Carlos Hyde, Seattle Seahawks.
Losing sucks. Nobody likes to lose. You are what your record says you are, which means the Seattle Seahawks are a losing team. While the playoffs are pretty much toast. A reminder that there is an extra playoff team and regular-season game. So, to quote Lloyd Christmas “You’re telling me there’s a chance.” A more realistic goal should be for Seattle to finish the year with a winning record.
To make that reality come true, it starts this week. And if they can win this week, then it’s very plausible that the Seattle Seahawks could go on a three-game winning streak as Seattle would have its first division rematch and square off against Houston. However, we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
Similar to the Seattle Seahawks, Washington came into the year with a lot of hope and potential. Their young defensive line leads them. Unfortunately, their star pass rusher, Chase Young, suffered a season-ending leg injury. He joined Washington’s other star pass rusher, Montez Sweat, on injured reserve. So, that’s helpful for Seattle’s chances to win. However, Washington’s secondary still has some playmakers that Russell Wilson will need to be aware of.
WFT’s defense ranks 24th in total yards allowed per game, with 368.5. Additionally, their defense ranks 28th in two big categories, allowing 270 passing yards and 26.7 points per game. Run defense is this unit’s bright spot, allowing 98.5-yards per game.
This matchup shapes up as a great spot for Shane Waldron’s offense to get right. The Seattle Seahawks haven’t been big on running the ball lately, so, naturally, I expect them to call plenty of run plays this week; because this team hasn’t followed anything I said all year.
Subsequently, Wilson should exploit Washington’s secondary. Waldron should call pass plays that require RW3 to get the ball out of his hands quickly. Doing that will give Tyler Lockett, Gerald Everett, and D.K. Metcalf more opportunities to pick up yards after the catch.
On the other side of the ball, the Seattle Seahawks shouldn’t have nearly as difficult of a time. Washington’s offensive production is fairly narrow. Their best playmaker is Terry Mclaurin, who should be bracketed all game by Seattle’s secondary.
WFT has a young promising running back who’s been playing this year with a nasty shin injury. He’s been productive but not nearly as effective as he was last year. This week, the front seven will face a tough challenge in stopping Antonio Gibson and Washington’s running game.
Bobby Wagner leads the league in tackles with 115. He’ll be adding to his league-leading total this week. Hopefully, he won’t be on the field this week as much as he was last week. Washington might be getting one more of its playmakers back this week. Their starting tight end, former quarterback, Logan Thomas might be back this week. He’ll most likely operate in the middle of the field.
If Thomas isn’t back, then they’ll be rolling with their back up tight end, Ricky Seals-Jones. He’s been filling in for Thomas all of this time, and he’s been doing an admirable job. It’s possible that upon Thomas’ return, he could be on a snap count.
Hopefully, Jamal Adams, Wagner, and Jordyn Brooks can do a good job covering up Thomas so he can’t replicate Arizona’s offensive game plan. Washington uses McLaurin a lot to stretch the field and be their deep threat. They also put him in situations to showcase his speed and yards after the catchability. Sidney Jones and Quandre Diggs will need to be aware. Also, having Tre Brown back will be a nice bonus since D.J. Reed will be out this week.
There has been lots of frustration and angst from the fans and head coach Pete Carroll. We’ll see if he walks out of this post-game press conference early or not. I can’t remember the last time I saw a head coach leave a press conference early only to return to complete. The whole time he’s not angry or going off on some crazy rant about playoffs.
As previously mentioned, the Seattle Seahawks should feature a game plan of quick throws. This might sound a bit odd since Washington’s best pass rushers are out; Wilson should have more time in the pocket. Conversely, since there will be more time for Wilson to operate, he should have more time to scan the field and make better decisions.
If he features Lockett and Metcalf on slants and quick hitters, this will bring WFT’s safeties closer to the line of scrimmage. Then when Washington adjusts their defense to counter these short throws, Wilson can look to unload one of his deep balls. Since Washington’s run defense is formidable, the Seattle Seahawks should still try to run the ball for no other reason than to keep the defense honest.
Seattle should utilize some draws and screens. Again, Washington’s pass defense is not good, so designing an offensive game plan to exploit this weakness is a strong strategy.
For some predictions, Metcalf and Lockett both have good games on Monday night. Even Gerald Everett has a good performance and finally shows he’s the third reliable pass-catcher Seattle’s offense needs
Check back with us for more Seattle Seahawks coverage leading up to game day.