Seahawks at Panthers: Week 17 preview, odds and injuries

Week 17 · Sun, Jan 3 · Bank of America Stadium1 PM ET

at1 PMET · Fox

At a glanceUpdated Nov 11, 2026, 3:51 AM ET

The Seattle Seahawks (5-4) visit the Carolina Panthers (3-5) on Sun, Jan 3, 1 PM ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC (Week 17, 2026 season), on Fox.

When and where is Seahawks vs Panthers?

Sun, Jan 3, 1 PM ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC. TV: Fox.

Who is injured for Seahawks vs Panthers?

Seahawks: Sam Darnold (QB, out, quadriceps), Charles Cross (OT, doubtful, ankle), Quenton Nelson (G, doubtful, knee), Brandon Pili (DT, questionable, back), Drew Lock (QB, questionable, oblique) and Leonard Williams (DT, questionable, shoulder) (plus 2 more). Panthers: Bobby Okereke (LB, questionable, foot), Damien Lewis (G, questionable, knee), Jaelan Phillips (LB, questionable, hamstring) and Will Lee III (CB, questionable, hamstring).

Cite this page

Pigskin Nightly, “Seahawks at Panthers: Week 17 preview”, https://pigskinnightly.com/games/2027-01-03-sea-at-car (updated 2026-11-11).

How we calculate Plain-text version Report an error

Regular season through week 16 · rank out of 32

Where this game will be decided

1Panthers red-zone offense vs Seahawks red-zone defense
The Panthers' red-zone offense ranks 6th in red-zone touchdown rate (66%, 29 trips) against a Seahawks red-zone defense ranked 32nd (79% allowed, 19 trips faced).
6thCAR offense26 spots apart32ndSEA defenseSmall sample, read with care Why sample size matters
2Panthers defense against big plays vs Seahawks big-play offense
The Panthers' defense against big plays ranks 5th in explosive-play rate (7.3% allowed, 518 plays faced) and faces a Seahawks big-play offense ranked 22nd (8.4%, 559 plays).
22ndSEA offense17 spots apart5thCAR defense
3Seahawks third-down defense vs Panthers third-down offense
The Seahawks' third-down defense ranks 5th in third-down conversion rate (33.9% allowed, 121 third downs faced) and faces a Panthers third-down offense ranked 21st (37.7%, 106 third downs).
21stCAR offense16 spots apart5thSEA defense

When the Seahawks have the ballNo big edge

SEA dropback offenseEPA per dropbackCAR pass defense

15th+0.08318 dropbacks

+0.07 allowed308 dropbacks faced20th

SEA run gameEPA per rushCAR run defense

27th-0.20241 rushes

-0.03 allowed210 rushes faced25th

Dropbacks include sacks and scrambles; rushes are designed runs. What EPA measures.

When the Panthers have the ballEdge SEA · +9 ranks

CAR dropback offenseEPA per dropbackSEA pass defense

13th+0.08348 dropbacks

SEA +9

-0.09 allowed319 dropbacks faced4th

CAR run gameEPA per rushSEA run defense

12th-0.04176 rushes

-0.11 allowed207 rushes faced10th

Third downEdge SEA · +16 ranks

SEA third-down offensethird-down conversion rateCAR third-down defense

17th38.6%114 third downs

SEA +12

47.7% allowed107 third downs faced29th

CAR third-down offensethird-down conversion rateSEA third-down defense

21st37.7%106 third downs

SEA +16

33.9% allowed121 third downs faced5th

Conversions are third-down snaps that gained a first down or scored.

Red zoneEdge CAR · +26 ranks

SEA red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateCAR red-zone defense

22nd54%28 trips

75% allowed24 trips faced29th

CAR red-zone offensered-zone touchdown rateSEA red-zone defense

6th66%29 trips

CAR +26

79% allowed19 trips faced32nd

A trip is a drive with at least one snap inside the opponent's 20; the rate is trips that ended in an offensive touchdown. Small samples swing fast here.

Explosive playsEdge CAR · +17 ranks

SEA big-play offenseexplosive-play rateCAR defense against big plays

22nd8.4%559 plays

CAR +17

7.3% allowed518 plays faced5th

CAR big-play offenseexplosive-play rateSEA defense against big plays

14th9.5%524 plays

SEA +12

5.5% allowed526 plays faced2nd

Completions of 20+ yards and runs of 10+, per snap. Definition.

Pressure & sacksEdge SEA · +16 ranks

SEA pass protectionsack rateCAR pass rush

16th6.0% sacked318 dropbacks

SEA +16

3.9% of dropbacks308 dropbacks faced32nd

CAR pass protectionsack rateSEA pass rush

23rd7.5% sacked348 dropbacks

SEA +10

6.6% of dropbacks319 dropbacks faced13th

Sacks per dropback. The public play-by-play has no pressure charting, so this is the sack side of it only.

TurnoversNo big edge

SEA ball securityturnovers per gameCAR takeaway defense

24th1.6 giveaways a game9 games

1.1 takeaways a game8 games17th

CAR ball securityturnovers per gameSEA takeaway defense

19th1.3 giveaways a game8 games

1.2 takeaways a game9 games15th

Interceptions and lost fumbles on offensive snaps, per game. Turnover rates are among the least stable numbers in football.

AbsencesSEA 3 · CAR 0 regulars out or doubtful

Seahawks8 listed

3 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

DQuenton NelsonG99% offense · 8 wk
DCharles CrossOT98% offense · 7 wk
QDrew LockQB97% offense · 3 wk
OUTSam DarnoldQB87% offense · 7 wk
QLeonard WilliamsDT72% defense · 8 wk
QUchenna NwosuLB51% defense · 7 wk
QRashid ShaheedWR50% offense · 7 wk
QBrandon PiliDT10% defense · 4 wk

Panthers4 listed

0 of them are regulars ruled out or doubtful (60%+ of their unit's snaps across 3+ weeks on the field).

QBobby OkerekeLB89% defense · 7 wk
QDamien LewisG89% offense · 5 wk
QWill Lee IIICB73% defense · 7 wk
QJaelan PhillipsLB64% defense · 5 wk

Snap share is the average of the weeks each player was on the field this season. Full injury report ↓

Rest & travelSEA +2 days of rest · SEA travels 2,280 mi

AwaySeahawks

9days since last game

2,280miles to get here

3time zones

Last: Fri wk 16 vs LAR · 8,902 mi flown this season

Long tripBody clock 10:00 a.m.3 time zones

Rest edge+2SEA daysTravel gap 2,280 mi

HomePanthers

7days since last game

0miles · home

0time zones

Last: Sun wk 16 at PIT · Pittsburgh · 3,713 mi flown this season

Normal week

League splits for these situations ↓

Sample: SEA 9 games, 559 offensive and 526 defensive plays · CAR 8 games, 524 offensive and 518 defensive plays. Rank 1 is the best offense or the best defense in each stat. Keys are the largest rank gaps (12+ spots) between an offense and the defense it faces, one per stat. Ranks are not schedule-adjusted.

Season to date · rank out of 32

Tale of the tape

SEACAR

23rd-0.040Offense EPA / play+0.0429th

15th+0.082Dropback EPA+0.08413th

27th-0.202Rush EPA-0.04112th

23rd41.1%Offense success rate42.7%16th

27th-5.8%Pass rate over expected+3.1%4th

5th-0.096Defense EPA allowed+0.03021st

4th-0.086Pass defense EPA+0.07320th

10th-0.112Run defense EPA-0.03225th

2nd39.2%Defense success allowed44.4%23rd

Fantasy pts allowed / game

31st11.2To QBs17.422nd

20th20.5To RBs28.52nd

32nd23.2To WRs32.416th

25th11.0To TEs13.516th

Form

Last six results

Seahawks5-4

Panthers3-5

Injury report

League report

Seahawks8 listed

OUTSam DarnoldQB · Quadriceps
DCharles CrossOT · Ankle
DQuenton NelsonG · Knee
QBrandon PiliDT · Back
QDrew LockQB · Oblique
QLeonard WilliamsDT · Shoulder
QRashid ShaheedWR · Knee
QUchenna NwosuLB · Ankle

Panthers4 listed

QBobby OkerekeLB · Foot
QDamien LewisG · Knee
QJaelan PhillipsLB · Hamstring
QWill Lee IIICB · Hamstring

Expected starters

ExpectedEvery game →

Depth chart rank 1, adjusted for the injury report. Kickoff Sun, Jan 3, 1 PM ET.

AwaySeahawks4 next man up · 4 questionable

Offense

QB#2Drew LockQfor Sam Darnold (Out)Next up
RB#26Zach Charbonnet
FB#38Brady Russell
WR#11Jaxon Smith-Njigba
WR#22Rashid ShaheedQQ
WR#10Cooper Kupp
TE#88AJ Barner
LT#74Josh Jonesfor Charles Cross (Doubtful)Next up
LG#76Grey Zabelfor Quenton Nelson (Doubtful)Next up
C#61Jalen Sundell
RG#75Anthony Bradfordfor Grey Zabel (inactive)Next up
RT#72Abraham Lucas

Defense

K Jason MyersP Michael DicksonLS Chris Stoll

Context

Rest & travel, all 32 →

WeatherTBDForecast closer to kickoff

VenueBank of America StadiumCharlotte, NC

BroadcastFox1 PM ET · Sun, Jan 3

Travel & rest

Travel & rest board