2012 Carolina Panthers season The Carolina Panthers season was the franchise ' s 18th season in the National Football League and the second under head coach Ron Rivera . A day after the Panthers loss to Dallas , general manager Marty Hurney was fired . Until a new general manager is hired , Panthers director of football operations Brandon Beane is handling GM operations . In a statistical rarity , the team lost the first 13 of their coin tosses , something that has a 1 in 8 , 192 chance of happening . In the thirteenth game , the Panthers asked fans on Facebook to make the call , but the vote ended in a 50 / 50 tie . Logo change . On January 30 , 2012 , the Panthers unveiled an updated version of the team ' s logo , the team ' s first logo change since the Panthers entered the NFL in . 2012 draft class . The Panthers did not have a 3rd round selection . Season Summary . Looking to improve off of an 6 - 10 season from rookie coach Ron Rivera and quarterback Cam Newton , the Panthers got off to a tough start . The Panthers began the season with a dismal 2 - 8 record through their first 10 games . The Panthers played competitively throughout most games the entire season with an exception of a 36 - 7 loss to the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants where the Panthers fell to a 20 - 0 deficit early in the game and could not recover . Many would turn to a victory on November 26 in a prime time match up against the struggling Philadelphia Eagles as the turning point in the season for the Panthers . With that win on Monday Night Football , the Panthers would go on to win 5 of their remaining 6 games , rattling off 4 victories in a row to finish the season , with one victory coming against the NFC ' s # 1 seed Atlanta Falcons , the first win in the series for the Panthers since the 2009 season . Schedule . Preseason . The Panthers ' preseason schedule was announced on April 4 , 2012 . Game summaries . Week 1 : at Tampa Bay Buccaneers . The Panthers started the season at 0 - 1 picking up their 4th straight regular season opening loss . Also , the team dropped to 0 - 11 in games where starting QB Cam Newton turns the ball over as he was picked off twice . Week 2 : vs . New Orleans Saints . With the win , the Panthers improved to 1 - 1 , snapping their 4 - game losing streak against the Saints . Also , the team improved to 1 - 11 in games where Newton has at least 1 turnover . Week 3 : vs . New York Giants . With the huge loss on Thursday Night Football , the Panthers fell to 1 - 2 . The team also dropped to 1 - 12 in games where Cam Newton has at least 1 turnover . Week 4 : at Atlanta Falcons . With their 5th straight loss to the Falcons , the Panthers fell to 1 - 3 . Also for the first time ever the team also loses a game after Newton doesn ' t have a turnover as that record fell to 6 - 1 . Week 5 : vs . Seattle Seahawks . With the loss , the Panthers head into their bye week at 1 - 4 . Also , the team dropped to 1 - 13 in games where Newton has a least a turnover . Week 7 : vs . Dallas Cowboys . With the loss , the Panthers fell to 1 - 5 and also to 1 - 14 in games where Newton turns the ball over . Week 8 : at Chicago Bears . With the surprising loss , the Panthers dropped to 1 - 6 . Also , the team moves to 1 - 15 in games where Newton has a turnover . Week 9 : at Washington Redskins . With the win , the Panthers improved to 2 - 6 . The team also improves to 7 - 1 in games where Newton does not turn the ball over . Week 10 : vs . Denver Broncos . With the loss , the Panthers fell to 2 - 7 . The team also drops to 1 - 16 in games where Newton has a turnover . Week 11 : vs . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . With the loss , the Panthers fell to 2 - 8 . Also , QB Cam Newton suffers being swept by all 3 division rival teams as the team dropped to 7 - 2 in games where he does not have a turnover . Week 12 : at Philadelphia Eagles . With the win the Panthers improved to 3 - 8 and also 8 - 2 in games where Newton does not have a turnover . Week 13 : at Kansas City Chiefs . With the loss , the Panthers dropped to 3 - 9 securing them their 3rd straight losing season and also the team dropped in records to 0 - 2 against the AFC West and then to a record of 8 - 3 when Newton does not turn the ball over . Week 14 : vs . Atlanta Falcons . With the surprising win , the Panthers improved to 4 - 9 and snapped their 5 - game losing streak to the Falcons . Also , the team improved to 9 - 3 in games where Newton does not have a turnover . Week 15 : at San Diego Chargers . With the win , the Panthers improved to 5 - 9 and 10 - 3 when Newton does not have a turnover . It also leaves the Panthers 1 - 2 against the AFC West . Week 16 : vs . Oakland Raiders . With the win , the Panthers improved to 6 - 9 and 2 - 16 when Newton turns the ball over at least once . Also , the team finished the season 2 - 2 against the AFC West . Week 17 : at New Orleans Saints . With the win the Panthers finished 7 - 9 and good enough for 2nd place in the NFC South , sweeping the Saints for the first time since 2008 . Also , the team improved to 3 - 16 in games when Newton has a turnover .