With the preseason complete and the 53-man roster set, it’s time to start looking ahead.
Circle the date: October 18, 2015.
That’s when the Carolina Panthers will go on the road to face the Seattle Seahawks.
Simply put, the Seahawks have owned the Panthers over the last three years, and as a fan I’m sick of it.
Outside of the Panthers traditional rivalries within the NFC South, the best rivalry Carolina has developed in the Cam Newton era is with Seattle.
The two teams have faced each other four times in last three seasons, including in last year’s NFC Divisional playoff round, and will do battle in Week 6 this year. There are three main reasons I want to see the Panthers beat the Seahawks this year: set the tone, get a statement win, and good ol’ revenge
Set the Tone
Carolina begins the season with four winnable games: at the Jacksonville Jaguars, then two home games against the Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints, then at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Let’s assume Carolina beats Jacksonville and Tampa Bay – two of the teams with the lowest win total projections in the league – and splits with Houston and New Orleans.
It is pretty reasonable to expect the Panthers to be sitting at 3-1 through Week 4.
Carolina then has a bye in Week 5 before traveling to Seattle for Week 6, giving Ron Rivera and his coaching staff an extra week to prepare for the biggest game of the regular season.
Winning on the road in Seattle to go to 4-1 would set the tone for the rest of the season and prepare the Panthers for a playoff push.
Get a Statement Win
Last year the Panthers laid egg after massive egg against the league’s better teams, going just 1-4-1 in the regular season against teams that went on to make the playoffs. And the four losses were ugly with Carolina being outscored 55-126 in those games:
Week 2 – Carolina 24, Detroit 7 (win)
Week 3 – Carolina 19, Pittsburgh 37 (loss)
Week 4 – Carolina 10, Baltimore 38 (loss)
Week 6 – Carolina 37, Cincinnati 37 (tie)
Week 7 – Carolina 17, Green Bay 38 (loss)
Week 8 – Carolina 9, Seattle 13 (loss)
If the Panthers want to be taken seriously and prove they are more than just the best team in a mediocre NFC South, they need to start beating playoff-caliber teams. They need some statement wins.
And no win could make a bigger statement than leaving Seattle in Week 6 with a victory.
Good Ol’ Revenge
For me, it’s personal with Seattle at this point. I’m sick of losing to them. Enough already.
You know the old saying "familiarity breeds contempt?" Well, over the last three years I’ve developed a healthy amount of contempt for the Seattle Seahawks. Here’s why:
2012 Week 5 – Seattle 16, Carolina 12. In the first Cam Newton-Russell Wilson death match, Carolina had the ball on 4th-and-goal at the 1 yard line with 3:47 remaining when Cam Newton skipped an incomplete pass at the feet of an open Ben Hartsock in the end zone. The Panthers got the ball back late, but Newton was strip-sacked with 49 seconds left.
2013 Week 1 – Seattle 12, Carolina 7. Once again, Carolina was driving late in the game with a chance to take the lead, but Earl Thomas stripped DeAngelo Williams at the Seattle 8 yard line with 5:25 remaining to prevent a Panthers score. Seattle got the ball back and ran out the clock to secure the win.
2014 Week – Seattle 13, Carolina 9. The Panthers led 9-6 with 4:47 left in the game when Russell Wilson led a nine-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a 23-yard touchdown pass with just 47 seconds left. For the third straight regular season, the Panthers lost to the Seahawks late in the fourth quarter.
2014 Divisional Playoff – Seattle 31, Carolina 17. Don’t let the final score fool you, the Panthers were right in this game until a disastrous fourth quarter. At the end of three quarters, Seattle led just 14-10. But the Seahawks blew the game open in the fourth after a touchdown drive and a Cam Chancellor 90-yard pick-six.
Three seasons.
Four physical, hard-fought games.
And four times the Panthers have collapsed late (or Seattle played clutch, depending on your perspective) to lose each time.
It’s time for revenge. It’s time for a statement win. It’s time in Week 6 for the Panthers to set the tone for the rest of the season by finally beating the Seattle Seahawks.
October 18, 2015.
Circle the date.