You know what they say: ‘winning cures everything.’ One week the sky is falling, and the next, the season is back on track! There will inevitably be ups and downs over the course of the NFL calendar, but can Seattle build on a strong showing in Week 2 in taking on the 0-2 New Orleans Saints? Both teams have played reasonably hard and will be looking to fight their way out of their respective divisional cellars (as much as a cellar can exist after two weeks of play).
Both teams are sporting some injury
losses this week, and that will surely impact some of the matchups that will have a bearing on this game. Seattle may be 7.5-point favorites but is on a 4-game losing streak to New Orleans. Today, two totally different coaching staffs will be at the helm than last time the two organizations did battle.
Let’s take a look at the three unexpected heroes who could make bigger waves than our future minds were ready to accept on Sunday, September 21st.
George Holani
With Zach Charbonnet projected to miss this contest, someone will need to step up. This could very easily be a Ken Walker blowup game for that reason, and nobody would be mad. Let’s not forget about the man that beat out two well-regarded rookie runners (Damien Martinez and Jacardia Wright) for a roster spot. Charbonnet and Walker have seemed to share the workload pretty evenly so far this year, so Holani would be the next man up to try his hand at pounding the rock.
For the uninitiated: George Holani is the man who scored an ever-so-rare kick coverage touchdown last week. He also racked up the 2nd-highest yards per carry mark (9.2) among the top 12 rushers of the 2025 NFL preseason. But can that carry (intended) into the regular season? So far this year, the Saints are 31st (out of 32 NFL teams) in run-stop win-rate on defense. Hehe.
Big Robbie Ouzts will make them all pay. Give him two more linebackers to run over and Holani can just follow in his wake.
Tory Horton
It’s finally sunny… time to take the sports car out for a spin and see what it can do. No more dark clouds of the 49er defense. No more Steelers snowflakes that could accumulate if you aren’t careful. The everyday vehicle (JSN) could maybe use a little rest? Grab the keys and the shades!
Remember that New Orleans just let Mac Jones put up 3 TDs and a 113.1 Passer Rating against them in Week 2. In the opener, Kyler Murray tossed for 2 TD’s of his own, and a sterling 108.8 Passer Rating. This is Klint Kubiak’s chance to put up points on his old team and flex the downfield prowess he showed off in New Orleans for a whole two games, before the injury bug struck.
Horton received rave reviews all throughout training camp and followed it up with evidence of real ability in the preseason. Can he show it here? Through two games, he’s only got 32 yards so far. Horton feels like the type of player that will have a breakout at some point. With Julian Love, Devon Witherspoon and Nick Emmanwori all doubtful, this could turn into something of a shootout. The young man who ran a 4.41 40-yard dash at the combine (and probably could’ve run faster if not for injury) has the potential of a hand grenade in a street fight.
Drake Thomas
I wanted to list Jerrick Reed II, but it may not be his time yet. Let’s see what Ty Okada puts on tape as a regular contributor first. I will always root for any Seahawk player to play at the top of their game. Instead, let’s go with Drake Thomas, who was named a captain for this game.
Tyrice Knight has not been perfect in the infantile stages of the 2025 campaign and could still be ramping up to 100% after his offseason injuries. He played 74% of snaps in Week 1 and 69% of snaps in Week 2. Drake Thomas may get some play here and possibly benefit from a Saints offensive line facing Seattle’s menacing front while missing a few pieces. Even if Knight is full boar, Thomas will make his mark on special teams. Let’s manifest another impact play in the third phase!
