***SWAMPY DIVISIONAL ROUND 3 - SEA @ CAR***

***SEATTLE SEAHAWKS @ CAROLINA PANTHERS***

SwampMan is really pumped for this one as it is probably the best matchup of the weekend. Not sure how you get a better game than what we saw last night in Arizona but this game right here is the closest thing to a coin flip you can get this weekend. When these two teams get together it generally results in a stalemate for 3.5 quarters that eventually busts wide open with a big play late in the 4th determining the win! That being said, Swampy is going to ride the hot hand here and take the road team in pursuit of their third straight Super Bowl appearence! Should the Hawks be in this game today after getting EXTREMELY lucky last week in Minnesota with a Blair Walsh missed chippy for the win? Absolutely not, but they are. All that matters is this game right here and right now, and it is against a team who they know they can beat. The Panthers have had a historical season, and are an all around superb team. The fact that Cam Newton was able to have the year he did after losing his top target in Kelvin Benjamin to a year ending injury before the season started is remarkable. This guy is having an MVP year with guys like Tedd Ginn Jr. and rookie Devin Funchess catching his passes! Not that they are bad targets by any means, but to be nearly undefeated and as dominant as they have been without a premeir WR is unheard of. I guess the fact that his Tight End is Greg Olsen helps a bit, heheh. This guy is the man! A true top tier TE in this league and if not for him, the Panthers would surely not be where they are right now, sitting pretty off the bye week. It was Olsen who caught the game winning TD in Seattle earlier in the year. The Seahawks generally struggle against dominant Tight Ends like Olsen, but I believe they will be ready to stifle his production today. The Hawks were simply a different team earlier this year. They were not themselves at the start of this season. Coming off of blowing a Super Bowl in brutal fashion, dealing with personnel issues both old and new with the Chancellor holdout and addition of Jimmy Graham and as a result really took awhile to find their identity once again. I think it is safe to say that the Hawks have found their swag once again this year, and it is at the right time! All the pressure is on Carolina today as they are expected to win here being the #1 seed and only dropping a single game all season. However these guys are full of inexperience and I believe we will really see how much they are missing a guy like Kelvin Benjamin today. As I mentioned above, I believe the Hawks will limit Olsen and force the other Panther WRs to beat them, and I just don't have any confidence in them doing so. I think Cam will get frustrated early, and once he does I think he allows it to infect his play. He will force some passes and try to do too much which may backfire. The Seattle defense is playing lights out as of late, they will surely key on Cam and his ability to run and if it does come down to Cam trying to find guys like Ginn downfield, I don't like their chances against a confident and rejuvinated Legion of Boom. On the contrary, The Carolina defense is among the top tier in the NFL as well, and they have some guys on their in Kuechly, Davis, and Norman who could absolutely be the difference makers here today to help the Cats pull out a W. However, I believe the absence of Jimmy Graham, and then RBs Lynch and Rawls later on really forced and helped QB Russel Wilson to develop and take his game to another level. The chemistry he has going at the moment with WR Doug Baldwin is booming! Also, the other guys have stepped up as well. Tight End Luke Willson has become a reliable target and Rookie Tyler Lockett has become a serious deep threat and I believe he will be the X factor today. The news that Marshawn Lynch is "ready" to go according to him is HUGE for this team. Whether he is or not, he forces the defense to account for him, which I think will help open up the deep ball to the rookie. I anticipate Wilson to make magic happen on the fly like he is so prone to doing, and win this game to advance.

SEAHAWKS +2.5