Seahawks look to bounce back with road win against Panthers

The Seattle Seahawks will look to bounce back after a tough loss to the Los Angeles Rams when they travel to take on the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

The Seahawks jumped out to a 3-0 lead on the first drive of the game, but the Rams scored 21 unanswered points to take a 21-3 lead into halftime.

>> PHOTOS: Seahawks beat Panthers 30-27 in 2018

A Quandre Diggs interception return for a touchdown helped bring the score to 21-9 with 12:54 remaining in the third quarter, but the Seahawks were unable to cut the lead any closer on the way to their third loss of the season.

The loss, coupled with the San Francisco 49ers 48-46 win over the New Orleans Saints, dropped the Seahawks to second place in the NFC West and fifth place in the NFC.

However, Sunday should provide a great opportunity for the Seahawks to get back on track.

The Panthers are coming off a 40-20 loss to the Atlanta Falcons – their first game under interim head coach Perry Fewell.

Fewell was named the interim head coach after the Panthers fired Ron Rivera Dec. 3. Rivera had been the head coach since 2011 and helped lead Carolina to a 15-1 record in 2015 and an appearance in Super Bowl 50.

The Seahawks will also face the Panthers without Cam Newton for the first time since 2010. The former number one overall pick played in only two games this year and was placed on injured reserve with a foot injury on Nov. 5.

Kyle Allen, an undrafted free agent in 2018, will start in Newton’s place.

The Panthers do have one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL in running back Christian McCaffrey.

McCaffrey enters week 15 ranked third in the NFL with 1,220 rushing yards and has also added 726 receiving yards. In a 30-27 loss to the Seahawks last year, McCaffrey had 227 total yards and two touchdowns.

Sunday’s game starts at 10 a.m. local time and will be the 10th meeting between the teams, playoffs included, since 2010.

Here are Raible’s three keys to victory for the Seahawks on Sunday:

Key #1: Cue, the new streak

It seemed such a long time ago that the Hawks lost a game. They had a five game win streak broken by the Rams and just two losses in the last 10.

It was a real punch in the gut. In fact, that’s sort of what Coach Carroll said this week:

“These seasons are like a heavyweight championship match. Each game is like another round. You try to go as many rounds as you can, if you lose a round, you try not to get knocked out, so that you can come back and battle,” Carroll said.

The Seahawks need to lose the loss to the Rams as a wake-up call, get back to winning in the trenches, keep getting takeaways and convert third downs. All of the things they did during their winning streak.

It’s time to start another one, one that carries the Seahawks through the final game against the San Francisco 49ers and beyond.

Key #2: Russ to Lock

We haven’t said that too much lately. Wilson to Lockett has been an incredible connection this season.

That is until Tyler got banged up against the 49ers. Then he got the flu. It’s been a tough few weeks.

And Wilson's favorite target has been slow to return to his Pro Bowl form.

But you’ve still got one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the game today -- tied for second in the NFL with 26 touchdown passes.

And he has the best record by a QB since the 1970 merger with a record of 30-7 after an in season loss.

And with Lockett on the receiving end this year, he’s completing 77 percent of his passes for almost 900 yards and six touchdowns.

Three times this year he’s caught 10 passes or more.

They need to re-light the fuse on the explosive ‘Rus to Lock’ connection in Carolina.

Key #3: Destination McCaffrey

You know how, before the snap, defensive linemen tell each other “I’ll meet you at the QB!” Well this week, all 11 defenders need to set their sights on the best all-around running back in the NFL today: Christian McCaffrey.

He’s first in the league in yards from scrimmage with 1946 and over 1200 on the ground. He’s scored 16 TD’s -- best in the NFL.

He’s got 86 catches. More than 700 yards after the catch, you get the idea.

This guy is a one-man offensive video game.

The Seahawks go into every game planning to stop the run.

But McCaffrey can beat you in so many ways. The Hawks’ defensive line and linebackers have to stay in their gaps. Defensive backs have to be ready for his speed in the open field.

And everybody has to tackle.

They can’t allow McCaffrey to beat them because he is capable of doing just that.

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