The Panthers are going to the NFC Championship folks.
The Panthers started off extremely hot with a 59 yard run and a touchdown by Jonathan Stewart. Ron Rivera has preached "starting fast" all season, and the Panthers embodied that today as they jumped out quickly. After the offensive touchdown, a tackle for a loss by Star Lotulelei and a Kawann Short pressure turned Seattle's first drive into a Panthers touchdown, as Luke Kuechly intercepted the pass on Short's play for a touchdown. And Carolina just took off after that. Another Stewart touchdown with plenty of Greg Olsen, a Graham Gano field goal, and a Olsen touchdown put Carolina up at half time 31-0. But as it always goes with Seattle and specifically Russell Wilson, the game wasn't over yet.
Seattle missed a field goal at the end of the half, but came out in full on desperation mode and managed to tack on two touchdowns quickly off the arm and legs of Wilson. The Panthers offense drained clock but struggled to maintain drives, making what should have been a gift wrapped ticket to the NFC Championship into a thriller. Seattle had momentum, time, and an opportunity. Seattle had the chance to close the gap even further at the end of the 3rd. but an absolutely heads up play by Norman to sack Wilson coming out of unnecessary coverage forced a punt. Seattle found a way to score again in the 4th, but time was not on their side and the Panthers did just enough on offense to take away the time needed for a Seattle comeback to come full circle. Thomas Davis caught an onside kick with a little over a minute to go to seal the deal. On to Arizona.
The Good
- The Panthers looked unstoppable in the 1st half, running the ball down Seattle's throat with a fresh Jonathan Stewart. 31 points in two quarters is nothing to sneeze at against one of the best defenses in the league.
- Luke Kuechly made a HUGE impact on this game in many facets. He set the tone for the defense early with the pick six, he made a crucial PBU later on in the game, and consistently stayed a factor with 11 total tackles. He is one of the best linebackers to ever play the game.
- Thomas Davis had himself a good game as well, but the biggest play of the season for him IMO was coming down with the onside kick to end the Seahawk's comeback hopes. Davis truly embodies the spirit of "Keep Pounding", and I am so glad he was the guy to seal the game. Thank you Thomas Davis.
- Greg Olsen is a tough SOB. Despite a PAINFUL shoulder injury, he came back into the game and helped move the chains. Hoping he will be good for next week.
- The pass rush was outstanding in the first half. McDermott did a good job of continuing to dial up the blitz despite the lead. Wilson exploited it as the game wore on, but next week Carson Palmer isn't going to be able to run away from it like Wilson.
- The pass protection was better than I could have ever expected. Cam consistently had time in the pocket to connect with 2nd, 3rd, and even 4th reads.
- I was glad to see Tre Boston get meaningful reps on defense. Roman Harper wasn't terrible today, but Boston's physical tools are so much more beneficial for a defense like the Panthers'.
The Bad
- The Panthers that took the field in the second half were completely different from the guys who played in the first half. Ron Rivera needs to learn how to play with a lead. Seattle came back into the game mainly because the offense didn't score a single point in the 2nd half and the defense played on it's heels. The pass rush disappeared, the offense got cute with clock management. Unacceptable.
- Robert McClain got exploited and exposed this game. It's tough to knock on a guy who was essentially signed off the streets too much, but he's going to continue to be targeted during the playoffs.
- Greg Olsen took a real bad hit and appeared to be seriously injured. He came back, but it's something to monitor this week.
- I still believe Jared Allen needs to have his snaps reduced. Mario Addison was much more effective rushing the passer at times, I think the Panthers need to bring both Addison and Kony Ealy in more. The rotation was better in this game than in the regular season, but I believe Ealy and Addison are far more effective at this stage of their careers.