Seahawks 31, Panthers 17: Russell Wilson threw for 268 yards and three touchdowns and host Seattle pulled away in the fourth quarter to earn a return trip to the NFC Championship Game.

Wilson (15-of-22) tossed his third scoring pass to tight end Luke Willson with just over 10 minutes to play and Kam Chancellor returned an interception for a touchdown 4 1/2 minutes later for the top-seeded Seahawks (13-4), who will host Green Bay or Dallas next week in the conference title game. Jermaine Kearse and Doug Baldwin each had a TD reception as Seattle posted its seventh straight victory and became the first reigning Super Bowl champion to reach the NFC title game the following season since the Packers in 1997.

Cam Newton threw a pair of touchdown passes to rookie Kelvin Benjamin and finished 23-of-36 for 246 yards and two interceptions for No. 4 seed Carolina (8-9-1), which had its five-game winning streak snapped. Benjamin had seven catches for 75 yards and Jonathan Stewart rushed for 70 yards as the Panthers held the ball for 34 minutes but were burned by three turnovers.

Carolina was within 14-10 following a scoreless third quarter, but Steven Hauschka booted a 37-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth. Seattle quickly got the ball back and moved 58 yards in six plays, with Wilson hitting Willson for 29 yards before beating a blitz with a 25-yard strike to the tight end to make it 24-10.

Newton drove the Panthers to the Seahawks' 13 on the ensuing possession, but Chancellor stepped in front of a pass and brought it back 90 yards for a 31-10 edge with 5:55 to play. The Panthers added a late score on Newton's 15-yard pass to Benjamin in the left side of the end zone.

Wilson needed four plays to turn a fumble into a 16-yard lob pass that Baldwin ran under in the end zone with 56 seconds left in the first quarter, but Newton countered by hitting Benjamin from 7 yards out. Seattle answered with Wilson's 63-yard strike to Kearse, who made a one-handed grab, before Graham Gano's 35-yard field goal on the final play of the half cut the deficit to 14-10.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Wilson, who has six TD passes and zero interceptions in his last four playoff games, will become the highest-paid QB in league history, according to a report by NFL.com. ... Gano had a 40-yard field goal attempt blocked by Chancellor on the final play of the half, but Chancellor - who vaulted the line of scrimmage - was flagged for running into the kicker to give Gano another chance to convert from 35 yards. ... Chancellor's interception return is tied for the fifth-longest in postseason history. ... Seahawks CB Byron Maxwell was not in the starting lineup due to shortness of breath but came on to play special teams in the second half.