This feels familiar for the Seattle Seahawks.
A year ago they were being criticized and written off by critics after starting 3-3, dealing with performance that was below expectations and looking up to see Arizona already creating separation in the NFC West.
It's a similar story now with Seattle sitting at 2-3 and entertaining undefeated Carolina on Sunday. No one will argue that the Seahawks are underachieving and are fortunate to not be 1-4. But this remains a team with much the same talent as a year ago, when that 3-3 start became a 12-4 division title and eventually a second straight Super Bowl trip.
Even opponents see Seattle's potential.
"I think it's just a team that's a little bit in transition and just trying to learn each other, and as they learn each other, the more and more they play together, they're going to get better," Carolina coach Ron Rivera said. "It's the same thing that happened last year. Everybody forgets that they started slow at the beginning of the year and then they got their roll going."
The 4-0 start by the Panthers should not be scoffed at. It might not have come against the toughest competition, but don't punish Carolina for taking advantage of a soft early schedule and running out to the second-best start in franchise history. Only the 2003 team that started 5-0 and reached the Super Bowl had a better start.
Proving they belong as more than just the elite of the NFC South begins now. While they get to play their next three at home and four of the next five after travelling to Seattle, that slate includes matchups with Philadelphia, Indianapolis and Green Bay.
"The fact that they have put together four straight wins is so important for their confidence and their sense of what they are capable of doing," Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. "They are doing it on defence and taking the ball off of their opponents and doing so many good things as well as running the ball. You know, we really respect that kind of model."
Here's what else to watch for as the Seahawks and Panthers meet for the sixth time since 2010:
MEN IN THE MIDDLE: The Panthers and Seahawks feature two of the best middle linebackers in football. Assuming both play Sunday.
Carolina's Luke Kuechly is expected to return from a concussion that has kept him out of the last three games. But the status of Seattle's Bobby Wagner is in question after he suffered a strained pectoral muscle last week against Cincinnati. A decision whether Wagner plays won't be made until game time. Kuechly and Wagner were the first-team All-Pro inside linebackers last season.
ALLEN SITTING OUT: The Panthers are likely going to be without veteran defensive end Jared Allen, the NFL's active all-time sacks leader. Allen, who was acquired in a trade three weeks ago, pinched a nerve in his back in his first game with the Panthers in Week 4.
FINISH LINE: Seattle has stunningly started collapsing and not finishing in the fourth quarter. It blew a 17-point lead last week against Cincinnati, tying the biggest fourth-quarter collapse in franchise history. But Seattle also led in the fourth quarter against St. Louis and Green Bay and couldn't close out either of those games.
The Seahawks have been outscored 42-24 and opposing quarterbacks are completing nearly 86 per cent of their passes against Seattle's vaunted secondary in the fourth quarter.
NO LOVE LOST: Rivera said outside linebacker Thomas Davis and Seahawks tight end Jimmy Graham "don't like each other" after spending several seasons competing against each other twice a year in the NFC South. "It won't be any love lost, I can guarantee you that," Davis said of Sunday's matchup.
Davis was fined $16,537 last November when he put a big hit on Graham during a Panthers interception return, although he said he appealed and got most of his money back. Davis did call Graham one the best tight ends in the league and said it will be a true test for the defence.
BEAST AND BABY BEAST: Marshawn Lynch is expected to return after missing two games with a hamstring injury. His replacement, Thomas Rawls, proved more than capable of filling in, rushing for 169 yards and a touchdown last week against Cincinnati. It's the most yards rushing by a Seattle rookie since Curt Warner in 1983.
Despite Rawls' big game, Lynch will get the start against the Panthers. Lynch has yet to get going this season, averaging 3.4 yards per carry.
"I think he's earned that, but Thomas will be there for him when Marshawn needs a break," Carroll said.
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AP Sports Writer Steve Reed contributed to this report.
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