The Panthers advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history, but lost 32–29 to the New England Patriots on a last-second field goal by kicker Adam Vinatieri.
at Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina The Cowboys' turnaround season under coach Bill Parcells came to a crashing halt.
Later in the first quarter, Toby Gowin's 31-yard punt gave the Panthers the ball at the Cowboys 41-yard line, and they scored another field goal to take a 6–0 lead.
On the Cowboys ensuing drive, Carter completed a 28-yard pass to Joey Galloway and Troy Hambrick ran for 16 yards, giving Dallas a first down at the Panthers 20-yard line.
Later in the second quarter, Gowin once again gave the Panthers great field position with a 17-yard punt to the Carolina 49-yard line, and this time they managed to get the ball into the end zone with a 23-yard touchdown run by Davis, giving them a 13–0 lead.
Dallas receiver Michael Bates returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards to the Panthers 47-yard line, sparking a desperate rally.
Dallas' defense managed to force a punt on Carolina's next drive, but two plays later, Panthers lineman Julius Peppers intercepted a screen pass from Carter and returned it 34 yards to the Cowboys 11-yard.
St. Louis built up a 6–0 lead early in the second quarter, but wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad's touchdown on a fumble recovery gave Carolina a 7–6 advantage.
After Kasay missed a 54-yard field goal attempt with 6:26 left in regulation, the Rams drove 57 yards in 15 plays and scored with Marshall Faulk's 1-yard touchdown run.
The Panthers would march down to the Rams 22-yard line on their first drive in Overtime, and Carolina kicker John Kasay in fact made a 40-yard field goal that would have won the game.
On the first play of the second overtime period, Jake Delhomme threw a 69-yard touchdown pass to Steve Smith to win the game.
But linebacker Dan Morgan picked off a pass from backup quarterback Koy Detmer in the end zone with 5:16 left in regulation.
After Carolina was forced to punt on their opening drive, Patriots receiver Troy Brown gave his team great field position with a 28-yard return to the Panthers 47-yard line.
The Patriots subsequently marched to the 9-yard line, but Carolina kept them out of the end zone and Adam Vinatieri missed a 31-yard field goal attempt.
New England then drove to the 31-yard line, but on third down, linebacker Will Witherspoon tackled Brown for a 10-yard loss on an end-around play, pushing the Patriots out of field goal range.
Meanwhile, the Carolina offense was stymied by the New England defense, with quarterback Jake Delhomme completing just one out of his first nine passes, sacked three times, and fumbling once.
Branch's touchdown came after 26:55 had elapsed in the game, setting the record for the longest amount of time a Super Bowl remained scoreless.
The Panthers stormed down the field on their ensuing possession, driving 95 yards in 8 plays, and tying the game on a 39-yard touchdown pass from Delhomme to wide receiver Steve Smith with just 1:07 left in the half.
Panthers running back Stephen Davis then ran for 21 yards on the next play to set up kicker John Kasay's 50-yard field goal as time expired in the half, cutting Carolina's deficit to 14–10.
But with 3:57 left in the period, the Patriots put together a 71-yard, 8-play scoring drive, featuring tight end Daniel Graham's 33-yard reception to advance to the Carolina 9-yard line.
Then on 3rd down from his own 15-yard line, Delhomme threw for the longest play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history, an 85-yard touchdown completion to Muhammad.
Once again the Patriots were faced with third down and goal, but this time they scored with Brady's 1-yard pass to Vrabel, who had lined up in an eligible tight end position.
Then on a two-point conversion attempt, running back Kevin Faulk took a direct snap and ran into the end zone to make the score 29–22.
Carolina failed on their last chance, as Rod Smart went nowhere on the resulting kickoff, and the Patriots had won their second Super Bowl in three years.
In addition, quarterback Jake Delhomme, running back Stephen Davis, and wide receiver Ricky Proehl were signed to the Panthers in the off-season.
Indianapolis was a week removed from the Colts' historic 38–35 comeback win in Tampa Bay and raced to a 13–3 halftime lead, but Delhomme erased the gap on two third-quarter drives, highlighted by a 52-yard touchdown pass to Steve Smith.
The Buccaneer defense, however, failed to keep Carolina at bay, and Jake Delhomme swiftly led the Panthers to a come from behind, game-winning touchdown with 1:11 left.
Delhomme was picked off once and the Panthers could not finish it off in regulation as Vick's one-yard touchdown halfway through the fourth helped lead to overtime.
John Kasay's field goal in the third quarter preceded another "Cardiac Cat" finish as Delhomme found DeShaun Foster for a 31-yard touchdown.
That pass made the score 22–21, Carolina and went down in the record books as the longest offensive play in Super Bowl history.