We open our Sunday with the defending NFC Champions taking on the odds-on favorite to win the NFC this season. The Seattle Seahawks (11-6) will try to end Cam Newton’s coronation and the Carolina Panthers (15-1) try to take what’s theirs.
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Here’s my pick from The FAQ.
Seattle at Carolina (-1.5)
To make the perfect run a reality, I have to buck trends. The Seahawks (11-6) are suddenly a very trendy pick. Seattle comes in still clinging to life after Zeus himself climbed down from Mount Olympus to reject Blair Walsh’s field goal attempt right back in his face last Sunday. Somehow barely surviving a game makes people believe the Seahawks can take down the best team in professional football.
Cam Newton led the Panthers (15-1) to near perfection already and even in their one loss, they were in the game until the final seconds ticked off the clock. Carolina went down fighting in a meaningless game that, if anything, took that pressure of perfection off their shoulders and freed them up to make their Super Bowl run. Trust me, I too understand the burden of perfection.
Back in Week Five the Panthers beat the Seahawks 27-23 and I see this game going about the same way. Cam’s quest for perfection might be over, but his quest for a Super Bowl ring begins Sunday. Panthers 30, Seahawks 27
Here’s our GMS Preview.
This NFC Divisional Round game will take place at Bank of America Stadium with both the Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers seeking to stay alive. The game will air Sunday, Jan 17 at 1:05 p.m. ET on FOX.
In its last game, Carolina dominated the Buccaneers 38-10. Cam Newton had a huge game through the air in the victory, connecting on 21 of 26 pass attempts for 293 yards and two TDs. Devin Funchess also had a great game with 120 yards and a TD on seven catches. Seattle edged out the Vikings 10-9. Bobby Wagner led the defensive effort for Seattle, recording six tackles and one sack.
The Seahawks are a three-point underdog against the Panthers and the Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at 43 points.
Sitting at 15-1 Straight Up (SU) and 11-5 Against The Spread (ATS), the Panthers will look to improve heading into Week 19. In their five most recent matchups, the Panthers went 4-1 SU and 2-3 ATS. Carolina’s offense is averaging 407 total yards over the last five games. During their last five games, the Panthers have also done a better job stopping the run, giving up an average of 87.8 rushing yards. The Seahawks will need to stop Carolina’s defense from getting to their quarterback in order to be successful in this game. The Panthers rank fifth in the league in sacks with 2.8 per game.
Across the field, the Seahawks head into Week 19 with records of 8-7-1 ATS and 10-6 SU. Over their last five games, the Seahawks have a SU record of 4-1 and a 3-2 record ATS. Seattle’s game plan focuses on running the football, averaging 31.3 rushing attempts per game. Moving on to the Seattle defense, it has some favorable matchups that it may be able to take advantage of as well. Seattle is a menacing group for opposing offenses. The Seahawks give up 210.2 yards per game through the air, second in the league. The Panthers will have to stay focused in the third quarter against Seattle. The Seahawks start off the second half with confidence, averaging 6.9 points during the third quarter.
Predictions: SU Winner – Sea, ATS Winner – Sea, O/U – Over
The game is on Fox at 1 p.m.. Watch it with me.
