Seattle was down to Carolina 13-12 at halftime. But the Seahawks outscored the Panthers 25-7 in the second half to come away with a 37-27 victory in Week 3.
The Seahawks held a 29-20 lead with six minutes left in the game when the Panthers got the ball back at their own 32-yard line. But defensive tackle Jarran Reed beat the pass protection up the middle to sack Andy Dalton on fourth-and-7, helping Seattle get in position to clinch the victory.
Receiver Jake Bobo caught a 5-yard touchdown pass and Tyler Lockett caught a pass Geno Smith threw across his body to the end zone for a two-point conversion, giving Seattle a 17-point lead with 4:17 left in the contest.
Quarterback Andy Dalton found Adam Thielen with a 15-yard touchdown with 1:40 left. But Seattle recovered the onside kick and was able to kneel the clock out for a victory.
The Seahawks were just 3-of-12 on third down but still finished with 245 yards and 27 first downs.
Smith was 23-of-36 for 296 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Kenneth Walker had 97 yards on 18 carries with two touchdowns, plus three catches for 59 yards. D.K. Metcalf led the team with six catches for 112 yards.
The Panthers didn’t have rookie quarterback Bryce Young, who was sidelined by an ankle injury. Starting in Young’s stead, Andy Dalton had a decent day, finishing 34-of-58 for 361 yards with two TDs. His 58 passing attempts were a new single-game career high.
But the Panthers could not get anything going in the run game. Miles Sanders had just 24 yards on nine carries. Dalton was second on the list with 11 yards on two carries.
Seattle’s “12s” were also a significant factor as the Panthers were called for eight false starts throughout the game.
Now at 2-1, the Seahawks will travel to the East Coast to play the Giants on Monday night in Week 3.
The 0-3 Panthers will be back at home to face the 0-3 Vikings next Sunday.
The Seahawks have gotten into the end zone.
Running back Kenneth Walker powered his way into the paint for a 1-yard touchdown, raising Seattle’s lead over Carolina to 22-13.
The Panthers had a chance to take a 16-15 lead midway through the third quarter but missed a 55-yard field goal wide right.
Taking over with good field position, Seattle took eight plays to go 55 yards. Geno Smith hit Walker for a 36-yard pass down to the Carolina 16. Then Smith got the club down to the 4-yard line with a 12-yard pass to tight end Noah Fant.
That’s when Walker took three straight handoffs, getting into the end zone on third-and-goal from the 1.
So far, Walker has rushed for 74 yards on 14 carries and caught two passes for 54 yards.
Jason Myers has hit all five of his field goal attempts to help the Seahawks build their lead.
The Panthers are dealing with several injury concerns early in the second half and they’re now down to the Seahawks, 15-13.
Linebacker Frankie Luvu is questionable to return with a hip injury. He was standing on the sideline early on in the second half.
Safety Xavier Woods has been downgraded to out with a hamstring injury. Cornerback CJ Henderson is questionable with an ankle injury but has not been back on the field.
Panthers rookie receiver Jonathan Mango is out for the rest of the game with a concussion.
The Seahawks took a 15-13 lead with Jason Myers’ 39-yard field goal with 9:45 left in the third quarter. Myers has connected on all five of his field goal attempts so far on Sunday.
The Panthers are playing without starting quarterback Bryce Young but the club still has a 13-12 lead over the Seahawks at halftime in Seattle.
Carolina quarterback Andy Dalton fired the game’s first touchdown pass to DJ Chark with 4:54 left in the second quarter for a 47-yard score.
Then Deion Jones picked off Geno Smith on a pass intended for Jaxon Smith-Njigbain Seattle territory, giving the Panthers the ball at the Seahawks’ 28.
But with an incomplete pass on third-and-8, the Panthers had to settle for a 44-yard field goal to make the score 13-9.
Jason Myers hit his fourth field goal of the half late in the second quarter to get the score to 13-12.
Dalton finished the first half 14-of-22 passing for 158 yards with a touchdown. Adam Thielen leads with six catches for 63 yards.
On the other side, Geno Smith is 11-of-23 for 153 yards with an interception. DK Metcalf has four receptions for 95 yards.
The Panthers will receive the second-half kickoff.
Earlier this week, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll heaped praise on Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young. Now, Carroll’s team officially won’t have to face the first overall pick in the draft, who’s out with an ankle injury.
On Friday, Carroll was asked whether the replacement of Young with veteran Andy Dalton changes the defensive game plan.
“We’ve seen him and knew him well.” Carroll said of Dalton. "[We] respect him, [and] all that for all of the obvious reasons. It changed maybe somewhat, they were going to get more of a runner out of the young guy, playing out there. This will be a little bit different in that regard, but I’m sure they’re going to [have] the same offense. They’ve got a great style and scheme that they’re doing and I’m sure that they wouldn’t leave that.”
The Seahawks last saw Dalton a year ago. In his second game starting for the Saints, Dalton led New Orleans to a 39-32 win over the Seahawks. Before that, Carroll and company faced Dalton in the first game of the 2019 season. Although Seattle beat Cincinnati, 21-20, Dalton threw for 418 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Week 1 game at Seattle.
In 2015, Dalton and the Bengals beat the Seahawks, 27-24. in Cincinnati. Dalton had 331 passing yards. As a rookie in 2011, Dalton presided over a 34-12 win over the Seahawks in Seattle.
In all, Dalton is 3-1 against Carroll’s Seahawks. So, yes, they would be wise to respect what he can do against the Seattle defensive scheme that Carroll has deployed since he took over the team in 2010.