Seahawks 12, Panthers 7
Russell Wilson threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Jermaine Kearse and Earl Thomas forced a key fumble as visiting Seattle rallied to defeat pesky Carolina in the opener for both squads.
Wilson overcame a sluggish start to complete 25-of-33 passes for 320 yards, including the go-ahead 43-yard aerial to Kearse with 10:13 to play. The Seahawks (1-0) limited the Panthers to 243 yards as Carolina (0-1) dropped to 2-13 in games decided by seven or fewer points in Ron Rivera’s 33-game stint as head coach.
Seattle trailed 7-3 at halftime and narrowed its deficit to one on Steven Hauschka’s 40-yard field goal with 2:22 left in the third quarter. The Seahawks finally located the end zone when Kearse culminated a six-play, 74-yard drive by beating Carolina cornerback Josh Thomas to haul in the 43-yard scoring pass.
After Seattle took the lead, the Panthers charged downfield and were helped by back-to-back personal fouls on Seattle’s Michael Bennett and Kam Chancellor. DeAngelo Williams broke loose on a 16-yard gain before Thomas knocked the ball loose and Tony McDaniel recovered on the Seattle 8-yard line with 5:34 left to snuff out the threat and the Seahawks ran out the clock.
Seattle settled for Hausckha’s 27-yard field goal on a 15-play, 74-yard drive that took 8:47 for a 3-0 lead with 9:40 left in the first half. The Panthers responded with five first downs on a crisp 11-play, 80-yard drive that was capped by Cam Newton’s 3-yard touchdown throw to Steve Smith.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Seattle WR Doug Baldwin caught seven passes for 91 yards. … The Seahawks recorded just one sack on Newton – by DE O’Brien Schofield – with pass rushers Chris Clemons (knee), Cliff Avril (hamstring) and Bruce Irvin (suspension) all out. … Panthers DE Frank Alexander was ejected late in the first half for throwing a punch to the facemask of Seattle OT Breno Giacomini.