SEATTLE (AP) — Russell Wilson found Jermaine Kearse for a 63-yard touchdown, his second TD pass of the first half, and the Seattle Seahawks led 14-10 over the Carolina Panthers after three quarters in the NFC divisional playoff game on Saturday night.
Wilson hit Doug Baldwin on a 16-yard scoring pass late in the first quarter then found Kearse for the longest pass play in Seattle postseason history. Kearse beat rookie cornerback Bene Benwikere, hauled in the pass with just his right arm and beat safety Tre Boston to the pylon to give Seattle the lead.
Seattle was on the verge of another score, driving 81 yards to the Carolina 7 in the closing seconds of the third quarter. Wilson was sacked on the final play of the quarter.
Cam Newton and Carolina had pulled even at 7-7 with an impressive 14-play drive that used up more than 8 minutes and was capped by a 7-yard TD pass to Kelvin Benjamin.
Despite nearly getting intercepted by Richard Sherman for a second time, Newton was 3 of 4 passing on the scoring drive. After hitting Sherman in the chest, Newton found Brown for 10 yards for a third-down conversion. Then on third-and-6 at the Seattle 7, Newton found Benjamin on a quick slant for the touchdown.
It was the first TD allowed by the Seahawks since the second quarter of their Week 15 win over San Francisco.
Carolina put together another solid drive before halftime, including Newton keeping on fourth-and-1 at the Seattle 27 and converting the first down by inches. Two plays later, Newton was hit as he threw and appeared to be intercepted by Earl Thomas at the Seattle 1. The play was overturned after review showed Thomas did not maintain control and the ball hit the ground.
Carolina settled for a 35-yard field goal from Graham Gano — on his third attempt after two penalties — on the final play of the half.
Seattle took the early lead after the second turnover of the first quarter by Carolina. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO)t disrupted the handoff between Newton and running back Jonathan Stewart and Tony McDaniel fell on the loose ball at the Carolina 28.
Four plays later, on third-and-9, Baldwin beat Boston on a double move and Wilson’s perfectly lofted pass gave the Seahawks the lead.
Seattle other forced turnover was Sherman’s first career postseason interception when Newton challenged him on a deep attempt to Philly Brown.
Seattle is looking to become the first defending champion to win a playoff game the following season since January 2006 when New England won a wild-card game before losing in the divisional round.
Since that Patriots victory, three defending champions have earned byes only to lose in the divisional round, the last being Green Bay in the 2011 playoffs.
After knocking off Arizona in the wild-card round last week, an upset of the Seahawks would make Carolina the first team to reach a conference championship game after having a losing record in the regular season.
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