NFL Week 14 Panthers at Seahawks Betting Preview

Seattle is at home in week 14 and at 7-5 they are just a game back from San Francisco (who just lost their second starting QB) in the NFC West. The line for the Panthers at Seahawks betting matchup is moving in the opposite direction though, with Carolina opening as a +7 point underdog but with that line down to +4 prior to kickoff.

The Panthers are coming off their bye last weekend, and they’ve gone 3-3 over their last 6. After winning five of six, the Seahawks have dropped two of their last three and are playing through some injuries to key players on offense. 57% of the betting public is still backing Seattle here.

Carolina Still Alive

Call if resurgence or call it a byproduct of playing in the NFC South but the Panthers are only two games behind Tampa Bay in the division. This is after Carolina essentially blew their team up with moves such as sending Christian McCaffrey to San Francisco, Robbie Anderson to the Cardinals, and waiving Baker Mayfield.

Sam Darnold is back in the driver’s seat at QB for the Panthers after missing a majority of the season with an ankle injury. Darnold was 11/19 (57.9%). for 164 yards in week 12 in a 23-10 win over Denver. That’s a strong showing against the Broncos’ #3 ranked total yardage defense – and in Darnold’s first action of the season. Now he’s had a bye and two weeks of #1 reps ahead of the Panthers at Seahawks betting matchup.

Playing the Broncos passing attack makes any defense look good, but Carolina did hold Denver to just 125 yards through the air last week. The Panthers get a much bigger challenge this week with Seattle ranking 7th in pass yards/game.

Injuries a Concern for Seahawks

D.K. Metcalf was a late addition to the injury report this week with a hip ailment, and he joins rookie RB Kenneth Walker III who is questionable (ankle). QB Geno Smith (shoulder) is probable but his issue is on his throwing arm so a couple big hits might cause some issues late in the game.

The Seattle injury situation has to have some effect on this line moving towards Carolina, but does that just give the Seahawks more value if those players are all full participants? Smith has thrown multiple TD passes in six straight games, Metcalf is coming off 121 yards through the air for the Rams, and Walker gets a matchup with Carolina’s 25th ranked rush defense (133.5 yards/game).

The Seahawks struggle vs the run defensively (155.3 ypg) and Carolina most recently racked up 185 yards vs a good Denver squad. That could be the X-factor in Sunday’s game.

Free Panthers at Seahawks Betting Pick

Carolina looks like the way to go here, mostly because they should be able to run the football at will on Sunday vs a leaky Seattle front 7. Throw in the bye last week for the Panthers and they should contend for the outright win here.

Free Pick: Panthers +4