The Panthers are playing the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship game while the Patriots are playing the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship game.
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The Panthers opened up an early 31-0 lead at home against Seattle yesterday.
But Wilson’s two first-half interceptions led to 10 Panthers points, and Seattle could not come back.
The former Prattville High School and Alabama Crimson Tide standout said it had been damaged during a run-in with Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch, aka Beastmode.
Seattle had the crowd of 74,287 cotton-mouthed when Wilson connected with Jermaine Kearse on a three-yard touchdown pass after a typically acrobatic scramble with 6:04 left, but Carolina did just enough to hold on. While Jonathan Stewart was on fire in his return from injury, Lynch only managed 20 yards on six carries while Wilson led the team with 32 yards on three quarterback scrambles.
Down 31-0 in the second quarter, it looked as though the Seahawks season was over. The first play, the running back broke, I slipped on a insane field.
Lynch led the league in total rushing and receiving touchdowns in 2014 with 17 and led the league with 12 rushing scores in 2013. “And we won the football game”.
More than anything, though, this one figures to be a defensive slugfest where the unit capable of making the big play or stop wins the game outright.
Fitzgerald had eight catches for 176 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Packers, but Carson Palmer struggled most of the game with inaccurate passes.
The conventional wisdom was that the elements wouldn’t be much of a factor for the Seahawks in their divisional playoff game Sunday at Carolina after enduring the frigid climate of Minnesota the week before. So to put it this way, they outscored the Panthers, 24-0, in the second half.
Welcome to the NFC championship game – the Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers next Sunday in Charlotte, North Carolina.
This is the third time since 2008 the Panthers have hosted the Cardinals in a playoff game.
However, Thomas Davis recovered the onside kick for the Panthers and Cam Newton just needed to kneel down to end the game.
“We’re far from done”, cornerback Richard Sherman said after Sunday’s loss. So we were trying to catch up the whole time.
“It just was a bad opportunity for him to have a chance to have an impact on the game”, Carroll said. “We ran out of time”. “Momentum. We can’t wait for no one to make plays for us”, added Newton. “I didn’t know if we would ever be like”.
The Seahawks also have one of the NFL’s best young linemen in second-year guard Justin Britt.
After an injury-filled season where Lynch played in just seven regular-season games, the Seahawks must determine whether it’s time to move on or keep “Beast Mode” around for another season at a hefty cost.
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The Panthers offense appeared to be on the verge of breaking out in 2013 when the team finished 12-4 and won the NFC South championship.
