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The Seahawks are heading to the playoffs.Although Seattle hasn’t actually clinched a playoff berth yet , Monday night’s win over Minnesota just about ensured that the Seahawks will be there in January. They now have a two-game lead in the wild card race with three games to play, and considering that the 49ers and Cardinals are two of their three remaining opponents, it’s extremely hard to believe they won’t do what they need to do to make the playoffs.Here’s how the playoff picture looks heading into Week 15:1. Saints (11-2): Moved back into first place thanks to the Rams’ loss.2. Rams (11-2): Two poor games in a row for Jared Goff is alarming as they head into the home stretch.3. Bears (9-4): A bye week is still a long shot , but the win over the Rams puts it in play.4. Cowboys (8-5): Have all but clinched the NFC East.5. Seahawks (8-5): They’ll be a dangerous opponent for the Bears or Cowboys in the wild card round.6. Vikings (6-6-1): They don’t look much like a playoff team, but they still have a great chance of making it.7. Panthers (6-7): Carolina is in a tailspin.8. Eagles (6-7): The defending champs are almost certainly not making the playoffs.9. Washington (6-7): It’s not just Mark Sanchez at quarterback. The whole team looks like it quit on the season.10. Packers (5-7-1): Joe Philbin won his first game, but he’s not going to get the Packers to the playoffs.11. Buccaneers (5-8): By losing to the Saints did they miss a chance to save Dirk Koetter’s job?12. Giants (5-8): Playing better , but still stuck in last place in the NFC East.13. Lions (5-8): Matt Patricia has already lost more games this year than Jim Caldwell lost in either of the last two years.14. Falcons (4-9): This season has been a major disappointment.15. Cardinals (3-10): At least they swept the 49ers.16. 49ers (3-10): A surprising win over the Broncos may cost them the first pick in the draft. Bruce Irvin is in his first season with the Panthers, but the defensive end is experiencing some familiar feelings.Irvin was part of the Seahawks team that won Super Bowl XLVIII on the back of an overwhelming defense. That defense included a front seven that made life tough on opposing quarterbacks, which was not the case for the Panthers defense in 2018.Irvin believes things will be different this season. He said the Panthers defense “kind of compares” to the one that Seattle employed this season.“That team went eight deep up front ,” Irvin said, via the . “We had four really good guys, and then four more went in and there was no drop-off. So that’s kind of the feeling I’m getting here. We had a lot of dudes. Everybody communicated. That’s the kind of vibe it is here.”The Panthers are integrating several new faces up front as Irvin , Brian Burns and Gerald McCoy are all new to the team and set for major roles this season. Carolina will need all of them to hit the ground running to even come close to the kind of success Seattle had back then.
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