#SFvsSEA, Playoffs

Deja Niners — and then the Rams (if they can handle Chicago)

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Two weeks ago, we started a trip to Hong Kong/Thailand as the Seahawks were getting ready to play the San Francisco 49ers. As we return from Thailand, it’s like time stood still: The Hawks again are preparing to play the 49ers.

The big difference, of course, is that the Seahawks happily did not have to play in the wild-card round because they smushed the 49ers in that big-deal Week 18 game. The 49ers managed to get by the Eagles 23-19 on Sunday to gain another chance to play in Seattle.

Continue reading Deja Niners — and then the Rams (if they can handle Chicago) →
#SEAvsSF, X's & O's

Offensive fade is not all Darnold’s fault

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The Seahawks have scuffled along on offense for most of their six-game winning streak, scoring just two first-half touchdowns and ranking 29th in EPA per play.

In their 27-10 win at Carolina last Sunday, it was more of the same — another slow start followed by a second-half surge sparked by defense (in some games, it has been special teams).

A lot of people are continually putting the blame for the offensive struggles on Sam Darnold — partially because he continues to turn the ball over a couple times a game (he had a fumble and interception vs. Carolina).

But most of the blame belongs where we always thought it would: on the offensive line. And Klint Kubiak has not done enough — either with his opening play scripts or his other play calls — to help Darnold.

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#LARvsSEA, X's & O's

On defense, Macdonald outsmarted himself

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Mike Macdonald is a brilliant defensive coach – he has proven it with three teams (including the Seahawks) over the past few years. But sometimes he is too smart for his own good – or for his players’ good.

Thursday night was one of those times.

As hard as it is to fathom, his stellar defense surrendered a franchise-worst 581 yards to the juggernaut Rams. That included 457 passing yards from Matthew Stafford and 225 receiving yards from Puka Nacua.

Six Rams had receiving plays of 19 yards or more. Nacua had a 58-yarder and a 41-yard TD in overtime.

It was a big shock after the Hawks had held Stafford to just 130 yards in Week 11.

Macdonald admitted he tried to get too fancy in the game plan on a short week.

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#LARvsSEA

Macdonald on historic comeback: ‘Great teams figure out a way to win’

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Mike Macdonald knows he has a great football team because it can beat any team in any style of game.

And the Seahawks are so resilient that they can give up a franchise-record 581 yards, go minus-3 in turnover margin, trail by 16 midway through the fourth quarter and still rally to beat the “other best team” in the NFL with a two-point conversion in overtime.

That’s what the Hawks did to the Rams in a wild 38-37 comeback that (a) clinched a playoff spot, (b) gave the Hawks control of the No. 1 seed and (c) got the Big Game Monkey off Sam Darnold’s back.

Macdonald said he was “really, really proud” of his team for overcoming all of the negatives in the massive NFL battle royale.

“What a friggin’ football team you guys are,” he told his players afterward. “What a freaking football team, man! We’re the freaking Seahawks! Let’s go!”

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#INDvsSEA

Hawks barely survive Colts to make Rams rematch matter

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“Games are going to be like this coming down the stretch. You’ve got to figure out ways to win them, and I’m proud that we did.” – Mike Macdonald, after the Seahawks beat the Colts 18-16 in the final seconds

Even with Old Man Rivers at quarterback, the Colts gave the Seahawks all they could handle Sunday – but the Hawks survived and are still in the driver’s seat for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

If the Hawks had embarrassingly lost to Philip Rivers (the newly unretired 44-year-old), their rematch against the Rams on Thursday would not have carried the same meaning. But it remains as big as they come — both teams tied atop the NFC at 11-3, with the winner taking the lead for the No. 1 seed. If the Hawks win, their odds of getting the bye and home field in the postseason will jump from 26% to 51%.

They are going to have to come to that game a lot more prepared than they were for the Colts. Shane Steichen outcoached Mike Macdonald in the first half, the defense seemed to be looking past Rivers to the Rams, and the offense continued its recent pattern of slow starts and its seasonlong trend of bad third-down play.

Macdonald told his team afterward: “We’re gonna have games like that coming down the stretch, OK? They can come in all shapes and sizes. All we gotta do is just go to the next play and figure out a way to win.”

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#INDvsSEA

Another blowout on tap as desperate Colts turn to Old Man Rivers?

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The last time the Seahawks faced a real challenge was against the Rams four weeks ago. Since that 21-19 loss, they have dominated Tennessee, Minnesota and Atlanta by a combined score of 93-33.

They probably will add another blowout win today against the Colts, who lost Daniel Jones for the season last week and are desperately going with rusty 44-year-old Philip Rivers today.

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#MINvsSEA

Bears, Rams, Hawks lead frantic NFC race for top seed

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“We’re in the death zone now. The NFC’s jumping, it’s popping, there’s great teams all around. You’ve got to win these games.” — Ernest Jones IV

The Seahawks’ defense was not happy that it did not hold down the lowly Titans properly in Seattle’s Week 12 win at Tennessee. Well, DeMarcus Lawrence, Ernest Jones IV and the rest more than made up for it in Week 13, leading a 26-0 shutout of Minnesota.

That helped the Seahawks catch the Rams, who lost 31-28 to surging Carolina (6-3 in the last nine) on Sunday. The Hawks, Rams and 49ers (who beat Cleveland) all have nine wins – matching the current top seed, Chicago, which beat Philadelphia on Friday and has lost just once since an 0-2 start.

The Packers and Eagles have eight wins, so the race for the NFC’s top seed is going to be fast and furious over the final five weeks.

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Contracts, The roster

JSN is earning a big payday — let’s look ahead to 2026

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With every passing week that he helps the Seahawks notch another win, Jaxon Smith-Njigba makes himself a lot more money.

He had perhaps his best game of the season in a 30-24 win over Tennessee in Week 12, catching eight passes for a season-best 167 yards and scoring twice, including a season-long 63-yarder.

JSN set the franchise record for receiving yards in just the 11th game. His 1,313 yards are 10 more than DK Metcalf had in 16 games in 2020. JSN is on pace for 2,029 yards, which would break Calvin Johnson’s record of 1,964 from 2012 (in 16 games). JSN is just 0.4 yards per game behind Johnson’s pace through 12 weeks.

With JSN eligible for a contract extension after this season, it is time to start looking at what he will cost — and how it all fits with the rest of the roster.

Continue reading JSN is earning a big payday — let’s look ahead to 2026 →
#SEAvsLAR

Solution to Darnold’s mistakes: ‘Listen to my feet’

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At this point, there is only one nagging question that needs to be answered before we can definitively declare the Seahawks a Super Bowl contender: Will Sam Darnold learn from his mistakes against the Rams so he avoids that kind of disaster game the rest of the season?

As we said on Twitter/X, if Darnold had just played his “normal” game, throwing even two interceptions, the Hawks would have won.  

Has he learned to do that, even in the face of strong defenses? The proof will come in the final month, when he and the Hawks face the Colts, Rams, Panthers and 49ers to finish the season.

For now, we have to take some solace in the fact that Darnold at least is able to articulate why he threw four interceptions in the 21-19 loss last Sunday.

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#SEAvsLAR

Let’s reserve judgment on Darnold, who will have more chances to prove himself

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Shortly after the Seahawks signed Sam Darnold back in March, Matt Hasselbeck talked about Darnold’s need to develop the “clutch gene.”

That was a reference to Darnold and the Vikings’ failures in the final two games of 2024, including a blowout loss to the Rams in the playoffs.

On Sunday, Darnold threw four interceptions that led to a 21-19 loss to the Rams instead of what could have been a comfortable win.

As former Rams QB Kurt Warner put it, “I think some guys have the ‘big game gene’ and others not so much. Not saying he doesn’t, but hasn’t shown it at this stage of his career.”

While a lot of fans are writing off Darnold as a paper tiger, we are going to let the season play out before making that judgment. Darnold has played too well across most of this season, and he will have a few more chances to prove his mettle.

Continue reading Let’s reserve judgment on Darnold, who will have more chances to prove himself →