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The one Panther that I fear the most.

No its not Cam Newton (who has played at MVP Level this year)

The player is Luke Kuechly - That guy almost single handily shuts down our running game. He may be the most impactful Defensive player in the NFL.

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2015/11/27/pro-luke-kuechlys-grade-this-season-is-the-best-weve-ever-given-a-linebacker/

I think Russell and the passing game is going to be more important than the Running game if we are going to get past the panthers next week.

I think that our D is going to need to learn to cover the TE and slot routes in this game. GO HAWKS!!!!

That's the biggest issue is Olsen, he is Gronk without the bulk. This will be a tough game. They will fresh and we will be sapped.
We have to have a spy on Fig, we just cant allow him to run around out there.

It isn't just the tight ends that burn us. Wide receivers have hurt us down that middle slot that runs parallel and close to the hash marks a bunch. Arizona's only TD against us came when Fitzgerald ran his route in that area.

My biggest concern is what we can do on offense, as savy mentioned Kuechly always plays us well. I also am worried about some of our players taking dirty shots from some of the panthers defenders, it's important to not only win but to also stay healthy.

If our defense can stop Olsen and Ginn doesn't break free a bunch we should be fine. Stewart might not even play, I am not that afraid of the panthers offense.

Russell Wilson and PC's Hawks have now played Carolina in Carolina all 4 seasons.It will be their 6th meeting in the Wilson era.This is like a division game. Seattle has dealt Cam Newton some of his worst days as a pro and have yet to lose in Carolina although the games are low scoring punching matches. The game in Seattle was lost by the defense giving up 240 yards and 3 TDs in about 15 minutes.I dont see a rerun of that and in decent weather Russ can do his thing as well as Cam can or better. Their front 7 is as good as ours but their back end isn't even close other than Norman.

I like our chances at first glance.

I'm a little curious why guys like Deion, Irvin and Marshall think Seattle has to make a whole bunch of adjustments, change how deep ET plays etc to " cope" with the Panthers???? It's for the most part the same team Seattle has played every year for the last four seasons, seems to me we have done "a'ight". Also find it interesting that despite Seattle's offensive resurgence they pretend like the Panthers backend doesn't have a slew of injuries... At this point they have Norman and a whole lot of question marks... I REALLY like Locketts chance at exploding for a HUGE game ( like crazy big, you know like 175 yards and three scores kind of big)...

As much as I hate the lack of respect ( downright insulting to be honest, with zero credit given) I love it at the same time. Doubting Seattle and publicly disrespecting the team or anyone on it, always seems to stoke the fire. 1-0 guys, time to get to work. They are who you think they are, now TCB...

We were reminded, once again, how games go when we fail to establish early momentum offensively.

Obviously, the weather was significant in slowing everything down, but you could also see the tentativeness on that side of the ball all day long. It's only fitting that the biggest play came on a botched snap / improvisation by RW and Lockett, before Baldwin scored a desperately needed TD moments later.

We know what works, we just need to stick with it. Bevell can ill afford to get cute or be too stubborn with certain plays. The OL is gonna need to step up even more. Mix it up. Take some shots down field early to give them something to think about. Everything is (or should be) on the table for this one.

Carolina's 1st loss should've happened months ago in Seattle. The calendar says January, but it's gonna feel like August after the climate we just came out of. The Panthers have, more or less, cruised all year long. Very few opponents have given them reason to panic.

Gotta be aggressive this Sunday. Probably have to pass to set up the run, especially if Beast can't go again.

Reset and regroup. We're coming off a pretty emotional win. Time now to move on. We can do this.

Zorn76 wrote:We were reminded, once again, how games go when we fail to establish early momentum offensively.

Obviously, the weather was significant in slowing everything down, but you could also see the tentativeness on that side of the ball all day long. It's only fitting that the biggest play came on a botched snap / improvisation by RW and Lockett, before Baldwin scored a desperately needed TD moments later.

We know what works, we just need to stick with it. Bevell can ill afford to get cute or be too stubborn with certain plays. The OL is gonna need to step up even more. Mix it up. Take some shots down field early to give them something to think about. Everything is (or should be) on the table for this one.

Carolina's 1st loss should've happened months ago in Seattle. The calendar says January, but it's gonna feel like August after the climate we just came out of. The Panthers have, more or less, cruised all year long. Very few opponents have given them reason to panic.

Gotta be aggressive this Sunday. Probably have to pass to set up the run, especially if Beast can't go again.

Reset and regroup. We're coming off a pretty emotional win. Time now to move on. We can do this.

Seattle's offense Sunday was painful to watch but it wasn't Bevels' fault other than I didn't like the tentative strategy in the final 4 minutes. The offense was moving the ball well in the 4th quarter. I thought we should have put it in the air in safe situations to get one or 2 more first downs and we wouldn't have needed the miracle. The offense was on Russell, courtesy of the bizarrely cold weather, the headset issues, clock management, whatever.. I don't care how big his hands are, Cold wet weather and apparently arctic chill weather messed our guy up badly Sunday like it did vs. the Rams a couple of weeks ago. He missed so many wide open guys that even one or two connections would have made the game a laugher. How many stalls on the 40 yd. line? But then again he did a couple of amazing things too and threw a TD pass, something the other guy couldn't muster. And when the holder from the Vikes cant even spin it properly on the field(twice) imagine being a QB trying to throw it through a mail slot or 50 yards down the field.

Hey its a great epic win for the memory banks. No harm no foul.

No more cold weather games this postseason please and hopefully no rain in Carolina.

But I digress. Yes we could beat Carolina.Carolina lost to Atlanta and was held to 13 points in the game. Their run game plays right into our hands. Their defensive secondary is enough to make Wilson drool if he has the time. Norman and Courtland Finnegan gee I wonder who to target. If the good offense shows up we win by 10 plus this time. All the pressure is on them, we are living on borrowed time after Sundays miracle.

savvyman wrote:The one Panther that I fear the most.

No its not Cam Newton (who has played at MVP Level this year)

The player is Luke Kuechly - That guy almost single handily shuts down our running game. He may be the most impactful Defensive player in the NFL.

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2015/11/27/pro-luke-kuechlys-grade-this-season-is-the-best-weve-ever-given-a-linebacker/

I think Russell and the passing game is going to be more important than the Running game if we are going to get past the panthers next week.

I don't think it's Kuechly as such, rather it's their DL and how they keep him clean to make the plays as well as pressure the QB.
The key as usual is who can control the LoS.

I'm not worried about anyone on Carolina's team whether it be Newton, Kuechly, or Olson. I'm worried about the Seahawks and which team shows up.

Could we get Ciara to be a cointoss captain for this game? I could see that really getting inside Cam's head.

EmeraldBullet wrote:Could we get Ciara to be a cointoss captain for this game? I could see that really getting inside Cam's head.

Oh that's funny!!

"Seattle's offense Sunday was painful to watch but it wasn't Bevels' fault other than I didn't like the tentative strategy in the final 4 minutes."

And that's the point - Bevell can (sometimes) have a relatively nice gameplan - until it matters most.

He gets stupid in clutch moments too often.

Let's hope he doesn't repeat it Sunday.

From a wagering perspective:
I love this game & our chances of winning it. Seattle on the money line is +130.
I also like the under 44.

I love the Cards -7
Denver -7 & under 40.5

Load up & cash in!

I think plenty of people took a bath on the Cards tonight.
Pats covered if you had them at -5.
I think we'll cover tomorrow:)

I give less than a cats @$$ at covering. I want us to win.

Zorn76 wrote:[i]"Seattle's offense Sunday was painful to watch but it wasn't Bevels' fault other than I didn't like the tentative strategy in the final 4 minutes."

And that's the point - Bevell can (sometimes) have a relatively nice gameplan - until it matters most.

He gets stupid in clutch moments too often.

Let's hope he doesn't repeat it Sunday.

Zorn dont you think Carroll has significant input into strategy at game end? As great a coach as he has become time management has been an issue. It seemed like Seattle went into prevent a turnover mode and kill clock at 4 minutes plus. It made no sense as Minn had all their timeouts and the 2 minute warning. Seattle had broken the seal on the offense. I guess if Micheal had converted on a run or Wilson on the one pass it would have been different. I hope to see a balls out effort vs the Panthers today. They will likely need it.

While I have nothing but respect, and admiration for Luke Kuechly, it's Kawaan Short I'm most worried about in this game. If Seattle can protect Wilson, Seattle probably wins, that simple, if not...all bets are off. Having Justin Britt try to block Short is NOT something I am looking forward to seeing. Kuechly is a stud who will make his tackles, but Short could single-handedly wreck our entire game plan by getting to Wilson. He could also take away our biggest advantage in this game, which is our receiving corps against their pathetic secondary (except for #24 Josh Norman, who is a terrific cover corner). Our receivers, including Willson, SHOULD have a field day with their pathetic secondary. They SHOULD be able to get open consistently. Even against Norman, who I suspect will spend most of his time trying to cover Lockett, I see that as an even up match, Lockett will beat Norman as often as not, because Lockett is a terrific route runner with too much speed to cover consistently, no matter who it is trying to cover him.
If Wilson doesn't have the time he needs to make the read and throw the ball, however, it won't matter. You cannot hit open receivers laying on your back, and you cannot do it consistently while being harassed, harangued, and chased around in the backfield either, despite how easy Wilson makes it seem at times.
That's why as good as Kuechly is, (and he's easily the Panthers best player, and is actually as good as the media hype says he is, which almost never happens), it's the very studly DT, Kawaan Short who is matched up against our teams biggest weakness...Justin Britt. That worries me greatly.