The Seahawks are visiting the Giants on Monday night in their first prime time game of the 2023 season.
Here are 10 things to know heading into this matchup.
Jamal Adams is finally back
The biggest news this week is that the Seahawks are finally getting their star strong safety Jamal Adams back in the lineup. Adams suffered a torn quad in Week 1 last season and missed the rest of the year. Adams apparently had to wear a cast for five months and considered retiring, but he’s ready to return to the field. It should be interesting to see how they use Adams along with Quandre Diggs and Julian Love on the back end.
Injuries piling up for Seahawks
While it’ll be a sight for sore eyes to see Jamal Adams back on the field, the rest of the roster has been hit hard by injuries the last couple of weeks. The Seahawks have ruled out cornerbacks Tre Brown (concussion) and Artie Burns (hamstring), listed Charles Cross (toe) and Coby Bryant (toe) as doubtful and five other players are questionable.
Seattle has a top-five scoring offense
Early on in the Pete Carroll era they won games by running the ball and playing terrific defense across the board. These days the opposite is true and it’s the offense pulling the ship. The Seahawks are averaging 29 points per game heading into Week 4, which is the fourth-most in the league.
The run game is coming along
Seattle’s run game had a difficult time getting going the first two games of the season, despite Ken Walker looking great on the field. Last week things finally picked up, as the Seahwks ran all over the Panthers, totaling 146 rushing yards on 33 carries and two touchdowns.
Offensive line better than expected
When left tackle Charles Cross and right tackle Abe Lucas both went down it seemed like the Seahawks offense might be doomed. However, Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan have both performed far better than expected in the starting lineup, keeping Geno Smith relatively clean in the pocket.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is due for a breakout game
Geno Smith, DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Ken Walker and the tight ends are all humming when it comes to the pass game. The one exception to the rule is first-round draft pick Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who’s gotten off to a quiet start. So far he’s only caught nine passes, totaling 57 yards. It would help if they target him anywhere beyond the line of scrimmage, but JSN is due for a breakout game. It may not be this week, but eventually it will happen.
Saquon Barkley is doubtful
Last year the Seahawks did an excellent job of containing Saquon Barkley – basically the only big-name running back they managed to shut down in 2022. They held him to just 53 yards on 20 carries. This time they may not have to worry about him at all, as Barkley is listed as doubtful to play with an ankle injury. Former 49er Matt Breida is the next man up in the Giants backfield.
Giants LT Andrew Thomas is out
Truthfully, this Giants roster has a lot of weaknesses this season. However, the biggest one might be their offensive line. It won’t help that their starting left tackle Andrew Thomas is out with a hamstring injury. Joshua Ezeudu is expected to start in his place, offering a chance for Uchenna Nwosu to go off on the blindside for Daniel Jones.
Beware of NT Dexter Lawrence
The one player that should concern Seattle the most is Giants nose tackle Dexter Lawrence, who is every bit as disruptive as Aaron Donald. Last season he totaled 7.5 sacks, 28 QB hits and 36 pressures – far more than any other 0-tech in the league.
Matchup history is even
When it comes to the all-time series things are dead-even between these teams at 10-10. However, there’s been two distinct trends over time. The Giants won seven of their first 10 matchups from 1976-2002. Since then it’s flipped and the Seahawks have won seven of the last 10, including five of the last six meetings.
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