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CHARLOTTE -- The Panthers always break your heart.

In one of the darkest days in the history of a franchise that has known many dark days, the Carolina Panthers were slapped around by the Arizona Cardinals and drummed out of the NFL playoffs Saturday night.

After winning the NFC South title, earning a bye, a home game and an apparent clear path to the conference championship game, the Panthers lost 33-13 to a team they'd beaten three months earlier.

After a 12-4 regular season that convinced their fans that this was their year, the Panthers lost to a team that went 9-7, stumbled into the playoffs after losing a game 47-7 the second-to-last week of the season and flew 1,800 miles as an apparent patsy for the perceived power of the New South.

It was over in a matter of minutes. Carolina drove effortlessly for a touchdown on the first series of the game then watched helplessly as Kurt Warner carved up the defense as easily as he did in October. That was the specter hanging over the game all week. Though the Panthers won 27-23 in Week 8, the Cardinals considered it a fluke. Carolina trailed by 14 in the second half and came back only because of a 65-yard touchdown by Steve Smith, whom Phoenix contended stepped out of bounds 60 yards short of the end zone.

This was a classic trap for the overconfident Panthers. And no one expected it.

The caravan unloaded 73,695 fans at the front steps of a party planned as a coronation for one of the top teams in the league, a simple sendoff for a team many predicted would play in and win Super Bowl XLIII in three weeks.

Before the towel-waving multitudes were comfortable in their seats, the Cardinals erupted for two touchdowns.

And then the rains came.

The deluge that swamped the Panthers and their increasingly irritated fans forced some into pulling out brand-new ponchos and others into the covered areas under the mezzanine never to return.

One of the largest crowds ever to see the Panthers play began leaving late in the third quarter, and what began as one of the most festive nights in franchise history ended with a sea of blue and gray seats surrounding a damp field and an organization that has an offseason of explaining to do.

"We picked a bad day to have a bad day," John Fox, the Panthers coach said.

The loss was so bad, the Panthers could go into the NFL Draft in April looking for a quarterback. Jake Delhomme threw five interceptions and fumbled once in his worst game ever. The argument that Delhomme is underrated and capable of leading teams to glory is moot now. He completed 17 passes for 205 yards and a meaningless touchdown.

Delhomme finished one interception from one of the league's most dubious records: most interceptions in a playoff game. Four people retained that honor after Delhomme fell just short.

"I'm at a loss for words," he said. "I don't know why. I'm usually not."

Fox blamed Delhomme without actually blaming him. "When you turn the ball over six times, you don't have much of a chance to win," Fox said. "I think Jake's a hell of a quarterback who had a bad night."

Delhomme, who celebrated his 34th birthday Saturday, blamed himself without hesitation.

"I should get the blame," he said. "It's inexcusable. It wasn't our night, and it wasn't mine. That's for sure."

He apologized to his team in the huddle during the fourth quarter.

Carolina tried to run the ball first and that failed. Then the Panthers tried to pass the ball, and that turned out even worse. They tried to defend one of the most accurate passers in the history of game with a zone defense.

Warner, who threw for 381 yards in October, passed for 220 yards Saturday before shutting it down with a 27-7 lead. He did it without his favorite receiver, injured wideout Anquan Boldin. And he did it in the face of a defense somehow considered one of the best in the league.

In the Panthers' first loss of the season in their own stadium, the Cardinals came in prepared to play on. Carolina arrived looking ahead. And 73,695 people showed up to witness what they expected to be one of the great nights to be a Panthers fan.

"The sky's not falling," Fox said.

The rain poured Saturday night. Then it let up long enough for the Arizona Cardinals to swamp Carolina in the most shocking loss in Panthers history. Then the heavens opened and washed away an entire season as if it had never even happened while a legion of broken-hearted fans walked to the parking lots in a torrential downpour.

Ed Hardin can be reached at 373-7069 or ed.hardin@news-record.com