters, Collins only faced the Panthers one time -- in 2004 while starting for the Oakland Raiders.
Oakland won 27-24 with a last-second field goal thanks to a game-winning drive from Collins, who had 231 yards passing in the game. Collins did not throw a touchdown in the contest but played well enough to get the win, which was his first as a Raiders quarterback in six tries.
The game happened over six years after Collins left Carolina. He was far from the personal problems that plagued him with the Panthers and called the win a redemption moment for himself. Collins focused much of the blame for his Panthers split on himself to the media in the days leading up to the 2004 contest.
Steve Beuerlein vs three teams (1996, 1998, 2000)
The revenge game nuance is a bit watered down with journeyman quarterbacks like Steve Beuerlein.
Beuerlein played five years with the Panthers after short stints with the Los Angeles Raiders, Cowboys, Phoenix Cardinals, and Jacksonville Jaguars. He faced three of these teams during his Carolina tenure, going 0-5 in the process.
The Panthers played the Jaguars in 1996, a year after Beuerlein started five games in Jacksonville. He was disappointed in his situation in Jacksonville but did not languish in getting revenge on the Jaguars for their 1996 meeting.
Carolina fell behind 24-6 in that game and settled for a 24-14 loss. Beurlein lost two fumbles and completed just 50% of his passes. Legendary Panthers kicker John Kasay even missed an extra point in the complete meltdown. The Panthers also lost Beuerlein's next start against the Jaguars.
Beuerlein started four games for the Cowboys and won the 1993 Super Bowl in a backup role. His first start of 1998 came against the Cowboys after Collins benched himself. The Panthers took a 14-3 lead with two Beuerlein touchdown passes to Rocket Ismail, but Dallas came back for a 27-20 win. No ill words were exchanged from the two sides leading up to the game, with the Cowboys having mostly positive things to say about Beuerlein in newspaper reports. Carolina and Beuerlein lost their next game against the Cowboys 16-13 in overtime in 2000.
The team that drafted Beuerlein, the Raiders, had a public feud with him while he was still on the team's roster. Beuerlein was benched at the order of owner Al Davis in 1990 and spent the whole season inactive because of a contract dispute. Beuerlein's first start against the franchise came with the Panthers in 2000, but no available media reports make note of the then-decade-old fight.
Any vengeful feelings from Beuerlein were crushed as the Panthers lost 52-9, the worst loss in franchise history. Beuerlein was benched in the third quarter after causing two turnovers and throwing for only 152 yards passing. This turned out to be Beuerlein's final game in Carolina.
Rodney Peete vs Lions (2002)
The only other QB revenge game win for the Panthers came in 2002 when Rodney Peete faced the Detroit Lions.
Peete's first five years in the league were with the Lions before he made stops in Dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Oakland, and finally, Carolina. He started 14 games for the Panthers in 2002, one of which was against the lowly Lions.
Peete had 310 yards passing and a touchdown pass in the 31-7 win. Not much was made of Peete's connection to Detroit in the press before or after the game, save for one Detroit Free Press writer who went haywire after the Lions' loss to Peete and called the defeat a "low point" for the franchise.
Peete also played against the Cowboys that year, which ended in a tight 14-13 loss for Carolina. Peete was sidelined at halftime with an injury while the Panthers were leading 13-0. He could only watch as the Panthers allowed two touchdowns in the final four minutes to lose by a single point.
Frank Reich vs Bills (1995)
The first quarterback to throw a touchdown in Panthers history is also the first to play a QB revenge game. Frank Reich spent 10 years as Jim Kelly's backup in Buffalo. He was a beloved player by fans and the team but chose to sign with Carolina in 1995. Reich was among four former Bills players to sign with the Panthers that year, leading to Buffalo fans dubbing the Panthers as "Bills South."
Carolina took a 9-0 lead against "Bills North" and held Kelly to just one completed pass by the third quarter. But the Bills charged back in the second half to win 31-9. Reich completed just 6 of 21 passes for 44 yards in the loss. Kelly finished just 4 of 21 (19%), the worst completion percentage of his Hall of Fame career.
Reich became the head coach of the Panthers in 2023 but was fired 11 games into the season.
Best of the rest
2022 - Baker Mayfield and the Panthers lost to the Browns in his first game after being traded to Carolina by Cleveland. Mayfield beat the Panthers in his first game against the Panthers with the Buccaneers the following season.
2021 - Taylor Heineke starts for Washington and beats the Panthers 27-21 with a three-touchdown performance. Heineke started just one game for the Panthers in 2018 before leaving to Washington.
2020 - Teddy Bridgewater and the Panthers lost to the Vikings and Saints after his career began with those two teams. The Panthers lost twice to the Saints that year.
2010 - Brian St. Pierre signs with the Panthers midseason and makes his only career start in a loss to the Ravens. St. Pierre was a backup for the Ravens for one season. He threw one touchdown and two interceptions in the 37-13 loss, which was his only appearance as a Carolina quarterback.
2007 - Vinny Testaverde plays the final down of his 21-year career in a 31-23 win over Tampa Bay, the team who drafted him No. 1 overall in 1987. Testaverde played six seasons with the Buccaneers before starting six games for the Panthers in 2007 at the age of 44. Testaverde's only appearance in the season finale was a kneel down to close the win and his career.
Non-QB revenge games
Quarterbacks are not the only players who want revenge on their former teams.
2014 - Steve Smith Sr., the leading receiver in Panthers history, was not too happy about his exit from Carolina. He signed with the Ravens ahead of 2014 and faced his former team in Week 4, putting up a career game in the process. Smith caught seven passes for 139 yards receiving and scored two electric touchdowns as Baltimore won 38-10.
2010 - Julius Peppers, Carolina's Hall of Fame defender, left the Panthers after 2009 for Chicago. In a 2010 game between the two teams, Peppers intercepted a pass and assisted in four tackles as the Bears easily won 23-6. Peppers went 4-1 against the Panthers in his career before returning to Carolina in 2017 for two seasons.
2023 - D.J. Moore was traded to Chicago in exchange for a No. 1 draft pick that became quarterback Bryce Young. Moore and the Bears faced Carolina and Young in 2023 and won the sluggish contest 16-13. Moore had five receptions for 58 yards receiving in the game. Moore's second game against the Panthers was much more fierce. He caught five passes for 105 yards in Chicago's 36-10 win over the Panthers on Sunday, Oct. 6. After the win, Moore said it "felt amazing" to "put a dagger through [Carolina's] heart."
1996 - Hall of Fame defender Kevin Greene faced both of his former teams in his first year with the Panthers. Greene scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery in Carolina's 45-13 win over the Rams before helping the Panthers beat the Steelers 18-10 to close the regular season.
2003 - Running back Stephen Davis played seven solid years with Washington before heading to Carolina. In his first game against his former team, Davis gained 92 yards rushing, 40 yards receiving, and scored the game-winning touchdown with a late rush to give the Panthers a 20-17 win.
2004 - We're really stretching things by including a kicker on a revenge game list but the Panthers' all-time leading scorer deserves some love. John Kasay spent his first four seasons with the Seattle Seahawks before joining the Panthers for their inaugural season. Kasay remarkably did not face Seattle for nine years. He made his only field goal attempts and two extra points as the Panthers lost 23-17. Kasay played his final NFL season with the Saints in 2011 where he beat the Panthers twice. He converted all four field goal attempts in the two games.