Seahawks-Chargers reaction: Stock Up, Stock Down
Seaside Joe 1328: The best players, the worst players, and updates on Ken Walker III
The Seattle Seahawks entered their Week 7 contest against the Los Angeles Chargers with something to prove, as their 3-3 record has been propped up with wins against the Detroit Lions, New Orleans Saints, and Arizona Cardinals. Those three teams have combined for a 6-14 record, with one of those wins coming on Thursday as the Cardinals beat the Saints. But a win over a winning Chargers team would not only prove that the Seahawks were legitimately threatening against good franchises, it would also give Geno Smith a better record than Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford, Derek Carr, Trevor Lawrence and… Russell Wilson.
Well guess what: Geno Smith (and Ken Walker) do have a better record than all of those quarterbacks and teams. The Seahawks beat the Chargers 37-23 and are currently FIRST in the NFC West at 4-3.
Seattle faces the 6-1 New York Giants in Week 8 for a “Battle of the Shocking NFC Teams That Might Actually Reach the Playoffs.”
Walker rushed for 168 yards and scored two more touchdowns, Smith went 20/27 for 210 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, and Seattle pulled out an unexpected victory despite losing a key starter early in the contest.
DK Metcalf, Uchenna Nwosu, and Phil Haynes left the game with injuries. Nwosu returned, the others did not.
The Chargers were supposed to be good, but at 4-3 have fallen behind the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West. The Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers 44-23 on Sunday, meaning that the Seahawks are all alone in first place in the division; the Rams are on a bye week and the Cardinals are 3-4.
Seattle was looking for a “prove it” game and they got it. And Pete Carroll should be one of the midseason favorites for Coach of the Year, while sharing honors with John Schneider for Executive of the Year. Sorry to the Haters.
Now the Stock Up/Stock Down report. Add your Stock Reports in the Seaside Joe comments section and please consider upgrading to premium for only $5/month—I heard a rumor that your support is what’s helping the Seahawks win!
Stock Up
S Ryan Neal
This was a breakout performance by Neal, coming up with an interception, two passes defensed, and some key tackles. The Seahawks are desperate for good safety play this season and it would be a huge boost to the defense if Neal can play like this for the remainder of the year.
OLB Darrell Taylor
Taylor seemed to go quiet after taking the ball away from Justin Herbert on a sack, but he did have that forced fumble. Taylor now has three sacks.
WR Marquise Goodwin
Goodwin caught four-of-four targets for 67 yards and two touchdowns, with all of that coming in the first half.
RB Ken Walker III
This is actually a TYPICAL type of Ken Walker game if you’ve been following Walker’s career with Seaside Joe all year. The hype, the love, the excitement of Walker over the last three games is of NO SURPRISE to Seasiders. I had “200 total yards” for Walker on my Seahawks-Chargers vision board and he finished with 23 carries for 168 yards and a 74-yard game-sealing touchdown run. I’ll take it.
DE Bruce Irvin
Irvin’s stock had nowhere to go but UP! Starting from complete scratch and called up for the first time today, Irvin got pressure on Justin Herbert, made a tackle, and was a presence on defense.
In fact, the defense hasn’t just been acceptable the last two weeks… It’s good.
Stock Down
WR Dee Eskridge
If a player can have a “complete game” for doing good, or an “incomplete game” for doing okay, then what do you call this one for Eskridge? “Unforgivable?
Eskridge fumbled a toss play, had offensive pass interference, caught 0 of 1 target, and made an appearance in the medical tent. With Marquise Goodwin shining, Eskridge seems to be falling out of conention for playing time. Even when Metcalf is out.
ST Joey Blount
A weird penalty on a Michael Dickson punt—Blount disregarded the rules and hit the returner before he could fair catch the ball—cost Seattle field position.
G Jake Curhan
Curhan came into the game for Haynes and immediately—I mean, immediately—gave up a sack that could have cost the Seahawks a touchdown. Seattle was forced to settle for a field goal.
TE Noah Fant
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Stock Up and Stock Down
CB Mike Jackson
I’m not saying that Jackson didn’t have a good game. But could he have had an even better game? Jackson dropped a potential game-sealing interception in the fourth quarter.
All I can say is WOW!!! Wow, wow, wow!!! Did I say wow?
You guys know what a stick in the mud I've been, again and again, this season. Today, I've been inspired to finally suspend disbelief. Will this team make the playoffs? I don't know but why not? From this moment forward, that's what I'm pulling for. And Walker -- wow! Bryce Hall looked great for New York today too until he went down, a cautionary tale for all teams. But K9 has gotten past the injury that bit him at the beginning of the season and shown the league that he's a man with whom they must reckon.
As for Geno, I'm a believer. To the point that I've actually come around to the notion that the team might want to sign him to a two-year extension right now. And then, sure, feel free to draft a QB. But let's bag Geno. If we don't need him next season, I'm sure he'll trade nicely.
What else? The defense. Really stepped up today. The Chargers are not as good as their record would indicate. They're all banged up. But we beat them on the road. The NFC West is surprisingly weak. So why not Seattle? If we go out early in the playoffs, fine. Let's take our best shot to go as deep as we can -- and who knows.
In case all this goodness wasn't enough, Denver went down today and Rypien played well. Not great but better than Wilson. Does this create a QB controversy in Denver? I have no hatred toward Russ. In fact, I wish him well (after we get the first pick in the draft this year). Could today's loss cause them to start trading assets? What a great day.
Solid win against a good team. This was not the Hawks team I was expecting, but definitely a Hawks team I'm proud to root for every week.