CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Steve Beuerlein wants to put a hold on all the talk about the so-called arrival of the Carolina Panthers.

A 31-29 victory over the San Francisco 49ers last week represented the first time in nearly three years Carolina defeated a team with a winning record.

The victory was Carolina's second in three games, but it still left the Panthers (2-3) below .500. Nonetheless, there was plenty of optimism in the locker room this week heading into Sunday's home game against the Detroit Lions (3-2).

"Once we get it to where we don't make any mistakes, have any of the penalties or anything negative offensively, it's scary what this offense can really do," fullback William Floyd said.

Beuerlein thinks it's far too early to be making predictions about what could become of Carolina's developing West Coast-style offense under first-year coach George Seifert.

"There's a lot of proving to do the rest of the year," Beuerlein said. "We've got to show that this was not just a fluke the past few weeks."

Beuerlein threw for 300 yards and a team-record and career-high four touchdowns last week in San Francisco, continuing a recent trend of strong performances by the Panthers offense, which is ranked ninth in the NFL.

Wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad leads the NFC with 531 yards and tailback Tshimanga Biakabutuka leads the NFL with an average of 8.3 yards per rush. Biakabutuka, who has scored five touchdowns, including four on bursts of 40 yards or more, is the main reason the Panthers got at least 100 yards on the ground in each of their last three games.

"There's no real inherent weakness within their club," Detroit coach Bobby Ross said. "They're pretty solid. They're not one-dimensional, which some teams tend to be in the NFL. They can both run and pass, and that just compounds your problems on the defensive side of the ball."

Seifert, who joined the Panthers after eight successful seasons in San Francisco, is pleased with Carolina's development. But he knows there's still plenty of work for a team that hasn't been above .500 since November 1997.

"We're in our embryonic stages right now of trying to get this thing the way we want it," Seifert said. "So far, so good, but we still have to work on our consistency. Our tack has been set where all of a sudden, we'll explode, but then you won't hear from us for a while."

Carolina isn't the only team trying to keep an early taste of success in perspective. The Lions are 3-2 for the third time in four years, and some Detroit-area media are speculating on the team's playoff chances.

"It's way, way early to make any premature judgments on anything," Ross said. "I think we wait and see how everything develops. But up to this point, I'm really proud of the way they've hung in there and fought. They've been playing very hard under some real adverse conditions."

Foremost on that list would be the retirement of Barry Sanders over the summer. Add to that injuries that have slowed or sidelined wide receiver Herman Moore, quarterback Charlie Batch and linebacker Stephen Boyd, and there's strong potential for another disappointing season in Detroit.

But, so far, Germane Crowell and Johnnie Morton have been making big plays in the absence of Moore; tight end David Sloan is having his best season; and Ron Rivers and Greg Hill have teamed to rush for 387 yards while averaging more than 4 yards per carry.

When Batch left last week's game against Minnesota with arm and back pain, Gus Frerotte rallied the Lions to a 25-23 victory.

"That was a good test for us," Detroit defensive end Robert Porcher said. "But we don't want to fall into a rut where just because we beat Minnesota, now we can slack off."

Detroit has helped its cause by losing just two fumbles this season. The Lions know they'll need to continue taking care of the ball to maintain their perch atop the NFC Central.

"We're in kind of the same shoes Carolina is _ both trying to establish ourselves," Porcher said. "We've got a big challenge ahead of us. This is not a cakewalk."

DETROIT Season schedule and results

CAROLINA Season schedule and results

September 12 @Seattle W 28-20 September 19 Green Bay W 23-15 September 26 @Kansas City L 21-31 October 10 San Diego L 10-20 October 17 Minnesota W 25-23 October 24 @Carolina 1:00pm ET October 31 Tampa Bay 8:20pm ET November 7 St. Louis 1:00pm ET November 14 @Arizona 4:15pm ET November 21 @Green Bay 1:00pm ET November 25 Chicago 12:40pm ET December 5 Washington 1:00pm ET December 12 @Tampa Bay 1:00pm ET December 19 @Chicago 1:00pm ET December 25 Denver 4:15pm ET January 2 @Minnesota 1:00pm ET

September 12 @New Orleans L 10-19 September 19 Jacksonville L 20-22 September 26 Cincinnati W 27-3 October 3 @Washington L 36-38 October 17 @San Francisco W 31-29 October 24 Detroit 1:00pm ET October 31 @Atlanta 1:00pm ET November 7 Philadelphia 1:00pm ET November 14 @St. Louis 1:00pm ET November 21 @Cleveland 1:00pm ET November 28 Atlanta 8:20pm ET December 5 St. Louis 1:00pm ET December 12 @Green Bay 1:00pm ET December 18 San Francisco 4:15pm ET December 26 @Pittsburgh 1:00pm ET January 2 New Orleans 1:00pm ET

Records source: STATS, Inc.

Copyright 1999 STATS, Inc. Commercial distribution without the express written consent of STATS is prohibited.