If the opponent for Saturday night's divisional playoff game at CenturyLink Field looks familiar, it's because the Seahawks have played the Carolina Panthers three times in the past three regular seasons.
All three games were played in Charlotte, and the Seahawks won all three with strong defensive efforts – 13-9 in Week 8 this season; 12-7 in their opener in 2013; and 16-12 in Week 5 in 2012.
Saturday night's game will be played in Seattle because the Seahawks hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs. And the opponent is the Panthers because the NFC South champions and No. 4 seed defeated the No. 5 seed Arizona Cardinals 27-16 in a wild-card matchup in Charlotte on Saturday; and the No. 6 seed Detroit Lions lost to the NFC East champion and No. 3 seed Cowboys 24-20 in Dallas on Sunday.
So while the Seahawks are hosting the Panthers on Saturday night, the NFC North champion and No. 2 seed Packers will play the Cowboys in Green Bay on Sunday. The winners of those games will meet Jan. 18 in the NFC Championship game.
The Panthers also joined the Seahawks as the only teams to capture their division with a losing record and then win in the wild-card round. The 7-9 Seahawks did it in 2010, when they upset the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints in a wild-card game in Seattle.
But the Seahawks' familiarity with the Panthers doesn't go as deep as you might expect.
There's still All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly, who seems to make every tackle and against the Cardinals also had an interception and tipped another pass that was picked off. There's still Cam Newton, the athletic but also mercurial QB who's rarely the same from play to play let alone game to game. There's still running back Jonathan Stewart, an all-state performer at Timberline High School in Lacey who had more rushing yards over the last month of the regular season than anyone but the Cowboys' DeMarco Murray and added 123 yards against the Cardinals. There's still Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen, who caught 84 passes for 1,008 yards during the regular season and had three receptions for 37 yards against the Cardinals.
But there's also a rookie class that includes five players who are starting now that weren't in Week 8 against the Seahawks: cornerback Bene' Benwikere, free safety Tre Boston and strong-side linebacker Adarius Glanton on defense; right guard Trai Turner and wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin on offense. Left guard Andrew Norwell also is a rookie; and defensive end Kony Ealy and wide receiver Philly Brown, who left Saturday's game with a shoulder injury, are two more rookies who have made contributions.
The way Saturday's game played out, however, was eerily similar to the Seahawks' two games against the Cardinals during their six-game winning streak to close the regular season. With the Cardinals still down to third-string quarterback Ryan Lindley and without leading rusher Andre Ellington, the Panthers held them to an NFL playoff record-low 78 yards. The Seahawks had held the Cardinals to 204 yards and a field goal in Seattle and 216 yards and two field goals in Arizona.
And the outcome of the Panthers' first playoff victory since 2005 also set up what should be another defensive battle at CenturyLink Field on Saturday night. The Seahawks led the NFL in average points and yards allowed during the regular season. The Panthers were No. 20 in average points allowed and No. 10 in average yards allowed; up from No. 27 the last time they faced the Seahawks. And they allowed an average of 10.8 points during their four-game winning streak to close the regular season.
"Maybe they caught us at a bad time. This team is playing better now than we've played all year long," said strong safety Roman Harper, the only Panther remaining from the 2005 team that beat the New York Giants and Chicago Bears in the playoffs and then lost to the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game in Seattle.
The Cardinals' touchdowns on Saturday came after a muffed punt return and an interception that was returned 50 yards.
Seattle Seahawks team photographer Rod Mar continues his Eye On the Hawks series traveling with the team to chronicle the game with the Carolina Panthers.
Road trips sometimes call for players to dress in their finest, aka "suited and booted", but for the cross-country trip the dress code was more casual. Safety Kam Chancellor joined some teammates in wearing "faux-rmal wear" in the form of tuxedo t-shirts.
Quarterback B.J. Daniels boards the charter in comfortable sweats bearing the Seahawks old-school logo while celebrating his birthday.
Seattle linebacker K.J. Wright makes a tackle on Chicago's Matt Forte. Wright led the Seahawks with 10 tackles on the day.
Seattle linebacker K.J. Wright makes a tackle on Chicago's Matt Forte. Wright led the Seahawks with 10 tackles on the day.
Fans wait for autographs at the team hotel upon the buses arrival. It's midnight, the team doesn't advertise what hotel they stay at, so how do all these people get there?
Saturday brought a warm and sunny day, and Seahawks defenders Tony McDaniel, Cliff Avril, Julius Warmsley, and Brandon Mebane walk to the bus for the afternoon walk thru.
Head coach Pete Carroll stops to sign autographs on his way to the team's walk thru at a local college.
Autographs from Seahawks players and coaches adorn this souvenir football.
Head coach Pete Carroll talks to the team at the end of walk thru with the Charlotte skyline providing the backdrop.
Terrance Parks (beard) breaks down the team at the end of walk thru. Tight end Luke Willson (spoiler alert!) would play a pivotal role in the next day's game against the Panthers.
Most players come back from walk thru with a bottle of water or a Gatorade, but somehow receiver Ricardo Lockette returned to the hotel with a giant stuffed teddy bear for a family member.
Seahawks mascot Blitz takes it all in from the north end zone.
Seahawks mascot Blitz takes it all in from the north end zone.
At Bank of America Stadium, K.J. Wright does early stretching against a clear blue sky.
Doug Baldwin showed why he is one of Seattle's most consistent players, hauling in a key third down catch in the second half.
Doug Baldwin showed why he is one of Seattle's most consistent players, hauling in a key third down catch in the second half.
Receiver Doug Baldwin leaps high as he goes through his game day ritual of early warmup with teammate and friend Richard Sherman.
In the locker room, cornerback Richard Sherman prepares to put his pads on.
K.J. Wright is focused as the team stretches during pregame warmups.
Back in the locker room, quarterback Russell Wilson relaxes and visualizes before the team takes the field to face the Panthers.
In another corner of the locker room, running back Robert Turbin gets mentally focused.
Defensive lineman Michael Bennett talks the the team before they leave the locker room for the field.
Kris Richard receives congratulations from Richard Sherman after Richard coached his first victory and shutout since being named defensive coordinator.
Kris Richard receives congratulations from Richard Sherman after Richard coached his first victory and shutout since being named defensive coordinator.
Bltiz greets Kam Chancellor after the game as Chancellor makes his way to the locker room.
Bltiz greets Kam Chancellor after the game as Chancellor makes his way to the locker room.
Kick returner Paul Richardson splits the Panther's coverage team and sprints past kicker Graham Gano on his way to a 47-yard return that led to a Seattle field goal.
Steven Hauschka bombs a 58-yard field goal from the hold of Jon Ryan to bring the Seahawks to within three points at 6-3 in the first half.
Holder Jon Ryan and kicker Steven Haushcka celebrate the 58-yard field goal that put the Seahawks on the board.
Seahawks Brandon Mebane and Michael Bennett make sure Carolina quarterback Cam Newton didn't have a chance to recover his own fumble in the second quarter.
Doug Baldwin still managed to catch this ball that initially bounced off his fingertips and turned into an 18-yard gain in the the second quarter.
Cornerback Marcus Burley returns his first interception as a Seahawk, returning the pass thrown by Carolina's Cam Newton for a 24-yard return just after halftime.
Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch takes a handoff from quarterback Russell Wilson and charges up the middle for a gain of 25 yards in the third quarter.
Safety Earl Thomas makes an acrobatic tackle of Carolina's Cam Newton.
Michael Bennett came hard up the middle and hit Carolina's Cam Newton nearly forcing a safety, but Newton escaped on the play.
Seattle tight end Luke Willson catches the game-winning touchdown pass after beating Carolina's Tre Boston on a 23-yard seam route from quarterback Russell Wilson.
Willson absorbs a hard hit near the goal line but manages to spin into the end zone with the game-winning touchdown with :47 seconds left in the game.
Luke Willson celebrates after his game-winning touchdown as the Seahawks grinded all afternoon long before putting away the Panthers, 13-9.
Quarterback Russell Wilson celebrates after his game-winning pass to Luke Willson in the final minute.
Seahawks defender Bruce Irvin records the first of his two sacks of Carolina quarterback Cam Newton in the final minute, helping to seal the road win for Seattle.
Linebacker Bruce Irvin pays homage to injured teammate Bobby Wagner, performing Wagner's signature bow after sacking Newton.
Head coach Pete Carroll walks off the field with his son Nate after the Seahawks snapped a two-game losing skid with a tough road win in Carolina, their third victory in three years against the Panthers.
Quarterback Russell Wilson congratulates his left tackle Russell Okung in the Seahawks locker room after the win.
Seahawks players board their Delta charter for the long flight home as the sun sets in North Carolina. Three years straight the Seahawks have traveled to Carolina and returned home with a victory.
Once airborne, linebacker Bruce Irvin studies game tape, which is made ready for the players by the team's video staff immediately after the game.
"Of course, we still had some dumb mistakes," Harper told reporters after the game. "Why? We're Carolina; we like to keep it close again. I'm just really happy about this team and how we're playing. We're coming together at the right time, and we're making plays, man."
No one made more plays than Kuechly, who was named All-Pro on Friday along with Seahawks middle linebacker Bobby Wagner; and fellow linebacker Thomas Davis. Kuechly had 10 tackles to go along with his interception and pass he tipped that was intercepted in the end zone by Boston. Davis had seven tackles, including two for losses.
"Those guys were running around making plays in the passing game and making plays in the running game," Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald told reporters after the game. "We weren't able to get the running game going. When you're one-dimensional and have to throw the football and you get behind, it's tough to succeed in this league."
And that's also how the Seahawks succeeded in overtaking the Cardinals to win the NFC West. During their six-game winning streak, the Seahawks held opponents to averages of 6.5 points and 66.0 rushing yards.
That also was the Seahawks' approach during their bye week when asked about who they might play in the divisional round. As has been the case all season, their concerns are more about how they play than who they play.
"I don't care who we play," Wagner said. "I just know they've got to come here. That's all that matters to me."
Offered defensive end Cliff Avril, "That's all we worry about, is ourselves. You can't control who you're going to play. So for us, it's going to be the same thing we've done the past 16 games, and that's worry about ourselves, try to better ourselves and it's all about us when we play whoever it is that we play."
Then there was this from leading receiver Doug Baldwin, "At the end of the day, it doesn't matter who we play. It's about us in this locker room. And that's really all it comes down to."
