The Seattle Seahawks looked unbeatable in their 34-7 thrashing on the New Orleans Saints on Monday night.Russell Wilson looked great, throwing for 310 yards and three touchdowns, and the Seahawks’ defense was just as good. Prior to last night’s game, Drew Brees had thrown for more than 300 yards in eight of the 12 games this season. Last night, Seattle held Brees to 143 yards and a 22.7 Total QBR, 16 points lower than his previous low.
Seattle is the most balanced team in the NFL. The Seahawks rank second in the NFL in points per game (28.3) and second in the NFL in points per game allowed (15.5).
When the Seahawks play in Seattle, they’re practically unbeatable. Seriously. Russell Wilson 14-0 in his career at CenturyLink Field.
At 11-1, the Seahawks have pretty much locked up the No. 1 seed in the NFC and will have home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and that’s a scary thing for the rest of the conference.
Prior to last night’s game, most experts believed the Saints had the best chance at taking down the Seahawks in Seattle. That’s all changed now.
The only team in the NFC with a chance to beat the Seahawks in Seattle is the Detroit Lions. Detroit is coming off of an impressive Thanksgiving day victory over Green Bay.
Offensively, Detroit is one of the best teams in the league. The Lions rank fourth in the NFL in points per game (27.2), and Matthew Stafford has an arsenal of weapons to get the ball to. Over the past few weeks, Detroit has proven it can run the ball between the tackles, which has given this offense a nice balance.
Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman is a beast, but can he cover Calvin Johnson on an island? Sherman can shut down just about any receiver in the league, but Johnson is a different animal.
The one major area of concern for this Seahawks’ defense is the flats, and Reggie Bush is electric with the ball in the flats. If these two teams meet, look for Detroit to throw a lot of swing passes to Bush to get him into open space against linebackers.
Detroit’s offense poses some issues for the Seahawks, but it’s the defense that could really give Seattle fits. Seattle has the second-best rushing offense in the league, but Detroit has the third-best rush defense.
Something has gotta give, and it may be Seattle’s offensive line. The Seahawks’ o-line has been shaky all year, and Detroit’s front four is as good as any in the NFL. Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley do a great job clogging up running lanes in the middle, and Stephen Tulloch and DeAndre Levy are tackling machines.
Russell Wilson and Seattle’s passing game has been brilliant at times this year like last night. At other times, like Seattle’s Week 4 overtime win over the Houston Texans, the passing game has really struggled and the main reason for the struggles have been the offensive line.
Seattle’s 0-line has given up 30 sacks this year, which ranks 11th (tied) in the NFL. The Lions only have 27 sacks as a team on the year, but sacked Packers QB Matt Flynn seven times last week. Ziggy Ansah, Willie Young, Suh and Fairley do a great job harassing quarterbacks, and have the speed and athleticism to contain Russell Wilson.
It wouldn’t be easy, and the Seahawks would be the favorites.
But if any team in the NFC is going to beat the Seahawks in Seattle, it’s going to be the Detroit Lions.
By Mike Lucas
