Get ready for it.
When a media contingent just sliiightly larger than a typical Wednesday gathering converges on Bank of America Stadium, the Carolina Panthers will likely start echoing one of their themes of the week.
"This is like any other game."
While that mentality ahead of Sunday's NFC Championship against the Cardinals is a noble goal, it's also unrealistic.
"Players are going to say it, but it's not," former Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme told Chris Kroeger and me Tuesday on WFNZ's 'Primetime.'
"They're going to practice very diligently, they're going to stay longer watching film, they're going to show up a little bit earlier, they'll take a little bit better care of themselves. This is what it's about. You're playing to get to the biggest game of your career."
Delhomme accounts for two-thirds of the Panthers' all-time starts in an NFC Championship. Following Kerry Collins in 1996, it was Delhomme in 2003 and 2005. Only one of those ended with a win, of course.
As Delhomme recalled the lead-up to that 2003 game against the Eagles, he shared a story that was perfectly Philadelphia.
Turns out his hotel phone, which was supposed to be disconnected, started working in the middle of the night. Coincidentally, Eagles fans got ahold of Delhomme's number and rung him up to — let's say — wish him well.
"I remember calling one of (the Panthers' support staff) the next morning. I was like, 'Dude, my phone should have been turned off.' And he said, 'It is.' And sure enough, it was," Delhomme said. "But who's to say some employee ... you know, the old New England Patriots — pull the fire alarm in the middle of the night — it just so happens every time someone plays in New England."
Despite the unexpected wake-up calls, Delhomme and the Panthers left Philly with their first ever ticket to a Super Bowl. So even though this week's game is at a friendlier venue for Carolina, Delhomme knows better than most the emotional roller coaster ride guys are about to experience.
"Going to the stadium and the buses getting pelted with snow ... in that atmosphere, there's nothing better," he said.
"Then, when the game was over and we were going to kneel down the ball, I literally watched grown men cry in the huddle. (Guard) Kevin Donnalley was a 13-year vet and you could just see the emotion. We know we're going to the show.
"And that's what they're going to be dreaming about each and every night heading into this game Sunday night."
Other highlights from the Delhomme interview
On Ricky Proehl revealing a Sam Mills jersey before pounding the drum last Sunday:
"I talked to Ricky a little bit before that. Joking with him, I said, 'Somebody has never busted the drum. It sure would be nice if you could be strong enough and bust it.' And he said, 'Just wait till you see what I have.'"
Another pregame memory:
"I happened to be standing about a yard and a half, two yards behind Luke Kuechly, over his left shoulder. And I literally just caught myself staring at him and I said, 'You know, this is a different guy that I talk to off the field. This is someone that I'm very scared of at this moment.'"
On Cam Newton:
"It seems like he's getting better and better each week ... I told him this before the Saints game and again before the game Sunday, just wishing him best of luck, I said, 'Buddy, your eyes tell it all.' He has the confident eyes under center, the way he sees the game."
And Newton's connection with favorite target Greg Olsen:
"Cam's the MVP of the league. It's very simple. It's not close, he's the MVP of the National Football League. He's got some good players around him, but he has a special connection with his tight end and they're making big plays."
On the Cardinals' high-powered offense:
"If this was the Kentucky Derby, they're lining up with thoroughbreds. They're not lining up with mules."
And the Panthers coming in after nearly blowing a 31-point lead to Seattle:
"The thing that I like, instead of this being a 38-10 game or 41-17, where the Panthers really rolled, I think they really had a bad taste in their mouth after the game. They were disappointed that it wasn't more of a blowaway. And that's something that's just going to add fuel to that fire. That probably started yesterday morning when they went to watch film. 'Hey, we've got to get better.' That chip on the shoulder keeps growing."
Listen to the entire segment with Delhomme on WFNZ.com