Ben Johnson’s Bears are Super Bowl contenders, and the Seahawks are contending with a lot of problems as they sit at .500 after a 34-17 embarrassment Monday night.
It was the worst loss since a 30-13 defeat in Green Bay late in Mike Macdonald’s first season in Seattle. It also was the third loss in a four-game stretch against strong playoff contenders; the Hawks lost to the 49ers and Broncos before dominating the Chiefs in a Sunday night game.
At this point, the Hawks (4-4) are not a playoff team. And, unless they overhaul their offense and fix some of their key Achilles on defense, they will remain not a playoff team.
While the defense failed completely for the first time Monday night, Brian Fleury’s offense has been stumbling along for most of the season – and did so again for most of the game against the Bears.
People have mixed opinions about why the offense is failing. Some blame Fleury, others blame Sam Darnold, others blame the skill players around Jaxon Smith-Njigba. One thing everyone can agree on is that the running game stinks.
The Seahawks ran for just 89 yards vs. Chicago – the fourth time in eight games they have been under 100. They have lost three of those four games.
It certainly did not help that three of the five line positions were manned by a different guy than last week – a result of Charles Cross being injured and Quenton Nelson being acquired. It was quite obvious the shuffling affected the blocking effectiveness. Jefferey Simmons, Chicago’s big trade pickup, dominated Seattle’s line.
“It’s a tough transition to flip sides in the middle of the week,” Grey Zabel said, “but at the end, no excuses. Could’ve played better. I will play better. We move forward from here.”
The Hawks averaged a measly 4.5 yards per play – the third time in four games (all losses) that they have been at 4.5 or less. (The worst number in the league for the season is 4.4 by the Eagles.)
Zach Charbonnet and JD Price returned from injuries but combined to average 3.25 yards on 16 called runs. They both looked OK, but the line just gave them no room.
Darnold was sacked three times and hit six. He was just 1 of 11 for 13 yards and an interception when pressured, per ESPN Research. He was off target for much of the game. He completed just 50% and now ranks 30th at a mere 60% this season. He had a ninth pass intercepted (and had a 10th called off by a penalty). Only Justin Herbert, also playing for a new OC, has more picks (10). Darnold has been picked off in each of his six full games.
The Seahawks also were just 1 for 11 on third downs – typically facing more than 5 yards on those downs. They could not repeat their stellar performance from last week vs. Kansas City (11 for 16). They are now 27th in the NFL on third downs, at 35.6%.
Cooper Kupp summed up the offense like the rest of us did: “Obviously not good enough. Way too many three-and-outs, way too many short drives, and just bringing our defense back on the field. We’ve gotta be better than that and find some solutions. Kudos to the Bears. That was a very good defense. But we’ve gotta be better.”
So how do they do that?
To us, Fleury holds the key. At halftime, we listed all of the things he should do differently in the second half. And he came out and did some of that, which is why Darnold started to look more comfortable. It still resulted in only eight points (thanks to a blocked field goal and a tipped interception), but the Hawks gained 137 yards in the quarter – more than the first three quarters combined.
Last year at this time, the Hawks were struggling to run it just as much as they are now, averaging under 4 yards per rush. But Darnold was playing much better. He hit 50% of his passes when pressured.
He has simply struggled in Fleury’s offense, which has not offered enough variance to keep defenses off balance or given Darnold any answers when pressured.
The hope is Nelson and the line will jell over the next 2-3 weeks and the running game will get going. But Fleury can do other things to help Darnold as well.
The Hawks have a couple of weaker opponents coming up – Arizona and Las Vegas – before the bye. Fleury needs to get his offense functioning during that time. The 49ers come after the bye, and the offense must be functional by then.
If Fleury continues to fail, especially against winning teams, you just have to wonder how long Macdonald would let the offense founder and waste his great defense in a year that had Super Bowl repeat expectations.
