This should be a lot of fun on Monday Night Football. The Seattle Seahawks and Chicago Bears are set to meet in a huge game that has NFC Playoff implications. The Bears are red-hot, winning every game since Caleb Williams’ return, but Seattle just handed the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the year.
To get you set for this matchup, we sat down with John Gilbert from Field Gulls (SB Nation’s Seattle Seahawks site) to get you the inside scoop on the Bears’ opponent. Here’s that Q&A with John.
1. This matchup looks like it could be a lot of fun. The idea of arguably the best defensive mind in football against one of, if not the best offensive minds in football makes for great theater. What is it about Mike Macdonald that has made him such a great head coach so quickly?
Macdonald’s biggest strength is his ability to relate to players and to be authentic in stating that he doesn’t have all the answers, looking to his players to tap into their experience and expertise, along with a flexibility to do what works, rather than stay committed to a specific scheme.
The matchup between Macdonald and Ben Johnson is a rematch of the 2024 meeting between the two when the Lions put 42 points on the board, which is tied for the most put up against a Macdonald defense in the NFL. (The Miami Dolphins beat the Baltimore Ravens 42-38 in Week 2 of the 2022 season in Macdonald’s first year as defensive coordinator for the Ravens.)
It’s the second straight week that Macdonald will face off against one of the best offensive play callers in the league, so it will certainly be interesting to see what he can do after shutting down Andy Reid and the offense of the Kansas City Chiefs to the tune of three points.
2. What’s going on with Sam Darnold? His 2024 and 2025 were both so good, and this season he doesn’t look the same. Is this a loss of Klint Kubiak problem, or is there another underlying issue?
Darnold put up big production numbers in 2024 and 2025, but in all of his worst games across both seasons, he was susceptible to pressure. Most of those bad games over those two years involved pressure, which led to sacks, fumbles, and interceptions. Between the performance of the Seahawks offensive line regressing a bit compared to its 2025 performance and a glute injury Darnold suffered early in the season opener against the Patriots, the issues pressure has created for Darnold have not gone away. Add in a run game that has struggled with the loss of Kenneth Walker in free agency, Zach Charbonnet having yet to play in 2026 coming back from a surgically repaired ACL, and rookie first-round pick Jadarian Price landing on injured reserve.
With that said, there is no doubt that there has been enough of a difference from Kubiak to new offensive coordinator Brian Fleury that there has been an adjustment period for Darnold, and his decision-making has not been where it should be in the new system. He looked better against Kansas City, but still tossed an interception on an ill-advised throw.
The hope from fans now seems to be that the addition of Nelson and the return of Charbonnet and Price to the field can take some of the pressure off Darnold, requiring him to do less and just let the defense do its thing.
3. Hey, both our teams made a big trade! How is the Seahawks offensive line, and how much does Quenton Nelson help fortify Seattle up front?
It’s no secret that the Seahawks had an offensive line that struggled for a very long time, and the 2025 line seemed to have brought about an end to that era. The 2026 line has taken a small step back in terms of both opening holes in the run game and protecting Darnold in the pocket due to the arrival of a new offensive coordinator and an injury to starting right guard Anthony Bradford, which had Christian Haynes and Beau Stephens rotating in as replacements.
Bradford returned against the Chiefs, and the difference was noticeable, but when given the opportunity to add a six-time All-Pro guard in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick, it’s a no-brainer. Add in that Bradford reappeared on the injury report Thursday as limited, and the move to add Nelson makes even more sense.
With Nelson now in the fold, he’s set to take over at left guard, with 2025 first-round pick Grey Zabel sliding to right guard and Bradford taking a seat on the bench. It’s the first time Bradford has been out of the starting lineup for any reason other than injury since his rookie season in 2023, so how he handles it will be an interesting situation for Seattle fans to monitor, even if it has no impact on the Week 8 matchup between these two teams.
4. Is there any way to stop JSN? How do you propose is the best way to try to slow him down?
The best way to slow down or stop JSN seems to be to hire Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator.
On a serious note, the only way opponents have found to slow JSN is to slow down the run game and then pressure Darnold before he’s able to get the ball to JSN in passing situations. As noted above, an inability to move the ball on the ground on early downs and the offense finding itself in third and long, or other unfavorable passing situations, has created a situation where Darnold may not have the time to get to JSN in the progression.
Teams have tried jamming him at the line, bracketing him, and everything else, but the reality is JSN is simply on another level and delivering All-Pro performances week in and week out.
5. How do you think this plays out on Monday Night Football, and do you think Jadarian Price and/or Zach Charbonnet play this week?
I guess that Charbonnet makes his return to the field against the Bears, but that Price won’t be back in the lineup for another week or two.
As for a prediction on the outcome, in primetime matchups between evenly matched teams, if there is a difference of two or more time zones between their home cities, the team whose home city is further West wins a disproportionate amount of the time. Thus, for the second week in a row, I am expecting the Seahawks to win at home in primetime. Seattle 27, Bears 24
