The Seahawks beat the Carolina Panthers 34-17 on Saturday, meaning the Super Bowl champion Seahawks are one game away from their second consecutive Super Bowl.

One more time.

The Super Bowl champion Seahawks are one game away from their second consecutive Super Bowl.

The Insufferable Road to Rewinnining the Super Bowl has had some twists and turns, but the next exit is the Super Bowl, and we’re merging into the right lane. LET US IN, GREEN BAY, YOU INSUFFERABLY WELL-QUARTERBACKED BASTARDS. LET US IN! WE HAVE OUR TURN SIGNAL ON! COME ON!

But before we check our mirrors and then look forward to Green Bay, let’s quickly look back at that Seahawks win. Only after looking thusly shall we collectively turn our heads and look forward. Oh, and look forward we shall. You’ll know when it’s time. But first, the looking back:

• Would the Seahawks be in the NFC Championship Game if it weren’t for Kam Chancellor? I don’t know. That’s a stupid question. I do, however, know that Kam Chancellor had the best game I’ve seen a safety play in a long time. Chancellor returned a pick for a touchdown and had nine solo tackles, including a couple that can best be described as “life-ruiningly epic.” He also jumped over the Panthers offensive line to try to block a field goal twice. In a row. Two times.

Again, for clarity’s sake: HE JUMPED OVER THE PANTHERS OFFENSIVE LINE TWO TIMES IN A ROW. THIS IS NOT A THING THAT HAPPENS.

This is where it should be noted that Chancellor is the Seahawks' third best defensive back.

Fun fact about Chancellor: He was a comparable quarterback recruit to Russell Wilson when both of them were coming out of high school in Virginia. Chancellor went to Virginia Tech to play quarterback. Eighteen-year-old Chancellor was to be the second coming of Michael Vick. Twenty-six-year-old Chancellor is the second coming of the Death Star, except he doesn't get blown up because of Ewoks.

But don’t take my word for how good Kam Chancellor is. Let’s ask Marshawn.

I'm thankful, too, Marshawn.

• The Seahawks' two best defensive backs, Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas, each dropped catchable interceptions. This game was played closer than the Seahawks' 21-point fourth-quarter lead indicated, but it also could have been won far sooner.

• Russell Wilson had a pretty good game on Saturday. And by that I mean he very quietly had the fifth-highest-rated game for a quarterback in NFL postseason history. He is also looking good as he grows his curls out for the play-offs.

Wilson may well be the fourth best quarterback remaining in the play-offs, but with his ball protection skills and mobility (and Aaron Rodgers’ gimpy calf), I wouldn’t trade him for any of the other options next Sunday.

• Injuries suck. Just as rookie wide receiver Paul Richardson was emerging as a weapon, he is out of the year (and maybe part of next year) with a torn ACL. Just as Max Unger came back from a sprained ankle, he sprained his ankle again. And just as we have to play a bunch of really good quarterbacks, cornerback Byron Maxwell is having trouble breathing. All these injuries coming in another year when the NFL’s final four were fairly predictable from the start of the year. Seems a waste. Just put Carroll and Belichick up against the best QBs every year and save everyone else the pain of actually playing all those football games.

• Luke “The Artist Formerly Known as Dubstep” Willson played so well on Saturday he almost got himself the nickname Daft Punk. One more big game and that nickname is all yours, Willson.

• Carolina has lots of really good players. Linebackers Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis, defensive end Charles Johnson, quarterback Cam Newton, tight end Greg Olsen—all of those guys are great. But the team has no depth after getting itself into salary cap hell (a place where the Jets' GM rolls the remainder of Mark Sanchez’s contract up a hill and then gets fired). The Seahawks, meanwhile, have 10 of their 11 defensive starters locked up for next year, and are well positioned to extend their best players into perpetuity without going over the cap. If you see general manager John Schneider in public, buy him a steak, regardless of the context. See him at the park? Steak. The mall? Steak. Kid’s ballet recital? Steak. A steakhouse? Definitely a steak.

• Wilson connected with Willson in the same game that Cam threw a pick-six to Kam on the same weekend that Rodgers connected with Rodgers. Coincidence? No. Conspiracy? I don’t want to weigh in on this too heavily, but let’s just say Pete Carroll has some questions.

It’s now time! Let’s take a moment to look ahead to the NFC Championship Game against the Packers, who beat the Dallas Cowboys 26-21.

The Seahawks have already beaten the Packers this year, and they did so soundly here in Seattle, 36-16. So in order to see where a different outcome could emerge from, we have to find the positional battle that is most in flux. So where is that? Is it going to be Aaron Rodgers versus Richard Sherman? Is it going to be Russell Wilson versus Clay Matthews?

NOPE!

The most important battle in a showdown between the league’s marquee talent is: the teams’ respective interior offensive lines. I know, nothing says excitement like interior line battles, but that will be where this game will be won or lost.

When the Packers faced the Seahawks week one, they started a rookie center and then lost two other linemen as the game progressed. This meant Rodgers had no time to operate with, and was devoured accordingly. If the Packers' offensive line, which more closely resembles their best assemblage of personnel, holds up, Rodgers, even on one gimpy leg, has a chance to make the non-Sherman portions of the Seahawks secondary pay. If they don’t, Michael “Black Santa” Bennett will be bringing a serious sack full of pain to Aaron Rodgers as an awkwardly belated Christmas present.

As for the Seahawks, guard J.R. Sweezy is coming off his worst game of the year, and center Max Unger is questionable to play on Sunday. Green Bay is not particularly strong up the middle; if Sweezy and whoever suits up at center play well for the Seahawks, Lynch and Wilson will gash the Packers badly. This means yards, and as importantly, fewer chances for Rodgers to pick up big plays. Otherwise? The Seahawks will be forced to reckon with the stronger aspects of the Packers defense while giving the Packers offense more chances to try and unlock our secondary.

So what do I think will happen?

The most memorable postseason game involving the Seahawks and the Packers involved the fateful words “we want the ball and we’re going to score,” after an overtime coin toss and a horrific Matt Hasselbeck pick-six that is etched deep into the psyche of all Seahawks fans*. That Seahawks team, led by Holmgren and Hasselbeck, was good. This Seahawks team, led by Carroll and Wilson, is great. I think Rodgers gets his more than he did week one, but also turns it over twice (calling it now: Cliff Avril strip sack). And I think we capitalize on some short fields to put another big number on the board. The Seahawks win without having to reckon with overtime, by, I don’t know, a 31-24 margin.

* If you think we're linking to a clip of this, you must be crazy.