Besides from the Kansas City Chiefs, the Carolina Panthers are the hottest team in football right now. They’ve won 15 games this year, losing a divisional road game in Atlanta back in Week 16. But 15-1 is now joke, and the Panthers, led by Ron Rivera and future-MVP Cam Newton, get to host the up-and-down Seattle Seahawks in a Divisional Round game. The Seahawks barely squeaked by the Minnesota Vikings in a game that was cold.
VERY COLD.
But with everything that has been going on within the amazing regular season that was in 2015, the Carolina Panthers won’t win Super Bowl L. Besides the 38-10 thumping of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Panthers have had a rough go of it recently. They barely got by the New York Giants in The Meadowlands with a last-minute Graham Gano field goal for the win. And then they visited Atlanta, when the perfect regular season came crashing down in a loss to the Falcons. They can’t close games out.
So when taking a look at the matchup between Seattle and Carolina, taking the Seahawks to win isn’t that gutsy of a pick. Consider the fact that Running Backs Jonathan Stewart and Fozzy Whittaker are hurt. Would you rather throw into the Legion of Boom, or hand the ball off to rookie Cameron Artis-Payne? Consider the fact that Thomas Davis, thought of as the MVP of the defense besides defensive back Josh Norman, is banged up. Consider the fact that their main wide receiver, Ted Ginn Jr, is also battling injuries. All of this will add up when they play Seattle or even Carolina, and ultimately lose.
In the other conference, many eyes turn to see what the likes of Peyton Manning, or even Ben Roethlisberger will do. And it is interesting, because not only are they considered the favorites, but that New England isn’t. And maybe it is for good reason, as the Patriots lost four of their last six regular season opponents. And the opponents all missed the playoffs besides the Broncos- Jets, Dolphins, and Eagles.
But reason for optimism is due to who is returning from injury. Players like Julian Edelman, Sebastian Vollmer, Dont’a Hightower, Chandler Jones, and Sealver Siligia are coming back, making this new Pats team a force to be reckoned with. And they will go on to play and win Super Bowl L, but against who is a questionable decision that the NFL fans will ultimately find out.