History rarely has been a cozy bedfellow of the Cardinals. They are in the playoffs for the first time in 10 years, and they haven't advanced beyond the second round since winning the NFL title in 1947.

That, coupled with their failures in the Eastern time zone in recent years, seems to give them little shot at upsetting the Panthers Saturday night in Charlotte, N.C.

But history also gives the Cardinals hope. Last season, the No. 5-seeded Giants never played at home during the playoffs yet won the Super Bowl. In 2005, the Steelers became the first No. 6 seed to win a championship.

The Colts (a No. 3 seed) and the Ravens (a No. 4 seed) also won Super Bowls this decade without the benefit of a bye in the first round.

"It used to be that wild-card weekend didn't mean much," NBC analyst John Madden said in a conference call last week. "The top four teams get byes and they're not playing, and the big games will be the next week and the week after.

"The last two out of three Super Bowl teams came out of the wild card, and the blueprint is so fresh with the New York Giants. Just a year ago the Giants did this. They were not only in the wild card, but they had to play every game on the road."

Developments this weekend played out in the Cardinals' favor. They won - which helped, of course, and so did the Eagles, which means the Cardinals could play host to the NFC title game.

If the Cardinals beat the Panthers and the sixth-seeded Eagles beat the top-seeded Giants, the NFC championship would be played at University of Phoenix Stadium on Jan. 18.

To play another game at home, the Cardinals will need to grow up in a hurry.

Coach Ken Whisenhunt continually has referred to his team's maturation as a process, and the club's record on the East Coast is proof that it's ongoing. The Cardinals lost all five games in the Eastern time zone this season and are 2-19 over the past six seasons.

Early in the year, those Eastern games start at 10 a.m. Arizona time, and the Cardinals often have played like they still had bed head. They tried something new this year, staying in the Washington, D.C., area between games against the Redskins and Jets.

They lost both of them, but Whisenhunt believes his team profited from the decision.

Coaches and players weren't available to the media Sunday, but Whisenhunt has said he thinks that trip brought his players closer together. And he believes this team is always better the second time it experiences something.

This will be the second time this season they've played at Carolina. They lost to the Panthers 27-23 on Oct. 26. The Cardinals led 17-3 in the third quarter but two turnovers doomed them.

That experience should help them in Charlotte.