Panthers vs. Seahawks: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 Regular Season

Four times Cam Newton attempted to take down the Seattle Seahawks. Four times, he failed.

The fifth time was the charm.    

The Panthers quarterback hit Greg Olsen from 26 yards out with 32 seconds remaining to complete a surprising second-half comeback and give Carolina a 27-23 win over the Seahawks in Seattle on Sunday. 

Jokes, like this one from CBS Sports' Zach Harper, will be coming in the next few days:

Seattle held Carolina in check for nearly three full quarters. Newton was completing less than half of his passes, had thrown two picks and generally seemed out of sorts against a returning-to-form Legion of Boom. The Panthers were also being held in check on the ground, averaging under four yards per carry and seeing only one of their first eight drives lead anywhere.

Then, all of the sudden, the script flipped.

Down 20-7 midway through the third quarter, Newton led an 11-play, 80-yard drive capped off by a Jonathan Stewart touchdown run that changed the complexion of the game. That drive began a 20-3 run that pushed the Panthers to 5-0 and left the 2-4 Seahawks looking for answers.

Seattle answered with a 43-yard Steven Hauschka field goal, but its offense went silent from there as Newton donned his Superman cape, leading Carolina on consecutive 80-yard drives late in the fourth quarter—one culminating in another Stewart run with 3:55 remaining and the other his pass to Olsen. He finished the game with 269 passing yards and that touchdown against two picks.

PFT Commenter is...not impressed:

“It’s built around him,” Seahawks defensive coordinator Kris Richard said of the Panthers offense, per John Boyle of the team's official website. “He’s a big, physical, strong quarterback, and he doesn’t hesitate to put the ball in his own hands in crucial moments of the football game. We realize that he has a big powerful arm, he has a lot of faith in it, and he’s going to put the ball where it needs to be.”

Danny O'Neil of 710 ESPN in Seattle highlighted the stark difference between the first three quarters and the fourth quarter:

The two teams have played five times since 2012, with each of the first four going Seattle's way. Newton had failed to top 200 yards passing in three of those four contests and threw only three touchdown passes. 

But even as they came up short, it was clear Newton and the Panthers were getting close to exorcising their demons. They were down only 14-10 in the fourth quarter of last season's divisional-round game before Seattle blew it open in the fourth quarter. The two sides had largely played close games before then as well, with Carolina's defense often coming through when the offense couldn't. 

The Panthers defense was at it again Sunday, holding Seattle to just 14 first downs and thwarting quarterback Russell Wilson and Co. down the stretch. Wilson threw for 241 yards and a touchdown, adding 53 yards on the ground. He was, for the most part, perfectly fine. Jimmy Graham finally got into a rhythm with an eight-catch, 140-yard day, and the offense did not turn the ball over.

Sheil Kapadia of ESPN pointed out how surprising Graham's day was:

Marshawn Lynch struggled in his return to action with 54 yards on 17 carries, though he did score a touchdown. Ricardo Lockette was responsible for the Seahawks' other touchdown, as they settled for three Hauschka field goals. 

Settling seems to be a problem overall for this team, which is six games into its malaise of a season. The Seahawks have dropped three of their losses games by one score, and all were borderline inexplicable defeats. Allowing St. Louis Rams quarterback Nick Foles to lead a last-minute touchdown drive in Week 1 opened eyes, but was largely written off. After completely falling apart in the fourth quarter the last two weeks, though, it's clear the Seahawks have a final-period problem.

If they don't fix it soon, they'll be watching the playoffs from home. Arizona has opened up a two-game lead in the NFC West, and with Atlanta and Carolina racing off to hot starts, there may only be one Wild Card spot up for grabs. That's concerning for a team that most considered a favorite to three-peat as the NFC champion. 

As for the Panthers, they'll merely be riding their Superman's back to the top of the conference standings. 

Post-Game Reaction

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll noted a miscommunication led to Olsen's touchdown, per Kirk Larrabee of 247Sports: "We made a mistake. We made a mistake on the calls. Guys got confused on the signal, so it was unfortunate obviously, and they got an easy play."

Cornerback Richard Sherman went into detail on what caused the miscommunication, per Greg Bell of the News Tribune:

Panthers coach Ron Rivera contextualized the win, per Jonathan Jones of the Charlotte Observer: “This was one of the biggest victories we’ve had since I’ve been here.”

“I always thought if we could do it one at a time ... I knew we’d have a chance to win,” Rivera said.

Wilson stayed positive in his post-game presser: "Our attitude and focus haven't changed. We choose to believe in one another and the process."

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter.