The Panthers head into Week 15 in a tailspin. They have dropped five games in a row and six of seven going back to their blowout loss to the 49ers. Next up on the schedule: another NFC West heavyweight.
According to BetMGM, the Panthers are 5.5-point underdogs at home for this week’s game against the Seahawks.
That number represents a hard truth. Injuries have played a major role, but this team has seriously under-performed given the expectations heading into the 2019 season. It’s already cost coach Ron Rivera his job and more serious changes are certainly on the way soon.
As for Seattle, this isn’t the same team Panthers fans might be used to. Linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright are the only remaining familiar faces for what was an all-time defense only a few years ago. New pieces like Jadeveon Clowney and Quandre Diggs have paid off and kept the unit strong enough to remain competitive. These Seahawks are carried by the brilliance of Russell Wilson, though. He’s having his best season yet and deserves to finish No. 2 in the MVP vote behind Lamar Jackson.
Another reason to trust those odds is recent history has not been kind to Carolina in this matchup. The Panthers beat the Seahawks twice in that magical 2015 season. Other than that, it’s been all failure. Seattle has won every other game in this series since Pete Carroll became head coach.
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