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Carolina receiver Keyshawn Johnson throws his helmet after an interception late in the fourth quarter against the Eagles on Monday.

Personally, I doubt that will happen, but it’s becoming more likely by the week that one or more 8-8 teams will still be playing in January. One could be the Panthers, whose record may be a surprise, but whose presence in the postseason would not be. Another could be the Eagles.

If the Eagles were to somehow use this win to launch a playoff run, it would be one of the great performances against big odds the game has ever seen. On Sunday, even thinking of such a thing seemed like the product of an acid trip. This morning, it’s not nearly so far-fetched.

Meanwhile, Carolina has to figure out a way to stop giving games away. If the Panthers could put teams away, they’d be 11-1 today. If they had closed out just two of the five games in which they had leads going into the final 15 minutes, they’d be 8-4 and sharing a perch atop the NFC South with the upstart Saints.

Delhomme is a big part of the problem. The man who held his coming-out party in a heroic Super Bowl loss to the Patriots has now thrown critical late interceptions in two straight brutal losses. He’s playing more like Jake the Snakebitten Plummer than Jake Delhomme.

The Panthers’ vaunted defense isn’t exactly distinguishing itself, either. The Eagles are down to a twice-rejected quarterback, and still they drove the field as the clock was winding down to take the lead. And they didn’t do it with smoke and mirrors and luck, but with big plays.

No team can do that, and Carolina has to be just as alarmed by what’s happening to a team that was supposed to be among the elite as the Eagles have to be delighted to find they still have life despite their personnel losses.

There are just four games left, not a lot of time, but time enough. The team that can win three of them is all but guaranteed a playoff slot.

The Panthers’ now-desperate drive continues Sunday, as already mentioned, against the Giants, another team that keeps finding ways to lose. It probably won’t be pretty, but if you enjoy train wrecks, you don’t want to miss it.

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