3 Takeaways from Seahawks-Cardinals

Big Cat again, the new linebackers, and a woeful part of the Hawks' attack

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All of a sudden, the Seahawks are in first place in the NFC West. From the depths of NFL mediocrity, Seattle did exactly what they needed to do in winning on the road against San Francisco and at home versus Arizona. The Hawks became relevant again because of a resurgent defense and stellar performances by Jaxon Smith-Njigba. To stay in first place, the Hawks will need to continue what they did last Sunday. To learn more about what worked and what didn’t, read below.

Leonard Williams. Enough Said.

In my takeaways from last week, I highlighted Leonard Williams as someone Seahawk fans should appreciate more. After his game against the Cardinals, I don’t think anyone will need that nudge. Everyone appreciates Leonard Williams. The defensive tackle nicknamed “The Big Cat” absolutely dominated Arizona last Sunday with seven tackles, four of those for loss and 2.5 sacks. When Seattle needed him most, Williams delivered with his best game as a Seahawk.

Big Cat dominated the Cards/Jennifer Buchanan - Seattle Times

Maybe more importantly than Williams tracking down Kyler Murray was his role in the run defense. After three weeks in a row of average performances (as evaluated by Pro Football Focus), Williams graded out with a 81.5 run defense grade versus the Cards. That tied for his best run defense performance of the year and helped the Hawks hold running back James Conner to just eight yards on the day.

The New Linebackers Just Might Work

There might be another example of a NFL team getting rid of their starting linebackers in the middle of a season and improving on defense, but I couldn’t find it. After giving up 185 yards on the ground to the Giants, the Hawks allowed 228 rushing yards to the Niners on October 10th. Clearly, the run defense needed fixing. Just 13 days later, the Hawks traded starting linebacker Jerome Baker and a fourth round pick to the Tennessee Titans for Ernest Jones. On November 11th, the Hawks released their other starting linebacker Tyrel Dodson. After a solid performance against a great run team in the San Francisco 49ers, the Hawks new starting duo of Jones and rookie Tyrice Knight excelled against the Cards.

Pro Football Focus gave Knight a 77.1 rush grade while Jones earned a 65.9. While Jones wasn’t given a great run defense grade, his tackling was exceptional and he rated higher than nearly every Dodson and Baker game as Seahawks. (Note: Baker has been really good in run defense since joining Tennessee). Only time will tell if this duo can remain a net positive for a defense that was getting gashed, but early returns are good.

The Running Game is Concerning

Before the season began, I would have bet anyone that Kenneth Walker III would have a 1000+ yard rushing season. In fact, I may have bet someone (the Muckleshoot Tribe). Unfortunately, Walker isn’t even close. After putting up 103 yards in the opener and 80 the next week, Walker has been awful. Only once has K9 put up more than 4.0 yards per carry and he hasn’t totalled over 83 yards in any game. And in the game he had 83, Walker did it on 25 carries! Against the Cards, Walker was pedestrian yet again with 41 yards on 16 carries.

Sad K9/Jennifer Buchanan - Seattle Times

The reason for Walker’s lack of success can be fully blamed on the offensive line. According to Pro Football Focus, Walker is the best running back in the NFL. Yes, you read that right. Walker has the best rushing grade of all running backs in the league. However, he has 493 yards on the season. The disparity can be attributed to an offensive line that is flat out terrible. The Hawks second best run blocker (behind Charles Cross) is Olu Olowatimi who has only been involved in 50 run plays this season. The combination of left guard, right guard and right tackle is a horror movie that should not be shown to children.