Kenneth Walker III rushed for two touchdowns and Jason Myers kicked five field goals as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the visiting Carolina Panthers 37-27 Sunday afternoon.
Walker gained a game-high 97 yards rushing on 18 carries and added three catches for 59 yards as the Seahawks (2-1) posted their second consecutive victory.
Veteran quarterback Andy Dalton started for the Panthers (0-3) in place of the injured Bryce Young (ankle), the No. 1 overall pick in this spring's NFL draft. Dalton completed 34 of 58 passes for 361 yards with two touchdowns. Adam Thielen made 11 receptions for 145 yards, including a 15-yard TD with 1:40 remaining.
Seattle's Geno Smith was 23-of-36 passing for 296 yards, with one touchdown -- a 5-yarder to rookie Jake Bobo with 4:17 left -- and one interception. DK Metcalf had six catches for 112 yards.
The Seahawks finally found the end zone on their fourth trip inside the 20-yard line. Walker scored on a 1-yard run with 3:52 left in the third quarter to extend Seattle's lead to 22-13. The eight-play, 55-yard drive included a 36-yard reception by Walker on a first-and-21 play.
The Panthers countered with Miles Sanders' 1-yard run on the opening play of the fourth quarter to make it 22-20.
The Seahawks marched right back down the field, with Walker waltzing untouched into the end zone on a 7-yard run around the right end to restore the nine-point advantage.
Carolina took a 13-12 lead at the half, as the teams combined for six field goals.
The lone touchdown of the half came on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Dalton to DJ Chark Jr. down the left sideline with 4:54 left in the second quarter, giving the Panthers a 10-9 lead. Chark caught the ball near the 20-yard line, sidestepped a defensive back and coasted into the end zone.
After the Panthers opened the scoring on Eddy Pineiro's 47-yard field goal, Myers made kicks of 43, 35 and 33 yards to make it 9-3.
Pineiro added a 44-yarder following an interception with 2:39 left in the half to extend the Panthers' lead to 13-9 before Myers kicked a 37-yarder with 44 seconds to go to pull the Seahawks within a point.
Myers kicked a 39-yarder with 9:45 left in the third quarter to give Seattle the lead for good.
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