NFC Championship, 2015: Carolina 49 Arizona 15

Game information
Carolina dominated the game from start to finish, outgaining Arizona in total yards 476 to 287 and forcing seven turnovers in the first NFC Championship played at Bank of America Stadium. The Panthers accomplished this despite the loss of all-pro linebacker Thomas Davis and veteran safety Roman Harper, who both suffered game-ending injuries in the first half.

On the Panthers first drive, quarterback Cam Newton completed three passes for 32 yards and rushed for four yards on the way to a 45-yard Graham Gano field goal. Arizona had to punt on their next drive, and Ted Ginn Jr. returned it 32 yards to the Cardinals 49-yard line. Several plays later, he took a pitch on an end around play and raced 22 yards to the end zone, giving Carolina a 10–0 lead. At the end of Arizona's next drive, Drew Butler's 43-yard punt pinned the Panthers back at their own 12-yard line. On 3rd-and-8, Newton fired a pass to Corey Brown near the 40-yard line. Brown caught the ball, evaded a tackle attempt by Rashad Johnson, and took off for an 86-yard touchdown reception, making the score 17–0 with 49 seconds left in the first quarter. It was the longest play in Panthers postseason history.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals offense continued to struggle, as quarterback Carson Palmer lost a fumble due to a hit by Kawann Short, which linebacker Luke Kuechly recovered on the Panthers 38-yard line. However, this time the Cardinals defense stepped up and forced a punt. Taking the ball back at their 21-yard line, Palmer completed four consecutive passes for 45 yards as the team drove 79 yards in 10 plays to score on David Johnson's 1-yard touchdown run, cutting the deficit to 17–7. Arizona's defense then forced another punt, but in what turned out to be a critical play, returner Patrick Peterson muffed the kick and defensive back Teddy Williams recovered it for Carolina on the Cardinals 46-yard line. Consecutive carries by Jonathan Stewart moved the ball 40 yards to the Arizona 1-yard line. Then on third down, Newton dove over the pile for a 1-yard touchdown that increased the Panthers lead to 24–7 with 1:56 left in the half.

What followed was three turnovers over the span of the next four plays. First, Charles Johnson forced a fumble from Palmer that was recovered by safety Tre Boston on the Arizona 31-yard line. Then Newton returned the favor with a pass that was intercepted by Peterson, who returned it 72 yards. He appeared to be heading for the end zone, but Ginn managed to chase him down and tackle him on the Panthers 22-yard line. This turned out to be crucial, as on the next play, Palmer threw a pass that was intercepted in the end zone by safety Kurt Coleman with 49 seconds left until halftime.

Carolina took the second half kickoff and drove 80 yards in 11 plays. Newton completed five consecutive passes for 76 yards on the drive, including two to tight end Greg Olsen for 43 total yards and a 14-yarder to fullback Mike Tolbert. Gano finished the drive with a 21-yard field goal that put the team up 27–7. After a punt, Newton completed a 39-yard pass to Ginn and a 17-yard strike to Devin Funchess. Then he finished the possession with consecutive carries, the first for 11 yards, and the second a 12-yard touchdown run that increased their lead to 34–7.

Arizona took the ball back and drove for a touchdown, as Palmer completed 7 of 8 passes for 80 yards, the last one a 21-yard scoring pass to tight end Darren Fells. Then J. J. Nelson ran the ball in for a 2-point conversion, cutting the score to 34–15 less than a minute into the fourth quarter. Following a punt, Arizona drove to the Panthers 44-yard line, but their last hope of a comeback slipped away when Palmer threw a pass that was picked off by Coleman for his second interception of the day. After that, Newton completed a 54-yard pass to Olsen, rushed for 14 yards, and finished the drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Funchess. Then his 2-point conversion pass to Tolbert put the team up 42–15. After the ensuing kickoff, Kuechly intercepted Palmer's next pass and returned it 22 yards for the final score of the game. While the scoring was over, the turnovers were not, as Palmer was intercepted for the fourth time in the game on the next drive, this time by Boston.

Newton completed 19 of 32 passes for 335 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception, while also rushing for 47 yards and two scores. Brown caught four passes for 113 yards and a touchdown, while Olsen had six receptions for 113 yards. Stewart was the leading rusher of the game with 83 yards. Ginn rushed for 22 yards, caught two passes for 52 yards, and added 38 more yards on two punt returns. Coleman had four tackles and two interceptions, while Kuechly had eight tackles, an interception returned for a touchdown, and a fumble recovery. Boston had a fumble recovery and an interception. Meanwhile, Palmer was badly mauled by the Panthers defense, completing just 23 of 40 passes for 235 yards and a touchdown, while being intercepted four times and losing two fumbles. David Johnson was the team's leading rusher and receiver with 60 rushing yards and nine receptions for 68 yards.

This was the most lopsided NFC Championship game since the Giants shut out the Vikings 41–0 in the 2000 NFC Championship Game. Carolina's 49 points set a new record for most points in an NFC Championship Game.

This was the second consecutive postseason meeting between the Cardinals and Panthers, and third overall. Both teams have split the previous two meetings. Carolina won last year's meeting 27–16 in the 2014 NFC Wild Card playoffs.

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