The Seattle Seahawks followed up one blowout win with another, just like the good ol’ days of the Legion of Boom era.
Throughout the season, the Arizona Cardinals had either won close or lost close. Seattle
made sure that they would lose big at Lumen Field, racing out to a 35-0 lead before some sloppy turnovers and a little bit of mercy made it only a 44-22 victory. It’s the fourth sweep in a row of the Cards and the first time since 2015 that the Seahawks have won back-to-back by 20+ pts (38-7 over the Minnesota Vikings and 35-6 over the Baltimore Ravens), and they sit at 7-2 for the first time since 2019. That 2019 team was living on the edge all season, whereas this Seahawks team has been able to put Drew Lock in for mop-up duty three times already.
Let’s get to Winners and Losers!
Winners
Tyrice Knight
Considering Knight lost his starting job midseason and was struggling during his playing time, he’s my biggest winner of the day. Not just two sacks, but two sacks and two forced fumbles leading to touchdowns. Knight also had at least one run stop to my recollection, as well as a 4th down pass breakup in the end zone. That was a great showing by Knight and obviously he was ready for the call when needed. Knight later revealed post-game he’s been dealing with a (since resolved) heart issue in addition to his knee injury, so perhaps that explains a lot of what transpired to start the year.
DeMarcus Lawrence
Tank! What a signing he’s been. He was the beneficiary of those Knight forced fumbles and had the rare two-touchdown day as a defensive player. It’s even rarer for anyone who isn’t in the secondary, I imagine. Lawrence also had a half-sack split with Nick Emmanwori to all but luck up Defensive Player of the Week.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
The only reason JSN didn’t get over 100 yards and more touches was the Seahawks only passed the ball 12 times. He did his damage early by getting 4 catches for 82 yards and a touchdown in the opening quarter, then everything else after that was a formality. I doubt they’ll have such a huge lead on the Los Angeles Rams next week such that they end up not throwing it too much.
Zach Charbonnet, Kenneth Walker III, and George Holani
Seattle’s run game got going, especially so after Olu Oluwatimi entered the contest for the injured Jalen Sundell. Take away the kneeldowns and the Seahawks rushed for over 200 yards for the first time since 2022. Charbonnet led everyone with 83 yards and a touchdown, Walker looked better than the 67 yards suggested, and we saw extended George Holani snaps to the tune of 31 yards on 7 carries and his first NFL rushing touchdown. Did the Seahawks find something with this run game when they pounded it down Arizona’s throats in the 2nd half? I hope so.
Offensive Line
Only one QB hit allowed and one sack (which admittedly was a turnover). The run game was the best its been all season. They bullied a good Cardinals defensive front and few things are more humiliating than having a scoring drive that’s double-digit plays for long yardage and nothing but rushes. I am not here to argue the Seahawks have an elite offensive line; they have an offensive line you can contend with.
Nick Emmanwori
Another up and down day from E-man in coverage but he still had four passes defensed and recorded (sort of) his first NFL sack. Like I said, every week he makes a splash play that justifies the decision to trade up for him in the second round.
Riq Woolen
A penalty-free, lockdown day from Riq. Whether it was winning in man coverage against Trey McBride or breaking up passes with brilliant ball skills, Woolen had an outstanding performance. I hope his early season struggles were just that.
Drake Thomas
Two more tackles for loss for Drake, as the Seahawks continue to benefit from the Las Vegas Raiders’ surprise decision to move on from him back in 2023. He’s no longer just a special teams guy; he’s playing like a legitimate NFL starting linebacker.
Nehemiah Pritchett
Yeah, I know he gave up a touchdown to Marvin Harrison Jr but it was more or less garbage time by that point. He sure as hell won his rep on a ridiculous 4th down breakup that was in Harrison’s hands and then jarred loose in the end zone. When the bottom-end of the roster is making plays like that, you know you have depth.
Jason Myers
The all-time leader in field goals made in Seahawks history. Congratulations to Jason Myers on an impressive feat given Seattle’s rich tradition of field goal kicking!
Boye Mafe
At last, he has his first sack of the season after nearly being traded just days ago. I think they might stat correct and split it with Derick Hall, because it looked like Mafe and Hall both brought him down, in which they they’d both get on the sack scoreboard for the first time in 2025.
Losers
Seattle’s never-ending ball security issues
Sam Darnold had just two incomplete passes but three turnovers, one of which we’ve yet to decipher whether it was on him or Olu Oluwatimi, but a botched exchange usually gets charged to the QB. His interception was unlucky but it’s still a low trajectory pass that represents another time he’s hit someone in the helmet at the LOS. The strip-sack fumble will need All-22 viewing because it wasn’t an instant pressure play. I don’t particularly like how many of these turnovers have been deep in Seahawks territory, which means cheap points for the opposition more often than not.
Darnold has 10 turnovers on the year, which is quite a bit given the low volume of pass attempts, but he’s been so remarkably efficient and outstanding that it’s not a point of concern at the moment.
Seattle also had Rashid Shaheed fumble a kick return ,which Brady Russell saved on a potential fourth turnover. Bryce Cabeldue and Drew Lock had a botched exchange, but luckily Lock recovered. I don’t understand why this happens so often at home but rarely on the road.
Kenneth Walker’s touchdown luck
Seriously, when will he get into the end zone again? He has no touchdowns since Week 3 and he’s been vultured at the goal line by Charbonnet, George Holani, and even A.J. Barner. Feed K9 and get him his just rewards!
Final Notes
- Cooper Kupp was probably as surprised as anyone he had that much space to run. His 67-yard gain set up Charbonnet’s touchdown, but it would’ve been cooler to finally see him score in a Seahawks uniform at Lumen Field.
- The A.J. Barner tush push remains undefeated, which you love to see.
- No Tory Horton and a less-than-healthy Cooper Kupp, I think, was conducive to throwing the ball less often. The game script flipping to a run-heavy plan was undoubtedly aided by the score, but even still I think Klint Kubiak did the right thing in terms of the play-calling.
- Rashid Shaheed got involved a bit as a running threat in addition to one catch on a screen. I imagine he’ll have a more varied route tree as the season progresses.
- Brandon Pili and Ty Okada helped stuff a 4th and goal play at the 1. Again, the depth on the defensive side of the ball is incredible, such that two backups ran through Arizona’s starters.
- Beat the Rams. If they beat the Rams on the road, dreams of being not just the NFC West title, but the No. 1 seed in the conference can really run wild. Seattle has been that good, and I think next week is one of the biggest games this franchise has had since Super Bowl XLIX. I can’t wait for next Sunday.
