The morning started with Justin Fields authoring one of the worst quarterback performances you will ever see. The former 11th overall completed just 9 of 17 passes for 45 yards. He was also sacked 9 times for -55 yards, meaning his team finished the game with -10 yards passing. The last time that happened was 1998 when Ryan Leaf went 1 for 15 with just 4 yards passing as the San Diego Chargers finished with -19 yards passing. After Fields finished, another former top pick threw for nearly 300 yards, 2 touchdowns, and helped his team improve to 4-2 on the season. That same Sam Darnold who is forcing his way into the MVP conversation, is just two years removed from a Fields-like game himself, where he went 5 for 15 for 43 yards and 2 interceptions for the Carolina Panthers. It was just last season that he threw 0 touchdowns and 3 interceptions against the Jaguars in Jacksonville. Fields can take some solace in the redemption story Darnold is writing with each throw. Only one quarterback has won more games than Darnold’s 18 since the start of the 2024 season (Jared Goff, 19). Baker Mayfield helped his old teammate by beating the 49ers and ensuring the Seahawks would end the day tied for first in the NFC West.
The story of this game was not really about Darnold or the Seahawks offense. It was about the relentless Seahawks pass rush that registered a staggering 17 quarterback hits, the most that a Seattle defense has recorded in the last 25 years (and maybe longer, since the data only goes back that far). Trevor Lawrence was the town bike. Byron Murphy II sacked him on the very first play. DeMarcus Lawrence and Uchenna Nwosu sacked him on the Jaguars last play. In between, he was pressured on more than half his dropbacks and sacked a total of 7 times.
Jacksonville was riding high after beating the 49ers on the road and the Chiefs at home on Monday Night Football. There was some talk that Liam Coen’s offense would be able to exploit the same holes his former team, the Bucs, exposed in the Seahawks loss last week. Those analysts failed to realize the distance between Lawrence and Mayfield is roughly the same as the Seahawks flew to arrive in Florida.
Lawrence had trouble identifying and escaping pressure. He made a number of off-target throws and his receivers did not help him out. The only production came from blown coverages by the Seahawks or circus throws while running for his life. Seattle silenced the Jags running game, as they have done to every team this season.
Seattle runs a light box (fewer than 7 defenders near the line of scrimmage) at the second-highest rate (53.5%) in the league. Of the Top 5 teams in light box rate, only the Seahawks are allowing fewer than 4.4 yards per rush (3.3). They are also the only one of those teams to be holding opponents to a negative EPA/rush. This is a massive difference from last season.
The Seahawks allowed over 5.1 yards per rush and 0.0 EPA/rush when in light boxes last year. They are at 3.6 yards per rush and -0.24 EPA/rush this season. This matters because it is allowing Mike Macdonald to deploy more players in coverage without sacrificing his ability to take away the run.
Being able to count on the guys upfront to both stop the run and rush the passer has allowed Seattle to weather the storm of injuries in the secondary where Devon Witherspoon has played just one healthy game and Julian Love has missed a number as well.
Macdonald knew he would need a better pass rushing performance than the team put up against the Bucs to cover up the absences. Interestingly, that did not mean a higher rate of blitzing. The Seahawks only blitzed 14% of the time, which was below their season average.
What they did appear to do was incorporate a creative rush plan that had interior players like Leonard Williams and Murphy lined up outside as edge players, with typical edge players like Lawrence and Nwosu and Boye Mafe lined up inside. They ran a lot of games and stunts out of these formations that confused and overwhelmed a Jaguars offensive line that had allowed just 6 sacks and the 2nd-lowest pressure rate coming into the game.
Macdonald and Aden Durde have mentioned multiple times that Nwosu is one of their best game-runners. There is timing and instinct required to excel in that type of rush, as opposed to just winning off the edge with an array of pass rush moves. Nwosu is proving his coaches right with 4.0 sacks in the last three games. Only Nik Bonitto and Tuli Tuipulotu (5.0 sacks) have more over that time.
Seattle managed all this mayhem without Derick Hall and with Mafe producing no sacks or QB hits. The Seahawks have not had three defensive linemen finish with 1.5+ sacks since the 2012 Fail Mary win over the Packers.
This was partially about game plan, and largely about the guys upfront taking over the football game. There was some friendly debate and competition during training camp about which part of the defense was the “tip of the spear” between the secondary, the linebackers, and the defensive line. That debate has largely been settled. This defensive line is not only leading the defense, they are setting the tone on the entire team.
Willams and Jarran Reed and Lawrence are all veterans who are also excellent players. That is proving critical for a young team. Their impact goes beyond their play on the field. Young offensive linemen like Grey Zabel are asking them for advice on a daily basis. When there were tensions during a physical 1v1 pass rush drill in camp, it was Williams who always insisted the offensive and defensive linemen always gathered together before the drill was over to reinforce they are part of the same whole.
Their physicality is leaving opponents battered. Their quality and coaching has helped the Seahawks offensive line outperform expectations. This season’s ceiling will be set by how dominant that group can be.
One issue for the team has been closing out games on both sides of the ball. It was starting to look like that might bite them again after the Jags scored a touchdown to make it a one-score game with most of the 4th quarter left to play.
The offense responded with a 3-and-out drive that netted -1 yards. The defense, however, stopped the Jaguars on three straight drives that totaled 12 plays and 17 yards. The most impressive was the final drive when Jacksonville took over at their own 36-yard line with 4:03 to go in the game and all their timeouts.
This was a clear four-down series, where the Jags would go for it the whole way. Rookie Nick Emmanwori sniffed out a screen pass to Travis Hunter for a loss of a yard on first down. Ernest Jones broke up a short pass on second down. Tank Lawrence and Nwosu teamed for a back-breaking sack on third down that made it 4th and 18. Coen had no choice but to punt.
That gave the Seahawks offense one more chance to do their part. This time, they did. On 1st and 10 from their own 27-yard line with 2:53 to go in the game, Klint Kubiak dialed up his best play call of the day. The Jaguars were expecting a run that would force them to burn one of their timeouts. Kubiak gave them a run look from under center, but called a play action pass where tight end AJ Barner crossed the field away from the direction of the expected rushing attempt. Darnold lofted a ball deep down the field that settled into his young tight end’s hands for what would turn into a 61-yard play that effectively ended the game.
It was not a clean game on offense. Kubiak and Darnold have been much better in other games this season. That said, the Jaguars entered the game with one of the best defenses in the league by some measures, and Seattle managed to be the first team to exit a game against them without turning the ball over.
They also were explosive. The play to Barner was the capper, but the dynamic between Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued to be must-see TV. The third year receiver is looking like the best receiver in the game. He is on pace for close to a 2,000 yard season, which would clear the franchise record by a ridiculous 700 yards.
He is playing with the grace of a gazelle, the speed of a cheetah, and the grip of an eagle. Nature had something special in mind when assembling his particular set of skills. He was the fastest player in football in Week 6, reaching a top speed of 21.1 MPH on his 61-yard touchdown catch.
Smith-Njigba now has a catch of at least 35 yards in each of the Seahawks six games this season. It was hard to verify, but I believe that is the first time a player has done that to start a season. The last player to have at least 6 receptions of 35+ yards in the first six games of a season was Tyreek Hill, who had 7 in 2023, but not one in every game.
Darnold and JSN and Kubiak deserve a ton of the credit for what is now the #1 ranked passing offense in the NFL by DVOA, EPA/dropback, and dropback success rate. None of it would be possible without the work of John Benton and the offensive line.
Seattle has surged into the Top 10 in opponent pressure rate, and allowed pressure on just 17.2% of their dropbacks in this game. Seahawks fans have dreamed of just an average pass protecting offensive line. They now have the 3rd-youngest starting line in the league and they are among the best at protecting the passer so far.
Run blocking remains a work in progress, but this team can win a lot of games with an elite passing offense and an elite pass rush on defense. What gets exciting is imagining what this team can look like once they get back Witherspoon and Love in the secondary and start to improve their run game.
Emmanwori is looking like a difference maker. His tackling has been excellent and his ability to rush or cover has been eye-opening. There is a whole bag of tricks Macdonald has not unveiled yet with Witherspoon still out. The interplay between Witherspoon and Emmanwori as blitz/cover/run defender options has the potential to drive offenses crazy.
It’s early still, but this 2025 draft class is looking very promising, and when you throw in the free agent additions of Darnold, Lawrence, and Cooper Kupp, along with the trades of Geno Smith and DK Metcalf, this is looking like one of the best offseasons in franchise history.
Kupp continues to be an underrated signing. He had another explosive catch, himself, and also added his first touchdown of the season. He is one of the best run blockers on the team and has been mind-melding with Macdonald and Kubiak and Darnold since he arrived. It is impossible to prove just how much value he has brought to all aspects of this team, but it likely goes beyond the value of the much-criticized contract he signed.
Lawrence has been a difference maker and tone setter on the other side of the ball. This was just the second time in his last 27 games that he had multiple sacks.
The fusion of those veterans with the players like Murphy and JSN and Zabel emerging as cornerstones has changed the current and future outlook for this team.
There is no team clearly better than the Seahawks. Their offense, defense, and special teams, have taken turns being the best in the NFL. Their only losses have been close games where they held the lead late against teams with a combined 9-3 record. Their three road wins have all come against teams with a winning record when they played.
If this team develops a healthy run game and returns to health in their secondary, there is every reason to put them in the conversation for the Super Bowl. They are not there yet, but they are not far from it.
The division is starting to look like a two-team race as the 49ers not only lost the game but another All-Pro defender when Fred Warner dislocated his ankle and is likely done for the season. The Rams won in Baltimore, but Puka Nacua was lost to a less serious ankle injury that may keep him out of their next game against the Jaguars in London.
Seattle gets a little extra rest as they wait to play on Monday Night Football against the Texans before their bye week. They will then travel to play the Commanders on Sunday Night Football and host the Cardinals before they finally face the Rams. Those two games against Stafford and McVay and Verse and company will likely decide the division.
Winning this game against Jacksonville was a stepping stone. There are bigger obstacles ahead that will require larger leaps. Few teams appear more ready to make those jumps than these Seahawks.