Headlines for the Seahawks Matchup against the Cardinals

Seahawks Today Lead Writers: Shrihun Sankepally and Nevin Tamilselvan

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Seahawks WRs vs Cardinals CBs

Wide Receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is coming off back-to-back 100-yard games with 180 against the Rams and 110 against the 49ers. DK Metcalf returned from injury and posted 70 yards in his debut after missing almost a month of game time. Tyler Lockett has been posting a few catches a game for minimal yardage as the team’s wide receiver 3. The Cardinals cornerback group is headlined by Sean Murphy-Bunting and Starling Thomas, though Budda Baker’s impact all over the field cannot be understated. Garrett Williams is also a key piece of the cornerback room for the Cardinals. Murphy-Bunting has had a good season for the Cardinals so far, allowing 207 yards only on 28 targets. JSN looks to have another breakout game as he looks to put up back-to-back-to-back 100-yard receiving games against the 3rd straight NFC West divisional foe. DK Metcalf was top-5 in receiving yards in the NFL before his injury and looks to pick up pace after posting 7 receptions against the 49ers. The Cardinals have a very weak pass rush, though the Seahawks have an extremely weak offensive line, so that matchup may be close. If it is close, it might be difficult for the Seahawks wide receivers to thrive against a weaker Cardinals cornerback group because Geno Smith might not get enough time to get the ball to his playmakers. With a struggling rushing attack for the Seahawks, this could be a pivotal matchup that the Seahawks may need to rely upon to win against the division-leading Cardinals.

Seahawks DL vs Cardinals OL

In recent weeks, the Seahawks have struggled to apply pressure to opposing quarterbacks. Against the Cardinals, they face a premier pass-protecting offensive line, especially one that benefits from having QB Kyler Murray help evade pressure. The Seahawks have now posted back-to-back weeks of being able to stop the run, against two teams that have good talent at Running Back (Kyren Williams and Christian McCaffrey). Now, they face their 3rd divisional opponent in as many weeks and face RB James Conner who is a difficult runner to stop. If the Seahawks can build on their success stopping the run against the Cardinals, they can limit a Cardinals offense that thrives when running the ball. By stopping the run, they can force the Cardinals into passing situations that allow Mike Macdonald and the Seahawks to let their defensive line focus mainly on pressuring the QB rather than defending the run, collaborating with a top-tier secondary to play lockdown coverage and pressure and sack the quarterback. Murray and Conner are both major rushing presences but if the Seahawks maintain gap integrity as they have the last few weeks, they should be able to stop any Cardinals rusher. When the Seahawks do pass rush the Cardinals, they’ll need to always keep an eye on Murray who may scramble and run if the pocket collapses. If the Seahawks can pass rush effectively while also containing Kyler Murray, they should be able to limit an extremely explosive offense.