Seattle Seahawks (12-3) @ Carolina Panthers (8-7)
Sunday, December 28, 1:00 PM ET
This might not be the greatest matchup of the week in Week 17, but it’s definitely one that everyone’s going to be interested in around the NFL world.
Let’s start by talking about the Carolina Panthers, who have been unable to maintain any level of consistency this season despite being one of the most “fun” teams in the league. Carolina’s got an explosive offense. Bryce Young has shown he has the clutch factor. The defense has improved significantly.
So why are we seeing this team so up and down? I thought they took a big step forward last year offensively, but it’s been another year of growing pains. And thankfully, they are playing games fighting to keep first place this year, as opposed to trying to play catch-up.
So, to the Panthers’ credit, they’re in a great position right now after a win against the Bucs over the weekend. And they took care of business against the Los Angeles Rams a few weeks ago for their most “impressive” win of the season, but can they repeat that success against the Seattle Seahawks?
The Seahawks may be the best team in the NFL right now. That distinction goes to a new team every single week, but Seattle has had a legitimate case to be made all year. Coming back from down 30-14 against the Rams in primetime? Yeah, that’ll do it…
Seattle has proven, time and time again, they can do it all. They are complementary, they are explosive on offense, and they are tough defensively.
I will reiterate what I have stated all year long, however. It’s tough for West Coast teams to go to the East Coast and play in the 1:00 ET window. The Panthers and their fans are going to be juiced up for this game, too. I think it’s disrespectful to the Panthers that they are 7.5-point dogs in this one at home.
Prediction: Panthers win 27-26