The Seattle Seahawks moved into 1st place in the NFC West after beating the Arizona Cardinals 16-6 at Lumen Field. Arizona came into the game riding high on a 4-game winning streak, which makes the win all that more impressive. Their win streak had been powered by a combination of QB Kyler Murray taking care of the ball (4 pass TD’s, 1 interception & 3 rush TD’s over the last 4 games) and their 6th ranked rushing attack, led by RB James Connor (705 yards on 166 carries & 5 TD’s). Incredibly, over the past 4 week, they racked up 623 yards on the ground: Week 7-181 yards, Week 8-82 yards, Week 9-213 yards & Week 10-147 yards. Stopping Murray and Connor was of utmost importance for Mike Macdonald and his defense.

It’s no secret the Seahawks have trouble defending the run. Prior to Sunday’s game they had given up 100+ rushing yards in 7 out of 10 games, a real sore spot for the team. Against Arizona they had their best performance, by far, only giving up 49 total rush yards. Seattle held James Connor to a measly 8 rush yards on 7 carries – effectively neutralizing a player who had been very good against Seattle in past seasons. They also did a great job cutting off the running lanes for Kyler Murray, who is very good at escaping the pocket as it’s collapsing. The QB could only muster 9 yards on 2 carries. He was under fire for most of the game, mostly due to DE Leonard Williams.

The Big Cat was simply unblockable. Williams racked up 6 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss, 1 pass defended and 4 QB hits – his most productive performance this season. Whatever the Cardinals were doing to try and block him was not working and should never be employed again (except when Seattle plays them again in two weeks). Only twice before had he racked up 2.5 sacks in a single game: Week 12 (2020) against Seattle and Week 1 (2016) against Cincinnati. More dominate performances like this are needed if Seattle are to keep winning games. The new-look linebacking crew was also instrumental in keeping the Arizona rush attack in check.

John Schneider’s trade for LB Ernest Jones IV may have saved the Seahawks season. In the 4 games since coming over from Tennessee, he’s posted 15, 9, 13 and 10 tackles and improved the run defense tremendously with his sideline-to-sideline tackling ability. That’s solid production for a player traded midseason and, probably, still learning the playbook and role within the team/scheme.

Rookie 4th-round LB Tyrice Knight has also been solid since returning to the starting lineup and replacing Tyrel Dodson. He’s a tackling machine and will only get better with playing time. Although, he needs to work on his coverage skills, as does Jones, as opposing RB’s/TE’s still find plenty of joy against the Seahawks.

3rd year TE Trey McBride is one of the most underrated players at his position, which he proved against Seattle by hauling in 12 receptions for 133 yards. He was a menace and dominated the middle of the field. It’s a miracle he didn’t find the endzone. Outside of him, the Cardinals didn’t have much production against the Seahawks secondary.

Overall, the secondary was very good. Safeties Julian Love and Rayshawn Jenkins had solid games, showing off their versatility. At times coming down into the box to reinforce the run defense, in addition to dropping back into coverage and having to rally to the ball. They did a bit of everything.

Riq Woolen had more of a mixed performance. He provided good coverage most of the game against whichever receiver he was tasked to guard and made a couple of tackles closer to the line of scrimmage on the running back. The bad being he was beaten by WR Michael Wilson for a huge gain late in the 4th quarter that could’ve proved costly. Trey McBride also got the best of him a couple of times.

Devon Witherspoon looks to be regaining his confidence and play-making ability, as he was flying around the field laying big hits and blitzing the QB. He also helped out to stifle the Cardinals running game. His most skillful play came on a 4th-and-1.

Arizona head coach Johnathan Gannon decided to leave his offense on the field to convert a short yardage situation early in the 3rd quarter. He dialed up a Kyler Murray run to the right that Devon Witherspoon sniffed out and played perfectly, even staying on his feet when Murray tried to pump fake. The QB ended up trying to throw at the last second, but sailed the pass over his intended receivers head. Coby Bryant was in the right place, picked the pass off and rumbled 69-yards into the endzone for a game-changing pick-six. To add insult to injury Bryant mimicked Seahawks legend Marshawn Lynch and grabbed his crotch while flying backwards into the endzone. A celebration Lynch pulled off a couple times in his career, most notably during the Beast Quake.

The defense did it’s job, while the offense was maddeningly inconsistent.

QB Geno Smith played OK, throwing for 254 yards on 22/31 pass attempts with 1 TD and 1 interception. The interception was brutal as it happened in the redzone, at the start of the 4th quarter, when he tried to scramble to the right, then decided to instead throw across his body to Tyler Lockett. DB Garrett Williams read it the whole way and stepped in front of the receiver for the easy pick. It was doubly painful as a TD would’ve sealed the game and made it almost impossible for the Cardinals to mount a comeback. Geno needs to get the turnovers under control, as he has a league-leading 12 interceptions.

OC Ryan Grubb made an attempt to integrate Kenneth Walker III into the game early on, but Arizona held him to 41 yards on 16 carries. Backup RB Zach Charbonnet didn’t fair much better with 22 yards on 6 carries. The Seahawks are still among the least efficient running teams in the NFL. Until they prove they can consistently run the ball, teams will be keying in on the passing attack.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba again led the Seahawks in receiving yards. He finished the day with 77 yards on 6 receptions and 1 TD. His best catch came when he took a screen pass 47-yards down to the Arizona 4 yard line. He scored a TD moments later when he worked himself free after the Cardinals had a coverage mix-up. He’s quickly becoming one of the best slot receivers in the NFL in only his 2nd professional season.

Star WR DK Metcalf had a quiet game with 59 yards on 4 receptions and 0 TD’s. Geno Smith looked for him early, but Arizona adjusted their coverage and made sure to double-team the big WR every chance they got. It proved to be adequate in shutting him down.

The OL held up OK in pass protection. They, mostly, afforded Geno Smith enough time to scan the field and work through his progressions. Although, a couple of times the Arizona pass rush got to the QB and sacked him on 3rd down, killing off a handful of promising drives. It’s something the OL/QB will need to work on. The group was much less capable in the run game, as they didn’t sufficiently block their man or blast any holes open for the RB’s. It’s still the biggest weakness on the team with short yardage situations being a crapshoot.

The solidarity within the defense and generally uptick in play over the past few weeks has been heartening to witness, especially after the midseason woes during the losing streak. As long as they keep improving, then Seattle will have a serious chance to win the NFC West. It’s the woeful offense that has me worried. The team clearly believes in Geno Smith and trusts him to throw the rock a ton, he just needs to make the right decision and relax with the turnovers. Ryan Grubb also needs to figure out the run game ASAP, as a good rushing attack will only take pressure off the QB and unsettle opposing defenses.

Next up for Seattle is a trip back East to face-off against the 3-8 New York Jets, who are coming off their bye week and will be extra rested for the game. It’s been a highly disappointing season for them, as they had playoff aspirations coming into the season. They are one of, if not the most, dysfunctional team in the NFL. Owner Woody Johnson fired both the head coach, Robert Salah, and GM, Joe Douglas, in recent weeks. Jeff Ulbrich was named the interim coach and has gone 1-5 since. Johnson, reportedly, wanted to bench QB Aaron Rodgers and even went as far as making the suggestion to the coaching staff – not ideal. Maybe pinning their playoff hopes on a 41-yard-old Rodgers, who’s coming off an Achillies injury, and might have other injuries, wasn’t the best idea. RB Breece Hall has been a letdown. He was supposed to be among the top rushers coming into the season, but has only managed 632 yards on 152 attempts. He’s still a talented back, so the Seahawks will have to be careful and make sure he doesn’t get going. The passing attack has been OK (they added Davante Adams midseason) yet hasn’t hit the heights expected. Former offense rookie of the year Garrett Wilson, who beat out Kenneth Walker III in 2022, has been good, but was expected to make a major leap into the upper echelon of NFL WR’s. The Jets defense has stars across the field like CB Sauce Gardner, DT Quinnen Williams, DL Will McDonald and LB Quincy Williams. As a group, they’re stingy against the pass – only allowing 5.7 yards per pass and solid against the run – allowing 4.1 yards per rush. A very solid defense overall. The thing is they’re among the least effective at forcing turnovers – only 2 interceptions and 8 forced fumbles on the season. It’s best if the Seahawks don’t underestimate the Jets, even with their poor record, as they have play-makers on both sides of the ball.

GO HAWKS!