Little by little, inch by inch and week by week, the Carolina Panthers are starting to get some respect around the NFL.

Last year, they proved they can hang with any competition the league has to offer—upsetting a couple of heavyweights that they had no business defeating. Heck, they almost knocked the Los Angeles Rams, a Super Bowl favorite, out of the playoffs in the wild-card round.

This year, the reigning NFC South champs also seem to be learning how to beat the teams they should beat. That happened on Sunday, as they took care of business in a 25-14 victory over a banged-up and reeling Philadelphia Eagles squad.

So, according to Albert Breer at Sports Illustrated, this team actually deserves your respect:

The Panthers, for what it’s worth, deserve your respect, too. It wasn’t long ago that the franchise was lost. The Matt Rhule gamble didn’t work. Frank Reich lasted a year. GM Scott Fitterer was fired, and owner David Tepper looked like he hadn’t a clue on running a team . . . Conversely, what we saw Sunday looked remarkably competent and coherent . . . Carolina’s young group is playing confident ball in general, right now. And at 3–2, the Panthers are all alone atop the division they won last year. Maybe beating the Eagles will make people take some notice.

Beating the Eagles in their current state probably isn't going to make anybody sit up and pay attention, nor would beating the 1-5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers this upcoming week. But the Panthers do have a couple of more opportunities to make a name for themselves on the horizon.

In Week 8, they'll visit the Green Bay Packers for a Thursday night matchup. Plus, there's a bit of chatter that their Week 9 contest against the Denver Broncoscan get flexed into Sunday night.

Carolina already made good on their first national showcase of the season, topping the Detroit Lions behind an impressive offering from quarterback Bryce Young and Tetairoa McMillan in Week 4. Time, especially if it's prime, will tell if there are more wins and more recognition to come.