Seattle Seahawks defense played masterfully in 'wasted effort' against Rams

Sam Darnold's turnovers should not overshadow what was an incredible performance by Mike Macdonald's defense.

Nov 16, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas (42) celebratesl after recovering a fumble during the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

All anyone is going to talk about is Sam Darnold's four interceptions against the LA Rams - but it would be a mistake to overlook what the Seattle Seahawks defense accomplished yesterday.

Despite Darnold's turnovers putting them in bad spots over and over, Seattle managed to hold Matt Stafford to just 130 total passing yards - and gave the Seahawks a chance to win on the road at the last second against what looks like the toughest team in the NFL right now.

At least one analyst was paying attention to the Seahawks' defensive effort. Here's what Kevin Patra at NFL.com had to say about it.

Seahawks defense gets credit

"Seahawks defense plays masterfully. What a wasted effort by Mike Macdonald’s defense. Seattle stuffed the Rams offense repeatedly after two early touchdowns -- one coming off an interception. Seattle turned L.A. over on downs on the opening drive of the game. After Darnold’s first INT, it took the Rams four plays to get 3 yards. Seattle allowed a single drive over five plays on the afternoon on 11 possessions."

Nov 16, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams running back Blake Corum (22) runs the ball against Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (91) during the first half at SoFi Stadium. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The best work was done in the trenches by Byron Murphy, Leonard Williams and the rest of the Seahawks' defensive line. While they were unable to land a sack on Stafford, they kept him under pressure almost the entire gme.

Seattle also got some strong games from the secondary - especially safety Coby Bryant, who forced a fumble and made some clutch stops. Cornerback Riq Woolen also continued his run of strong play in recent weeks after bombing early in the season.

Out on the edge, Boye Mafe and DeMarcus Lawrence were consistently disruptive, as well.

That's a lot of quality performances from a unit that has to be considered the best in the league, especially after doing this against the team that ranked second in points per game coming into this past week.

Seahawks defense built to win

General manager John Schneider has to get some love for putting the pieces together for this group. Trades for Leonard Williams and Ernest Jones made a big impact, as did free agent signings for Lawrence and Uchenna Nwosu.

This defense was really built through the NFL draft, though - with stellar picks on Devon Witherspoon, Riq Woolen, Derick Hall and Byron Murphy, to name a few. They've also found some undrafted gems like Ty Okada and Drake Thomas.

This is head coach Mike Macdonald's show, though - and this defense would probably look much different if Pete Carroll were still in charge. He doesn't seem to be getting any buzz for Coach of the Year, but Macdonald definitely belongs in the conversation.

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