Seahawks paste Panthers to move into championship round

SEATTLE — The reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks stand two wins shy of another coronation.

Saturday night's 31-17 division-round demolition of the Carolina Panthers advanced top seed Seattle into Sunday's NFC Championship Game against Sunday's Dallas-Green Bay winner. The rout was a showcase of classic Seahawks football — a fast, takeaway defense, hard running and someone finding a way to make a play that made the biggest difference time and again on third down.

Their win was the first for a defending champion in a decade.