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Published: Sunday, Oct. 07, 2012 / Updated: Sunday, Oct. 07, 2012 09:52 PM

Panther report card

F QUARTERBACK: Cam Newton had a chance to win the game and send the Panthers into the bye week on a high note. Instead, he reverted to his form through the first three-and-a-half quarters and bounced one to a wide-open Ben Hartsock in the end zone.

F RUNNING BACKS: Hard to get touches when you can't hold on to the ball. DeAngelo Williams had a drop and a costly fumble in the Panthers' end of the field, resulting in the decisive score. Jonathan Stewart also dropped a couple of passes.

D RECEIVERS: Steve Smith had an early drop and had a hard time getting separation against Seattle's big, physical corners. When he did get open, Newton usually airmailed him. Tight end Greg Olsen was targeted only three times after back-to-back big games against the Giants and Atlanta.

F OFFENSIVE LINE: The front five was overpowered at times, getting Newton sacked four times and hit several other times. Garry Williams, who started at right guard for the injured Geoff Hangartner, was benched in favor of Jeff Byers in the first half. Didn't help much.

C+ DEFENSIVE LINE: A week after tying a franchise record with seven sacks against the Falcons' Matt Ryan, the front four had trouble getting consistent pressure on rookie Russell Wilson. The defensive tackles were stout against running back Marshawn Lynch, the NFL's leading rusher.

B LINEBACKERS: Luke Kuechly thrived in his first start at middle linebacker, the position he played at Boston College. Kuechly had a game-high 11 tackles and added an interception. Coaches will have to give serious consideration to keeping Kuechly in the middle when Jon Beason returns.

B+ DEFENSIVE BACKS: Considering they played without top cornerback Chris Gamble, the defensive backs had a good showing. Captain Munnerlyn returned an interception for a touchdown, and Josh Norman kept Seattle receivers in front of him. Exiled safety Sherrod Martin saw his most extensive action.

A SPECIAL TEAMS: Brad Nortman was busy, averaging 45.4 yards on seven punts, with a net of 39.9. Justin Medlock finally got to try another field goal (he made it). And the kickoff team forced a fumble and bottled up dangerous returner Leon Washington.

D COACHING: Rob Chudzinski tried unsuccessfully to establish a running game early. But he never really came back to it, even as Newton struggled with his accuracy. This team just can't seem to get on the same page. When the defense plays well, the offense is bad. The Panthers are teetering on irrelevancy.

Joseph Person