Seahawks took division lead, now they must prove it

Why the next 2 games matter so much

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Charles R. Dyer: So what do you think of our chances to win the division?

After Charles posed his question, I wrote about the various Seahawks playoff picture scenarios for Monday’s newsletter. My opinion is that we (fans and media) can only speculate about how good the Seahawks are after beating the Cardinals twice and needing Leonard Williams to bail them out of losing to the Jets.

Only the Seahawks can prove their believers right and their skeptics wrong and how do they do that? Even if Seattle just splits the next two games, that could be the indication that fans are looking for that the Seahawks are good enough to win the division and pose a threat in the playoffs:

Just beating one these next two teams would be the highest quality opponent that the Seahawks has defeated all season. Going 0-2 wouldn’t end their season, but it would signal to everyone that Seattle isn’t ready to compete with even the second tier NFC teams.

Chuck Turtleman: It seems possible enough that I feel safe to ask.. should we host a game at home, who would you most want us to face?

In most scenarios in which the Seahawks would win the NFC West, they end up with the 3 seed and face either the Packers or Moons. So it’s actually an easy answer because I’m not looking to “settle any scores” or “get revenge” against any opponent…

The Seahawks are 3-0 all-time against Washington in the playoffs.

The Seahawks are 1-3 all-time against Green Bay in the playoffs.

NOBODY cares who you beat the playoffs. Nobody. There’s no “prove it”, there’s no “if you beat the better team you get more brownie points”, there’s no extra respect or rememberence of how you got there if you’re team is fortunate enough to win the Super Bowl. All people remember is that you won so the easier the playoff road, the better.

It doesn’t matter to me if those were different teams in the past…Green Bay is historically good in the playoffs, Washington has won two playoff games in the last 31 years and three of their most recent five postseason losses have come against Seattle.

Grant: After that last game I think a poll is in order. How should the Seahawks split RB carries against Green Bay?

Super Joes can submit questions, comments, or poll ideas!

When both have been healthy, Kenneth Walker gets about 75% of the touches compared to Zach Charbonnet, and the disparity is mostly in rushing attempts. So I’m going to make the poll Walker 75% (which has been the norm) or Charbonnet 75% (which would reverse their roles) or 50/50 (which has never been the case when both are healthy).

My apologies to Kenny McIntosh fans, I can only handle one committee question at a time.

Eduardo: If JSN's production continues, how should the Hawks approach DK's new contract talks? I understand that DK's strength's (Defenses respecting his speed/ability to stretch the field) has allowed JSN to get more favorable coverage, but can that be achieved while not overpaying DK, if he seeks Justin Jefferson and AJ Brown type money?

This question was asked last week as well, so I will have to refer back to last week’s answer. Eduardo did also add, “If so, what could be some options/comparables out there and if trade, what could the Hawks stand to gain?”

This is something I can only address after the season is over, but in general I don’t think the objective is to get a comparable DK Metcalf. If that was the goal, just keep DK Metcalf. The Seahawks already have evidence to prove that they have a functional offense without Metcalf, so where could those resources be re-allocated if Seattle does end up trading him?

JohnnyLondon: One swallow does not a summer make.

The Cards probably have the worst defensive front in football (if you’re starting LJ, you ain’t exactly a buzzsaw), so while it was fantastic to see the Oline opening holes for Charbs to exploit, there is the gnawing feeling that it might be an outlier, and a swift return to ineptitude might be in the offing.

So just how good is the Packers front? Is there reason to hope that the line can hold up again?

Not as good as they expected it to be, but steadily improving, which makes Green Bay sort of a mirror image version of Seattle’s offensive line?

The 18% pass-rush win rate by Lukas Van Ness (2023 first round pick) in the last four games would rank just outside the top-10 for edge rushers, by the way. Rashan Gary is the Packers best pass rusher (by far?) and he’s not having the greatest season either. He may not be a carbon copy of Derick Hall, but their numbers are practically identical: They both have 23 pressures and 6 sacks.

The difference being that Seattle has much more talent around Hall this season than what the Packers have around Gary. Right now Kenny Clark, a three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle, is nowhere close to Leonard Williams in terms of the impact he’s having this season.

The “how improved is Seattle’s O-line?” question is a great one, but maybe better resolved in two weeks against the Vikings.

Seaside Joe 2110