Thanks to a missed field goal as well as sheer grit and determination, the Seattle Seahawks find themselves in the Divisional round of the NFC playoffs.

As the NFC’s sixth seed, the Seahawks once again are on the road, but face a familiar foe in the top-seeded Carolina Panthers. Carolina bested the Hawks in Seattle by a score of 27-23 in a physical affair.

The good news is that at one point during the game, the Seahawks led by 13 points before seeing the lead slip away. In other words, the Hawks were able to outplay the Panthers for long stretches. The Seahawks were nowhere near as consistent as they are now.

Seattle is a much different team than it was during the Week 6 loss. Since the game, the Hawks have won nine of 11 games. During that span, Russell Wilson and passing offense came alive. Additionally, the defense regained the swagger that was missing to become dominant again.

Wilson has been dominant himself since facing the Panthers. In the 10 following regular season games, the Seattle signal caller completed 67.6 percent of his passes for 2,591 yards, 27 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He also added 302 rushing yards on a stellar 5.21 yards per rush attempt.

Despite playing on the road the last two weeks, the Seahawks have played outstanding defense, keeping the likes of Adrian Peterson, Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald in check. Peterson only managed 45 rushing yards despite carrying the ball 23 times. The All-Pro running back also lost a costly fumble. Palmer and Fitzgerald didn’t fare much better.

The Arizona Cardinals’ quarterback threw for only 129 yards, a touchdown and an interception on 12 of 25 passes. Fitzgerald caught the touchdown, but was only able to gain 55 yards on six catches.

Seattle gets even more good news this week as running back Marshawn Lynch is back and "ready" to go.

Injury trouble has limited the running back this season, but he returns to take on a Carolina defense that has allowed the fourth-fewest rushing yards in the league. In the last meeting between the two teams, Lynch ran for 54 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. Pete Carroll and company will be hoping for a better showing from ‘Beast Mode’ now that the player is healthy.

The physical runner replaces Christine Michael in the Seattle backfield. Michael filled in admirably for Lynch and rookie Thomas Rawls, running the ball 39 times for 192 yards.  

Injury Report

It's a relatively short injury report for the Seahawks this week. Full back Will Tukuafu (hamstring) is doubtful. Defensive end Michael Bennett (toe) is listed as probable. Tight end Luke Willson (concussion) has also been deemed probable, as has Lynch (abdomen).