3 Up, 3 Down: Winners, Losers From Seahawks Week 16 Loss vs. Cardinals
Following a 27-13 defeat against Arizona, Seattle has now fallen to 11-4 on the year.
After the Seahawks went up 7-0 over the Cardinals in the first quarter, it appeared that they would be out to the races against their divisional rival. Unfortunately, the outcome played out much differently than the opening minutes portrayed, as Seattle struggled to perform on either side of the football.
Specifically, Seattle was held to just a single touchdown and 224 total yards of offense. They also struggled to move the chains, converting only one out of 12 third down conversions. While injuries played a major role for Seattle, they’ll need to regroup before next week’s season finale.
Despite this embarrassing loss, the Seahawks can still win their division and potentially earn a first-round bye. In order to accomplish that feat, they must first defeat the 49ers at home next Sunday and hope for some help from other teams.
Let's dive into our three big winners and three losers from Week 16.
Three Up
Michael Dickson
Since Seattle's offense failed miserably on third down, Dickson played a starring role for Arizona. While the punter being highlighted isn't normally a good thing, the second-year punter kicked seven times for a total of 313 yards, his largest yardage total since Week 1 against Cincinnati.
The Texas graduate pinned the Cardinals' offense deep into their own red zone multiple times, including a punt downed by safety Marquise Blair at the one-yard line. If not for Dickson's strong performance, Arizona likely would've went into the break up by more than a 14-point advantage.
Shaquem Griffin
Aside from Griffin, the Seahawks struggled mightily to create pressure on quarterbacks Kyler Murray and Brett Hundley. Overall, Seattle managed to generate just three quarterback hits and a pair of sacks. While the second-year pro was only able to produce a single tackle, the Cardinals certainly felt his presence multiple times off the edge.
During a pair of third down passing plays in the first half, Griffin exploded around the corner towards Murray, forcing the rookie quarterback to throw away the football. If the Seahawks are once again without key members of their defense such as Jadeveon Clowney next week, Griffin will need to step up during their pivotal showdown against the 49ers.
Russell Wilson
Luckily for Seattle, Wilson appears to be fine after appearing to suffer a minor ankle injury during the game. Playing behind an injury-riddled offensive line, the eighth-year quarterback was forced to continuously escape out of the pocket and get rid of the football before he wanted to. Given the lack of protection, he was ultimately sacked five different times by the Cardinals, including four times by Chandler Jones.
Overall, Wilson completed just 16 of his 31 pass attempts for a season-low 169 yards and rushed just a pair of times for only two yards. But on a day where the rest of the offense couldn't do anything, he was still able to make a few plays and did conduct an excellent opening drive - let's just say the bar has been set really low on the "three up" part of the column this week. He completed three of his first four passes, including a three-yard touchdown completion to fullback Nick Bellore.
Three Down
Injuries
Entering this week, the Seahawks were already without three starters on defense (Jadeveon Clowney, Shaquill Griffin, and Quandre Diggs), as well as their starting left tackle Duane Brown. That list only got larger against the Cardinals, especially in the backfield.
During the first half, the Seahawks lost Chris Carson to a hip injury and C. J. Prosise to a broken arm. It could have been worse, but luckily, K. J. Wright and Mike Iupati returned later in the game after being evaluated on the sideline. Unfortunately, it looks like Carson and Prosise could be done for the season, leaving the team with just one healthy running back on the roster along with a myriad of other injuries.
Run Defense
Teaming up with Murray, Kenyan Drake has provided a spark for Arizona's offense as a runner and a receiver. Throughout the majority of this Week 16 matchup, Seattle failed to contain the fourth-year running back. Following Seattle’s lone touchdown early in the first quarter, Drake shot through a crease untouched and rushed 80 yards to the end zone to tie the game at 7 apiece.
Prior to halftime, Drake ran all over the Seahawks’ defense with 109 rushing yards. In total, Drake ran 24 times for 166 yards and averaged 6.9 yards per carry. He put the dagger in Seattle late with a three-yard rushing touchdown to extend the lead back to 14 points with under five minutes to play.
Jamarco Jones
With Brown sitting out due to a knee injury, the Seahawks were without their most experienced lineman protecting Wilson's blind side. However, Seattle definitely didn’t expect Jamarco Jones to be such a liability in his third start of the season.
While the second-year pro was tasked with trying to block three-time Pro Bowler Chandler Jones, he didn’t buy himself any sympathy after missing multiple assignments, which forced Wilson to get rid of the ball. With Brown slated for surgery, Jones will need to improve his pocket protection next week against San Francisco's hungry defense and it's also possible George Fant could get the start next weekend due to his struggles.
