Analyst determines whether Seahawks are 'fool's gold' or not

Sunday’s game at home versus the Indianapolis Colts was not a great look for the Seattle Seahawks (11-3). The Seahawks almost allowed the Colts, led by recently unretired Philip Rivers, to complete a comeback had most of the Seahawks’ defense and the passing offense stepped up.

Ultimately, the Seahawks’ star of the game was kicker Jason Myers and his six field goals as he led the Seahawks to an 18-16 win over the Colts. While some experts see this close win as a sign of how the Seahawks may have potentially dropped, one expert thinks it’s a bit of an overreaction.

CBS Sports’ Tyler Sullivan believes the Seahawks are still one of the better teams in the league. Seattle may have had its worst offensive performance of the year against a depleted Colts team by accounting for only 314 total yards, with 50 of them coming from the running game.

The Seahawks were 2-of-13 on third down conversions and 0-of-2 in the red zone. Quarterback Sam Darnold was still 22-of-36 in his passes for 271 yards behind another rough performance from the offensive line. Wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught seven receptions for 113 yards.

Defensively, the Seahawks didn’t properly prepare for the Colts’ quick-and-short passing offense as they allowed too much spacing for pass-catchers to catch short passes or screens consistently. Seattle only accounted for one sack, five tackles for loss, and four quarterback hits as Rivers quickly dumped the ball.

Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba running after the catch in the Week 11 game against the Los Angeles Rams. — Nov 16, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) against Los Angeles Rams cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. (1) during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Sullivan is among the analysts that the Seahawks had their attention on the Thursday Night Football matchup as they host the Los Angeles Rams (11-3). The Seahawks have been looking to redeem themselves since suffering the 21-19 Week 11 loss.

He believes that the elite defense and the great play of JSN are enough to help the Seahawks get into the playoffs, even though they were barely capable of beating a depleted Indianapolis. If the Seahawks were to overlook the Colts and lose on Sunday, that loss would be on head coach Mike Macdonald.

The Seahawks have been hearing from the outside about how they aren’t better than the Rams and wouldn’t make the playoffs. Seattle had every opportunity to defeat the Rams, but four interceptions from Darnold were too much to overcome.

There is pressure on the Seahawks to defeat the Rams, especially after losing close in Week 11 and four of their last five games. There is a serious possibility that the Seahawks were too confident in not preparing for the Colts.

Now that the Seahawks survived the Colts, they must show the mental readiness they had for the Rams, as they didn’t show on Sunday.

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