Seahawks 2022 schedule: 17 thoughts on 17 games
Seahawks 2022 schedule: 17 thoughts on 17 games
Seaside Boe(nus): In case you ever wanna search your email for Seattle's schedule
There’s something so Orwellian about the NFL telling me that I “care” about the schedule release. No matter how many times I hear that ‘22=5, I stand by the fact that I’ve never marked my calendar to remind myself when the NFL calendar is being released.
Then again, I’ve also never cared about uniforms, jerseys, team colors, numbers, fantasy football, the broadcast booth, or your “hot food takes” either, so maybe the only person with a dystopian heart is your own Seaside Joe.
However, the NFL did release the Seahawks schedule on Thursday and here it is for your wallpaping pleasure:
Week 1 - at Broncos (MNF)
So, if the Seahawks had kept Russell Wilson and re-signed Duane Brown, wouldn’t Seattle be favored in this game? Doesn’t that kind of mean, at least a little bit, that Wilson was at least already in a comparable situation before going to the Broncos? I understand it if Wilson left for the money and brand opportunities. I don’t buy that he’s on a better team. News that Jerry Jeudy was arrested on Thursday, coupled with the fact that this will be the Denver debuts of Wilson and head coach Nathaniel Hackett tells me that the Seahawks couldn’t have drawn a better time to face the Broncos. It could also be too soon to expect Bradley Chubb to be “game ready”.
Week 2 - at 49ers
If the 49ers are starting Trey Lance, all bets are off—in either direction. Maybe they’re the best team in the NFC. Maybe they’re one of the worst. San Francisco may have the widest range of outcomes and we’ve seen how often Kyle Shanahan goes against season expectations. I think going to the Bay early is a good thing for Seattle. It may also be a coinflip that Deebo Samuel is in this one—but I can’t imagine a scenario where he’s playing for a different team in 2022. The time to make a trade should’ve been before the draft.
Week 3 - vs Falcons
Arthur Smith is a sleeper candidate to be the first coach fired in 2022. That’s unless he’s actually a great coach—but can he make an offense GO without Derrick Henry? Seahawks have won four of their last five regular season games against Atlanta.
Week 4 - vs Lions
I can’t let my adoration for Dan Campbell, Brad Holmes, and Jameson Williams (who won’t be ready for this one) cloud my always-accurate judgement of Jared Goff. The Lions are a sleeper team to reach the postseason as a wild card, but this is a game that Seattle should at least expect to win. Seahawks have won 7 of their last 8 against the Lions.
Week 5 - at Saints
There are rumors that Sean Payton could land with the Panthers in 2023. But those may have been started by Matt Rhule after he found out that Sam Darnold was indeed still the QB. If the Saints crater in 2022, that’ll be the best thing to happen to Payton’s resume since people forgot about Bountygate. I just don’t understand the Saints… Jameis Winston is bad. This hasn’t changed. But boy the rest of that team is good.
Seattle hasn’t beaten New Orleans since 2014.
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Week 6 - vs Cardinals
No DeAndre Hopkins in this one. I suspect Kyler Murray will be there. Is there a scenario in which Arizona is 2-15? Always.
At this point, it’s hard to not feel slightly optimistic about the Seahawks’ chances to at least start 4-2. Sorry Orwell. Sor’well.
Week 7 - at Chargers
I’ve been high on the 2022 Chargers since they drafted Justin Herbert in 2020. The pieces are now seemingly in place. If you’re going to draw the Chargers, do it in the first half of the schedule, but the presence of Herbert may cancel out all past follies.
Week 8 - vs Giants
Who is the worst QB on Seattle’s schedule? Suspects: Marcus Mariota, Jared Goff, Jameis Winston, Sam Darnold, and Daniel Jones are the easiest calls. (Get “Zach Wilson” off your mind right now and go to bed.) There’s a decent chance that the Seahawks never face Darnold. Possibly not Jones either. Maybe not even Mariota.
But Daniel Jones could be the worst, barring whatever backups Seattle gets to face.
Week 9 - at Cardinals
The Seahawks are 3-2 against Kyler Murray, but fell to Colt McCoy last season. It could be McCoy again at some point.
Week 10 - vs Bucs (Germany, 6:30 AM)
This would be 9:30 AM Tampa Bay time. Does Tom Brady have 17 more regular season games left in him? Seattle is 9-5 all-time against the Bucs. The last was a 40-34 win in 2019.
Week 11 - Bye (Weidersehen)
Week 12 - vs Las Vegas Raiders
I think we can all agree that we wish this game was in Las Vegas. If you haven’t seen Allegiant Stadium yet, it’s beautiful. Barring a 17th game opportunity, Seattle won’t get their road game to Vegas until 2026. The Raiders look better to me, but I’m not buying into the hype that Davante Adams makes them a Super Bowl contender. The Seahawks have won their last two games against the Raiders, including a 27-3 win in 2018.
Week 13 - at LA Rams
Russell Wilson wasn’t doing much to help the Seahawks beat the Rams, so I can’t imagine that not having Russell Wilson will do anything to hurt Seattle’s chances of beating the Rams. This has been ugly loss after ugly loss since Aaron Donald (and especially Sean McVay) arrived. The Rams have won 12 of their last 16 against the Seahawks. Having a stronger rushing offense this season, thanks mostly to smartly using a second round pick on Kenneth Walker III, should serve as part of the solution.
Yep, that’s right… I’m a troll.
Week 14 - vs Panthers
Ugly and inflammatory if this is a loss. The Seahawks are 10-4 all time against Carolina, including the last three. If Seattle stumbles out of the gate with a 1-5 record or something, then surely games like these in December could be for an all-important top-five pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. There will be many teams looking to grab one of those highly-rated QBs, and Matt Corral does nothing to prevent the Panthers from looking in that direction. (That we know of.)
Week 15 - 49ers (TNF)
So we’ve learned that Wilson is worth 3-4 primetime games a year. In fact, the Seahawks only non-TNF primetime game (which is required by the NFL to give every team one) is the one in which they’re facing Russell Wilson. Seattle has won 15 of their last 17, and 17 of their last 20 games against the 49ers.
Week 16 - at Chiefs (Saturday, Dec. 24)
Seattle ended a three-game losing streak to the Chiefs by beating them 38-31 in 2018. I’d say KC may have a chance to get back in the win column this time.
Some are calling this the Austin Blythe revenge game.
Week 17 - vs Jets
Just wait. If I’m wrong about Zach Wilson, then maybe I’ll lose all my Grayson McCall credibility. But I have to say that as unqualified as I should be to have an opinion, my track record on quarterbacks has been relatively impeccable. In the last two years alone, I was ahead of the curve on Justin Herbert being great, on Tua Tagovaila being bad, on Mac Jones being the best rookie of 2021, on Justin Fields finishing at the bottom, and on the value of quarterbacks in the 2022 draft.
I’m not a coach, I’m not a scout, I’m not a quarterback. I watch the games, that’s it. Few quarterbacks come along with whatever “it” is that Zach Wilson has and I won’t be surprised if New York is playing for a wild card berth in this one.
Unsurprisingly, Seattle is 3-0 against the Jets under Pete Carroll, winning by a combined scored of 95-27.
Week 18 - vs Rams
LA could be sitting starters for this one. What’s your Win-Loss count after going through the schedule? Tell me in the comments!
I really have no idea. I don't have any idea who should or will win the starting QB gig, or what the team will be like when that happens, whatever it is. Interesting year to be a fan. No expectations from me for this year. I do really like the longer term outlook on the team, though. Otherwise, shrug. Thanks for all of your time and efforts.
I'm rooting for 2-15, a top-2 pick and a new stud rookie QB. But that probably won't happen under Pete. They could be as good as 7-10 IMHO. But 5-12 sounds about right.