The Seattle Seahawks have been one of the most surprising teams in the NFL this season and have put themselves in prime position for a playoff spot after defeating the Arizona Cardinals 58-0 on Sunday.
The team may have ran up the score a bit against a Cardinals team that quit, but the Seahawks are a force to be reckoned with in the NFL and are someone that no team wants to face going forward.
Seattle is 8-5 and are a game and a half behind the San Francisco 49ers, who are 9-3-1 after a tie with the St. Louis Rams two weeks ago. The Seahawks currently own the sixth spot in the NFC playoff race, but could overtake the 49ers if they win out, since the two teams will face off in two weeks.
Both Chicago and Seattle have the same record, but the Seahawks defeated the Bears 23-17 in overtime two weeks ago and now hold the favorable tiebreaker. Due to that break and two more upcoming divisional games on the schedule, the Seattle Seahawks are in a position to not just make it to the playoffs, but to win the NFC West all together.
The team will get a chance to show what it's made of to the whole country soon, as their game on Dec. 23 against the 49ers was flexed into primetime on Sunday night football, making it a national matchup that could help decide the division crown.
According to the Associated Press, "Starting in Week 11, the league's flexible scheduling policy allows it to move a more appealing game to Sunday night. This is the first time this season a switch has been made."
Seattle has won four of five games and has been as impressive as any team in the NFL on defense, forcing 25 turnovers and ranking second in the league in overall defense. The unit is ranked second in the league in points allowed with 15.5 per game and has allowed only 17 points over the past two games.
The statistics for the Seahawks were staggering on Sunday and show what the team truly can do (albeit against a team that had lost eight in a row). Seattle held Larry Fitzgerald to just one catch--which came in the fourth quarter--and outgained the Cardinals in yards 493 to 154, including 284 rushing yards. The defense forced eight turnovers and allowed just 43 yards rushing.
Russell Wilson has been exceptional as a rookie and has been doing things no one expected when the season began. He has passed for 2,492 yards and 20 touchdowns and has been a dynamic playmaker on offense, leading the team to comebacks against the Bears and the Patriots this season.
Wilson and Andrew Luck have been setting records as rookies. According to the Associated Press, "Wilson became the first rookie quarterback to start and win his first six games at home since the 1970 merger."
When the Seahawks signed free agent quarterback Matt Flynn to three-year, $19.5 million contract in the offseason, everyone it was presumed that he would be the starter. But head coach Pete Carroll made it a competition in the preseason and Wilson won the job with pure talent and he is proving why with his play this season.
Running back Marshawn Lynch has been the most valuable player on the team and I leading the fourth-ranked rushing attack in the NFL. He has rushed for 1,266 yards and nine touchdowns and had 128 yards and three touchdowns in the blow out against the Cardinals.
Lynch has gained more yards than any running back in the NFC over the past two seasons and has gained at least 100 yards rushing in five of the last seven games. He had a season-high in yards and touchdowns on Sunday and has rushed for at least 1,200 yards and nine touchdowns each of the past two years.
The Seahawks opened the season 2-2, but has since gone 6-3 to vault themselves back into the playoff hunt. The team was most impressive in a 24-23 win on the road against New England in which Wilson hit wide receiver Sidney Rice in the end zone with less than two minutes remaining for the game-winner.
Cornerbacks Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner have been exceptional this season, but are dealing with suspensions and appeals for positive drug tests. Sherman was stellar in the game against the Patriots, forcing an interception by quarterback Tom Brady, his first in 179 attempts at the time.
The offense hasn't been very balanced, but Wilson is making plays with his arms and his feet. He has rushed for 310 yards and has the team working with a plus-98 point differential.
Next week's game against the Buffalo Bills should be an easy contest and isn't a true road game, as it is taking place in Toronto. The true test for the Seahawks will be to win the final two games against San Francisco and St. Louis, which will help decide the NFC West division.
The Seahawks would love to slide into a higher spot, since the Wild Card is jam-packed with teams looking for position. The Bears currently hold the sixth spot and are just ahead of the Washington Redskins (7-6), Dallas Cowboys (7-6), St. Louis Rams (6-6-1), the Minnesota Vikings (7-6) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-6).
