CHARLOTTE – After several Seattle Seahawks made a stink about field conditions before Sunday’s divisional round game at Bank of America Stadium, their concerns were confirmed on the Carolina Panthers’ first play from scrimmage.
When running back Jonathan Stewart busted through an opening on the line, converging safety Earl Thomas put on the brakes to make a cut toward Stewart. On replay, it appears Thomas may have had a chance to at least trip up Stewart. Instead, Thomas slipped and Stewart ran 59 yards and the first-half rout was on.
The play can be seen as one that give impetus to Carolina’s explosive 31-0 lead on the way to a 31-24 victory.
“Earl slipped and fell on the lousy turf,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told a Seattle radio station Monday afternoon. “That’s how it happened. Normally that would be a six- or seven-yard play.”
But as he did postgame, Panthers coach Ron Rivera on Monday echoed his solid response: “Both teams played on it.”
Rivera continued, “I don’t think there was an advantage one way or the other. Once guys got the right cleats on, they understood what the cleats needed to be.”
In the past three weeks, Bank of America Stadium has hosted a rain-soaked Belk Bowl and two Panthers’ games. The field was resodded in-between the regular-season finale and Sunday’s playoff, but that’s what the grounds crew has traditionally done ahead of postseason games.
“That’s to be expected at this time of year,” Rivera said. “It’s not different than back in the day when I was in Chicago or San Diego for that matter. This is the 19th week of the season, so it’s gonna happen.
“Some guys said it was slippery in certain areas, but again, this time of year, the field was in pretty good shape.”
–In less than a week, the Panthers will play for a trip to the Super Bowl.
Coach Ron Rivera isn’t all that impressed.
“This is the fifth straight year the Patriots have gotten to the AFC Championship. That’s where the gold standard is,” Rivera said Monday.
“That’s what you strive for to get to this position. You’re not just a perennial playoff team but you’re a challenger and by that, I mean getting to the NFC Championship or AFC Championship.”
It’s not like Rivera isn’t somewhat satisfied. It’s just one title game in the past decade doesn’t yet equal a dynasty.
But, hey, you’ve got to start somewhere.
“It validates everything we’ve done so far with development and growth as a football team. It validates the patience that our owner has shown with us and our development,” Rivera said. “It validates what (general manager) Dave (Gettleman) and his group have done in terms of looking for players and finding players that would fit into our culture downstairs and fit on our football team.”
–Rivera is one of the most player-friendly coaches in the NFL, but he is also a dad. So when he explained why he recently banned hoverboards from the team facilities, he sounded like a prudent mixture of both.
“Did you see those things on YouTube blowing up and stuff?” he asked. “I mean, that’s what concerns me more than anything else, is something crazy happening.”
The hoverboard craze first hit the Panthers in training camp when a handful of players showed up to Spartanburg with one. Since then, Internet paparazzi posted multiple videos of quarterback Cam Newton on his.
“We still have some that ride to and from to work, which I’m trying to get them not to, but they do,” Rivera said.
“But inside the facility we don’t want them running around because we don’t want something crazy happening here. We’re trying to limit their exposure to injury.”
–Running back Jonathan Stewart had his ankle rolled up on in the first half of Sunday’s win, but he later returned to finish the game. The Panthers aren’t concerned about his status this week.
–Tight end Greg Olsen caught all six of his targets for 77 yards and a touchdown. In two games against Seattle this season, Olsen totaled 13 receptions, 208 yards and two touchdowns.
–Defensive end Jared Allen suffered a broken bone in his foot during Sunday’s fourth quarter. Allen will try to convince coaches he can play this week, but it’s unlikely he’ll face the Cardinals.
–Defensive end Charles Johnson was credited with his first sack since Week 1.
–Cornerback Cortland Finnegan caught his first interception since he was with the Rams on 11/3/13.