It wasn’t easy, and it’s almost never easy against the Arizona Cardinals, but it was still a win for the Seattle Seahawks. Even the best Seahawks teams had to play out 19-3, 17-7, 20-6, 14-9 type games regardless of the quality of their NFC West opponent, so 16-6 is just another chapter in the book. This was another virtual must-win and the Seahawks won this one in a way that is hugely encouraging on one side of the ball.

Let’s go to Winners and Losers for the last time this month!

Winners

Leonard Williams

That was one of the best games I’ve seen from a Seahawks defensive lineman in a long time. He had 2.5 sacks, several other pressures from Kyler Murray and a phenomenal performance against the run. James Conner only had 8 yards on 7 carries!

“Big Cat” was partying all afternoon, which is exactly why the Seahawks traded and extended him.

He should be Defensive Player of the Week based on what he did against a quality offensive line and a talented quarterback who is notoriously difficult to bring down.

Julian Love

I believe that without Williams, the other former New York Giant would have been the player of the game. He’s still having a Pro Bowl-caliber season, recording a pair of passes defended and two tackles behind the sticks. He was excellent in pass coverage all game. If Love doesn’t make many tackles on the field? That’s a good thing. He’s done his damn job and he’s been doing it well pretty much all year.

Coby Bryant

Happy Birthday to Coby’s Mom! Your son’s birthday present was the pick-6 that changed the game and perhaps the season. Sometimes a fourth-down interception is negative because of the field position flip, but he saw space up front and found his first NFL touchdown. Bryant has seemingly retained his spot as the starting safety, with the returning Rayshawn Jenkins coming in as the third safety.

It’s up to Bryant to continue to play an important role in this improved defense.

Devon Witherspoon

That interception by Coby doesn’t happen without Witherspoon. He saw Kyler Murray running on 4th and 1, had the speed to run with him, and Murray panicked and made a very bad decision that almost cost them the game. Consecutive weeks in which Spoon realizes turnover without the turnover being credited. The only thing left for him is to actually make his own sales, and I think that will happen soon.

Tyrice Knight

I’m not sure Knight actually had a very good game and he was certainly part of the reason why Trey McBride had a career day, but he recorded his first NFL sack and came very close to his own fumbled return touchdown , only for the referees. to topple a Leonard Williams strip bag. Right now I’m looking for a Knight who shows promise and isn’t a clear downgrade from Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker, and that’s what I’ve seen over the past two weeks.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Dare I say he’s WR1? No, I won’t go that far yet. But the Seahawks have a WR1A and WR1B with JSN and DK Metcalf. Smith-Njigba led the Seahawks with 6 catches for 77 yards and the only offensive touchdown of the game, and he had the most crucial offensive play (other than the TD) with his 46-yard scamper on that screen pass that Ryan Grubb likes to call so much .

JSN has a good shot at a 100-catch, 1,000-yard season in Year 2.

Kenneth Walker III

Walker had almost nothing to work with on the ground (16 carries for 41 yards), but he threw in as a checkdown option and gained 52 yards on 4 receptions, including a nifty hurdle on his 21-yard gain. Could we see Walker running some real routes at some point? I feel like he’s a great wheel route option, similar to what we saw against the Atlanta Falcons.

Jason Myers

Yes, there was a missed PAT, but it came on a longer kick due to Devon Witherspoon’s penalty. His field goal to end the game was a super clutch shot. We’re talking about a 50-yard field goal in driving rain, and he hit the ball right up the middle. Myers has been very good on field goals since the fateful end of the game against the Giants, which was hardly his fault.

Michael Dickson

We’ve seen too much Dickson kick, but when he’s going to kick, he has to pin Arizona deep. Three of his punts kept the Cardinals within the 20, and he had a brilliant start at the 3-yard line, ruined by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by Pharaoh Brown.

Mike McDonald

I know a mad scientist at work when I see one. This three-game stretch of defensive performances, all against division rivals, was overwhelmingly positive. They cover well, they generate pressure and the run defense was fantastic. Arizona’s rushing attack has been deadly in recent weeks, with the Cards failing to convert a single first down offense. Kyler Murray was a non-factor as a runner.

Seeing improvement in this defense was paramount given the demise of the declining Pete Carroll’s defense, and after a strong start and some very difficult weeks that followed, we’re seeing top performances against better offenses and better quarterbacks .

And regardless of defense, penalties have been significantly reduced over the past two games. There is greater discipline being shown compared to what we have seen for much of the year.

Losers

The offensive line’s continued run blocked the misery

I actually didn’t think the pass protection was as terrible as it could have been, but keep in mind the Cardinals don’t have a dominant defensive line. I believe the simulated pressure and changes in coverage outplayed the offensive line and at times Geno Smith. I’d pin a few of those sacks on coverage and not bad blocking.

The run blocking is just dismal. There were some really good runs and the Seahawks still only had 63 yards on 22 carries from Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet. Far too often there were free rushers that came all the way in the back and didn’t give them a chance to do much of anything.

Seattle ranks 32nd in EPA/play for rushing offenses as of Week 5. That will remain the case after another largely ineffective performance.

Geno Smith’s weekly “WTF?” moments

Without the interception, I’d say Geno Smith played well, given the noted lack of a run game and the apparent difficulty in getting the Seahawks receivers open. But man, this has got to stop. I can forgive the interceptions where he fell victim to drops and tipped passes, but these are weeks of horrific throws that could have been absolute killers. The 49ers INT had to be a throwaway, while the Cards INT had to be a scramble and slide or a throwaway.

Smith is destined to lead the NFL in picks for the rest of this season, barring a boost from Jordan Love (who is very sensitive to bad picks). Bad luck picks are bad luck picks, but bad, high-leverage decisions when the Seahawks rarely win by blowout can’t keep happening.

I credit him for bouncing back from the INT with that game-ending drive where he went 5/6 for 40 yards and converted two big third downs.

Kenny McIntosh

Laviska Shaneault Jr’s injury has resulted in a number of kick returns for Kenny Mac. Things have gone very badly for them. His first return last week was made with a bounce and returned to the 15-yard line. Against Arizona, he bizarrely took a kick from the front of the end zone and strolled to the 18. Why? Kneeling gets the ball on the 30.

Seattle’s special teams have quietly made major improvements, but the return game remains less than stellar.

Zach Charbonnet

I think if he has space he can be a capable back. Until then, he needs to have his snaps reduced. The only thing in his favor is the pass pro, and he gave up another sack by failing to chip an edge rusher. He’s still barely a factor in the run game (6 carries for 22 yards, albeit with a few better rushes in the second half) and he had no catches.

Charbonnet is statistically one of the worst RBs in the NFL in terms of yards per carry, conversion rate, etc. You can’t do that AND miscues in pass protection.

Final comments

• We witness Tyler Lockett’s sunset. He is clearly the third option in the team and the passing game runs through JSN and DK. That’s fine! This is why JSN was established. There may be some vintage Lockett games and catches to come – he’s still excellent at drawing DPI penalties – but he’s not the same guy from his 2018-2022 seasons. Enjoy him while you can, because he will be in Ring of Honor.
• Ryan Grubb needs to, MUST, start moving the pocket more often. Faster play, more rollout, more things to keep the offense on schedule instead of game planning what he wants versus what the offense can accomplish. The offense wasn’t very good today and I don’t know if that will be fixed this season.
• Christian Haynes looked like he was playing well from what I saw, but I’ll have to go All-22. He will be needed now that Anthony Bradford is out with an ankle injury. I am also happy that Abe Lucas escaped unscathed for the first time this year after a full workload.
• Byron Murphy II didn’t have a big day, but that 4th-and-1 pick-6 was made possible by his run stuff on James Conner on 3rd-and-3.
• Pharaoh Brown stiff-armed Sean Murphy into the Earth’s core. That in itself is probably the only reason I didn’t put him in the Losers column after a drive-killing hold and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on a punt.
• I know the New York Jets are a clown show ready for Cancun tee times and holidays, but they still have enough talent to make it a tough game. Don’t take this game lightly like you did against the other bad New York team, and you should be ready to go 7-5… maybe with a full one-game lead in the NFC West.