Seahawks (10-3) at Panthers (5-8)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
TV: Fox
Danny Sheridan’s line: Seahawks by 51⁄2
Seahawks’ keys to victory: Seattle’s success this season is largely the result of QB Russell Wilson’s career-best year, but the Seahawks’ inability to protect Wilson in the pocket is their Achilles’ heel. The Panthers have potent pass rushers such as rookie OLB Brian Burns, who will put the offensive line’s weak link, RT Germain Ifedi, to the test. Defensively, a disruptive outing from DE Jadeveon Clowney will be key. Seattle has been hurt by the loss of RB Rashaad Penny.
Panthers’ keys to victory: Early in the year, the winning formula for the Panthers was riding RB Christian McCaffrey and a hot defense. Lately, they’ve gotten away from McCaffrey too much, and QB Kyle Allen has been unable to handle the increased pressure. On defense, interim head coach Perry Fewell made some bad mistakes in his debut against the Atlanta Falcons last weekend, including a zero blitz call that ended in a 93-yard touchdown pass.
Matchup to watch: Seahawks FS Quandre Diggs vs. Panthers QB Kyle Allen. Seattle’s defense got two huge additions via trade this year when it got Clowney from the Houston Texans and Diggs from the Detroit Lions for a pittance. Diggs has solidified what was a shaky secondary. Allen struggled against the same Cover 3 scheme in Week 14 and is too inaccurate to test teams deep.
Who wins? The Seahawks and Panthers have played each other nine times since 2010, and the Seahawks have won all but twice. The Panthers have been awful of late.
Seahawks, 37-24