Seahawks aren’t Santa, but they are coming to town this week
It should be a good one of Sunday between the Panthers and Seahawks.
While people will hopefully be able to enjoy whatever level of seasonal turkey and stuffing available to them on Thursday, the Seattle Seahawks will NOT be bringing the sort of gift that two failed PATs (especially two-point conversion at end) by the Panthers were for Detroit last week. For those who might not have relocated to Charlotte when Panthers-Seahawks was a hard core rivalry with defenses knocking the stuffing out of each other, they are just ahead of the Panthers in rushing average per game, so be prepared for a lot of pad-cracking line play on Sunday.
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The Seahawks are led by Chris Carson (128/580 yards, 3 TDs) in rushing, and average 154.3 yards overall, so this is definitely a game where Panthers keeping someone under 100 will be a worthwhile endeavor. If the Panthers ‘D’ can keep Wilson to their season average of 219 yards passing, that would be a heck of a lot better than the 267.6 they’ve been surrendering. Scoring-wise, Seahawks put up 24.6 ppg and allow 21.6, while the Panthers go for 26 ppg and allow just a shade less (25.2), so we’ll see who does the imposing of wills.
Dontari Poe, don’t just be a space eater, feel free to grab as many legs as possible Sunday. Shaq Thompson, go on and get a bunch of that too. Kuechly and Davis, here’s hoping you gobble up a bunch of those screens and sure, keep looking for more. Secondary? Rookie cornerback Donte Jackson isn’t sitting at any kiddie table, and James Bradberry is more than solid, so if some of those long throws Seahawks QB Russell Wilson likes to pass come around, they shouldn’t ask for any cranberry sauce, just scoop it up and smile.
Tyler Lockett is the top Seahawks receiver, and like that cousin who spills the gravy and blames you, Jackson will be ready to put a lick on him without even thinking about saying he’s sorry for his enthusiasm in the pre-dinner game.
Defense wins championships? Not the one we’ve been watching
Once again, its going to be the pass rush of Panthers that will make a difference against Seattle. Wilson has been sacked 32 times this year, often because, much like Cam Newton, he moves around and tries to keep a play alive. If you’ve checked, the ‘smart’ money says to drop the Panthers from any fantasy defense, and if they’ve looked un-intimidating most of the season- like last week, getting a single sack against the Lions- Wilson is someone who can seriously hurt a team with both his scrambling for yards and slipperiness while looking to throw on the run.
You won’t be able to convince a lot of people that, “We just need to clean some things up,” as defensive coordinator Eric Washington has said, and the 11 negative plays against Detroit, 3.6 yards per carry, and 4 of 12 on 3rd down conversions isn’t enough of a contribution, especially when there’s an ‘L’ next to spot on Panthers schedule. Stats can be looked at different ways, but since beginning of season, the success rate of blitzing vs. coverage with linebackers has been almost turkey-ish by Panthers defense–passers get yardage (ie- Andy Dalton), but against blitz, they have torn Panthers up. Anyone who thinks 22 sacks at this point last year isn’t that far off the current 15, or that 60 QB hits vs. 49 is okay, has a serious math problem.
If the Panthers continue utilizing McCaffrey and the controlled passing keeps moving the sticks, they will probably stick a fork in the Seahawks. Despite his ugly 2/8 catches (v. targeted) game last week, Devin Funchess is still our leading man yardage-wise, although McCaffrey and now D.J. Moore would be higher on any lists as ‘best receivers.’
Next. Panthers playoff perspective entering Week 12. dark
Panthers are still ahead of the pack for a playoff spot, although after watching the Rams-Chiefs game last night, knowing what Drew Brees can do at any point, and how the Steelers opened a can of whoop-whoop on them, almost anyone they play is looking at a lot of time to worry about what to do with their spare time in January.