The Seahawks may be playing their final game of the year today. A win over the Cardinals won’t guarantee them a spot in the playoffs – but it would at least match last season’s record of 9-8.
Here are five things to know heading into today’s game.
1
Geno Smith is on fire
The first thing you need to know about these Seahawks right now is that they are being carried by their veteran quarterback, Geno Smith. In fact, over his last three starts nobody is playing better ball right now. While he missed a couple of games due to a groin injury, Smith leads the NFL in QBR since Week 13. Smith has been particularly impressive while under pressure, delivering solid production even under heavy duress.
2
Kyler Murray is back
Kyler Murray returned to Arizona’s lineup in mid-November after sitting out the first half of the season with an ACL tear. He’s steadily been getting better since his return and last week’s superb game against the Eagles proved that he’s back to himself again. Murray threw three touchdown passes and led the Cards to a comeback win over the Eagles.
3
Seattle can't tackle
Ever since they got embarrassed by Baltimore back in Week 9, the Seahawks’ tackling has been devolving. Things finally hit bottom last week when they missed 20 tackles against the Steelers, costing them the game. Since Week 11 this has been the worst run defending team in the NFL, and whichever team is second-worst isn’t close.
4
Cards have NFL's worst defense
As bad as the Seahawks look on this side of the ball right now, the Cardinals are actually worse. For the season only the Commanders have allowed more points per game and heading into Week 18 Arizona is ranked No. 32 in the league in defensive DVOA. In other words, fans should not expect to see a whole lot of three-and-outs today.
5
Season on the line
The Seahawks still have a chance to make the postseason, but they’ll need to take care of business against the Cardinals today and they’ll also need some help from the NFC North. The Bears are three-point underdogs against the Packers but if they can pull off an upset and Seattle wins, then the Seahawks will sneak into the playoffs as the No. 7 seed.
