Entering the season, Arizona and Carolina were widely considered the leading Super Bowl contenders in the NFC. Sure, you might get a little lip service on Green Bay and even Minnesota. But another Arizona-Carolina matchup in the NFC title game — as was the case last season — made the most sense.
That still could be the case, but the Cardinals and Panthers find themselves looking up at everyone else in the NFC at the quarter point of this season. After finishing a combined 28-4 in the 2015 regular season, both teams are 1-3 and share the worst record in the NFC with five other teams (Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, San Francisco and Tampa Bay).