Does anybody think the Panthers can beat the Seahawks?
The Story
The next round of the playoffs is now clear: Carolina will travel to Seattle to play the Seahawks next Saturday, 8:15 p.m.
#Panthers will travel to Seattle to face #Seahawks for NFC Divisional Round game http://t.co/ZsJUQiZ0M5 pic.twitter.com/bXT5QfDGjq
— Charlotte Observer (@theobserver) January 5, 2015
The Facts
It’s a shock the Panthers are even in the playoffs with their losing record this season. And they played a pretty weak Arizona team this weekend. So, does anybody think the good luck can continue?
The Experts
Vegas: Seattle favored by 11 points
Panthers Coach Ron Rivera: “They are the Super Bowl champions and have been playing their best football late in the season. They have a great home field advantage, but nothing comes easy at this stage of the playoffs. We will not be able to make some of the mistakes we made last week.”
Observer columnist Scott Fowler: “The Panthers have done a lot of hard things well, though, over the past five weeks to get this far. Winning in Seattle would be the hardest. But it’s possible.”
#Panthers will get a fourth shot at Seattle. Three losses to #Seahawks the past three yrs by a total of 13 pts. — Joe Person (@josephperson) January 5, 2015
ESPN.com’s David Newton: For the Panthers to have a chance, Newton has to be more productive. He also has to protect the ball better … A 13-9 loss to Seattle on Oct. 26 was something of a turning point for Carolina’s defense, which set an NFL playoff record in Saturday’s NFC wild-card game by holding Arizona to 78 total yards….The Panthers have been effective at keeping Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch under control.
Madden NFL 15 (seriously!):
C5’s Take
If Madden 15 shows a Panthers win, who are we to disagree?
Photo: Jeff Siner / Charlotte Observer
This story was originally published January 5, 2015 at 12:57 AM with the headline "Does anybody think the Panthers can beat the Seahawks?."