Seahawks at Panthers

This is a rematch of the game last year, only this time in Carolina. We'll see if the change in venue contributes to a different outcome. Our computer thinks so and has pegged the Panthers as Super Bowl favorites in the last few weeks. Panthers play a winning style of football. Strong on pass D matched by great performances by QB Newton. It is, however, the running game that got them here, leading the league in rush attempts. See chart below.

Panthers lost one game and you can pick it out easily in the chart above. Facing a Seahawk defense that once again led the league in fewest points allowed Panthers offense will need to fire on all cylindars. Except for the one bad game, it's a smooth-running scoring machine. See chart of Panthers on Points Scored, below.

The computer likes the stat profile compiled by Panthers and makes them favorites by 5.5 points. That's a tall order against a powerful Seahawks squad owning back-to-back Super Bowl appearances. I'll go with the Panthers too, but by a nose.

Bill Sanders for BudGoodeSports.com
dr.bill@wrsanders.com

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