The Seattle Seahawks haven’t been great all season. Every team with a loss to the New York Giants under its belt had some things to work on.

But it might not matter. With one win over the Arizona Cardinals, the Seahawks suddenly look good in the NFC West race.

A week after coming back to beat the San Francisco 49ers, the Seahawks handed a 16-6 loss to the division-leading Arizona Cardinals. When the late games ended Sunday, the Seahawks were technically in first place of the NFC West. They were tied with the Cardinals at 6-5 with the head-to-head tiebreaker, with the 49ers a game back and the Los Angeles Rams a half-game back before playing Sunday night.

The Seahawks were fortunate the rest of the NFC West didn’t fall apart while they worked through some issues with first-year head coach Mike Macdonald. The other three teams may regret not putting more distance between themselves and Seattle, which seems to be getting better as the season progresses.

Seahawks D makes a big play

The Seahawks were in a tough game against the Cardinals when Kyler Murray made a big mistake that put his team in a big hole.

On fourth-and-1, the Cardinals ran a handoff fake, with Murray rolling to his right. It developed slowly, there was pressure on Murray, so he forced a pass. It floated to cornerback Coby Bryant, who had nothing but green in front of him. Bryant returned it 69 yards for the touchdown. That turned a 7-3 Seahawks lead into a 13-3 lead, and it’s tough to get back at the Seahawks when they’re at home.

The Seahawks can still have moments of inconsistency, and a Geno Smith interception in the fourth quarter kept Arizona in the game. Smith was scrambling and threw the ball straight to Cardinals cornerback Garrett Williams. The Seahawks were on Arizona’s 18-yard line on that play, and the interception cost them a chance at a field goal.

The Cardinals then drove downfield and although they couldn’t get into the end zone, a field goal cut Seattle’s lead to 13–6.

However, the Seahawks then came through with a game-clinching drive. They had a 13-play, 59-yard drive that took 8:12 off the clock and ended in a field goal to restore the 10-point lead.

It wasn’t the prettiest win, but one that puts the Seahawks in the playoffs.

Seahawks continue to improve

The Seahawks needed to improve as the season progressed. Macdonald came over from the Baltimore Ravens as defensive coordinator after two excellent seasons, but his plan is complicated. The Seahawks seemed to pick it up well on Sunday.

Against a Cardinals offense that played very well, Seattle allowed very little. Arizona didn’t score a touchdown. And the Seahawks defense made the biggest play of the game on the pick-6.

If the Seahawks defense continues to improve, the offense will have enough firepower to score points on most days. The rest of the NFC West wasn’t as impressive. Seattle should feel pretty good about its chances after a crucial win on Sunday.