Penrith Panthers’ early-season slump has been one of the biggest storylines of the NRL’s opening five rounds.
The four-time champs had not lost more than two games in a row since 2019, but they head into Round 6 trying to steer out of a four-match skid.
Digging deeper, the premiership’s best defensive side every year from 2020-24 (conceding no more than 17 points per game on average) have leaked at least 22 points in each outing so far in 2025.
Going through the archives, the Panthers can find some inspiration – and some tales of trepidation – from slow-starting defending premiers from yesteryear.
Eastern Suburbs Roosters (1976)
Easts set a pair of monumental premiership records in claiming their second straight title in 1975, crafting an unprecedented 19-match winning streak and thrashing St George 38-0 in the biggest grand final margin ever.
But the following season – with Arthur Beetson taking over as captain-coach from Jack Gibson – began poorly, the Roosters dropping three of their first five games and recording only narrow wins over perennial battlers Penrith and Newtown.
Easts recovered to finish fourth but were bundled out in the minor preliminary semi by Canterbury-Bankstown.
St George Dragons (1978)
‘Bath’s Babes’ ended St George’s 11-year premiership drought in 1977, thumping Parramatta 22-0 in the first-ever grand final replay.
Harry Bath’s Dragons effectively surrendered the title in the first seven rounds of the 1978 campaign, however, winning just one match and going down to the likes of ’77 cellar dwellers Wests and Souths.
The Saints eventually meandered their way to an eighth-place finish despite a seven-match mid-season unbeaten run.
Parramatta Eels (1987)
One of the most dominant teams of all time, Parramatta carved out a three-peat from 1981-83, making another grand final in 1984 and sending club legends Mick Cronin and Ray Price as winners in the 1986 grand final.
The fall for the Eels was swift, losing five of their first seven matches in 1987 as Brett Kenny, Steve Ella, Eric Grothe and maligned big-name recruit Bob Lindner battled injuries. The blue-and-golds finished seventh with a 12-12 record, three points off the finals.
Canberra Raiders (1991)
Two-time premier Canberra was written off after the club’s salary cap rorting scandal broke early in 1991 and the team won just two of its first six games, with injuries to Brad Clyde, Laurie Daley and Gary Belcher also hampering their early-season progress.
But the Raiders rallied brilliantly and courageously, winning seven of their last eight games to land fourth before going on a sudden-death playoffs run that fell just short via a 19-12 grand final defeat to Penrith.
Brisbane Broncos (1994)
Back-to-back premiers in 1992-93, the star-studded Broncos struggled to maintain their high standards for the most part in 1994 – and won only two of their first six matches. A 25-12 thrashing at the hands of three-time wooden spooners Gold Coast was the low point.
Wayne Bennett’s side always appeared behind the eight-ball in the finals race and did not win more than two games in a row in the first 15 rounds, but they regrouped to win six of their last seven games.
Finishing fourth, the Broncos made it to week two of the finals before being upset 15-14 by North Sydney and a Jason Taylor field goal.
Canterbury Bulldogs (1996)
After one of the most unlikely premiership triumphs of all time – the Bulldogs surged from sixth in the first eight-team finals series and stunned Brisbane, Canberra and Manly to take the title despite the club being torn apart by the Super League war – the immediate decline was inevitable.
The Bulldogs forged on with a quartet of Parramatta-bound internationals, among others, and won just one of their first eight matches. They responded admirably to win 10 of their last 13, but that was only good enough for a 10th-place finish.
Brisbane Broncos (1999)
The Broncos won the inaugural NRL premiership in 1998 – their fourth in seven seasons – in such emphatic fashion that their slump the following season was difficult to fathom.
A team boasting 10 internationals and coached by Wayne Bennett mustered just a win (over struggling Souths) and a draw (against battlers North Queensland) from the first 10 rounds, with champion halfback and captain Allan Langer shocking the rugby league world by quitting the game after the latter.
But Brisbane’s rally was equally spectacular, putting together a sensational 11-match winning streak to squeak into the playoffs – where they were promptly despatched in week one by the Sharks.
Melbourne Storm (2000)
Melbourne secured its maiden premiership in just the club’s second season, 1999, with a dramatic grand final victory over the Dragons. But the exit of forward leaders Glenn Lazarus and Tawera Nikau bit hard.
The Storm went 0-4 to start the 2000 season, including losses to previous year’s also-rans Auckland and Penrith. But the Chris Anderson-coached side found top gear in Round 5 with a famous 70-10 destruction of the Saints at the MCG, regrouping sufficiently to finish the season in sixth.
Canterbury Bulldogs (2005)
After three years of sustained high-level performance culminated in an emotional grand final victory over archrivals Sydney Roosters in 2004, the Bulldogs began their title defence with a thrashing of St George Illawarra.
But the Bulldogs – mirroring the 2025 Panthers – lost their next four games to set off alarm bells. A midyear revival briefly buoyed finals hopes, but the champs lost their last six games to spiral to 12th.
Wests Tigers (2006)
Wests Tigers’ unlikely charge to NRL glory in 2005 was followed by a lamentably swift regression – not aided by captain Scott Prince’s pre-season announcement he would be joining fledgling Gold Coast in 2007, and the injury problems of his mercurial halves partner Benji Marshall.
Three losses from the opening five rounds was not cause for panic, but the Tigers were languishing in 11th after 11 rounds with just four wins on the board and ultimately won consecutive games just once on their way to an 11th-place finish.
Brisbane Broncos (2007)
Reminiscent of their 1999 drop-off, the Broncos – having upset Melbourne in the 2006 grand final – started their title defence 0-3 and had just three wins in the bank after 10 outings.
The Broncos again recovered sufficiently to scrape into the finals (albeit despite a string of late-season losses), but season-ending injuries to Darren Lockyer, Brent Tate, Karmichael Hunt and Shaun Berrigan meant they were qualifying final lambs to the slaughter, losing 40-0 to Melbourne.
Manly Sea Eagles (2009)
Manly’s grand final record 40-0 rout of Melbourne in 2008 counted for little in the lead-up to their title defence, when an ill-fated pre-season function resulted in multiple incidents – including one that saw star fullback Brett Stewart stood down for a month (he was later exonerated).
The rattled Sea Eagles lost their first four games to the Bulldogs, Warriors, Panthers and Knights – only one of whom had played in the previous year’s finals. They found their feet, though, and a four-game tear at the end of the season put them into fifth spot.
The fickle nature of the since-discarded McIntyre Finals System saw them eliminated in week one after their loss to the forth-placed Storm.
Melbourne Storm (2018)
Melbourne lost just four games in 2017 and finished the year on a 10-match winning streak, cruising to the NRL trophy with a 34-6 demolition of North Queensland in the grand final.
The Storm’s start to 2018 was uncharacteristically shaky, however, losing three of their first five for the first time since 2005. They would win 12 of their next 14 to secure yet another top-four finish, before going down to the Roosters in the grand final.