Wyman & Bob: 2 keys for Seahawks to get much-needed win over Jaguars

At 2-5 entering Sunday’s contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars, it’s safe to say the Seahawks desperately need a win to keep any playoff hopes alive for this season.

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The Seahawks are coming off a third straight loss while the Jaguars are 1-5 and are coming off their bye week after snapping a 20-game losing streak the week before.

For Seattle to come away with a win, what needs to happen on Sunday? Former NFL linebacker Dave Wyman and Bob Stelton shared two keys to the game during Friday’s edition of Wyman and Bob on 710 ESPN Seattle.

For Wyman, he wants to see a young defender make a big impact.

“Well I’ll tell you, the one guy that I’m going to lean on and be looking at is Darrell Taylor, which is (something) I never thought (I’d say) when the season started,” he said.

Taylor, a second-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, missed all of his rookie season due to a shin injury and is returning to action after missing last week’s game with a neck injury he suffered two weeks ago in Pittsburgh. And while he worked out in training camp as a strongside linebacker, Taylor has played almost exclusively at defensive end, where he’s emerged as one of the few impact players for the Seahawks on defense.

“Four sacks in five games — he didn’t play last week,” Wyman said. “I think he can get some pressure on (Jaguars quarterback) Trevor Lawrence. And if you start to do that, he’s a rookie, so maybe he’ll start throwing the ball around and possibly lead to some interceptions. I think he is the difference maker on that defense. Him and (safety) Quandre Diggs, to me, are the best defensive players right now.”

Stelton agreed that the pass rush is key to the Seahawks getting the win, and it plays a part in what he thinks needs to happen for Seattle to emerge victorious over Jacksonville.

“It’s (about) really forcing a rookie quarterback to get it done in a hostile environment,” he said.

Lumen Field for years has been one of the most hostile environments for road teams in all of football, but the Seahawks are 0-3 at home this year and, at 2-5, it’s unclear to Stelton what the crowd will be like.

“I’m curious to see just how hostile it is,” he said. “Is this going to be a game where the crowd is a little apathetic because of how things have been going? Are we going to see empty seats? Or are they going to be on the edge of their seats going bananas out there because they’re desperate for a win and this is a team they should beat? I’m very interested to see how the fans (are) and how this game goes in terms of attendance and intensity.”

If the crowd can get rowdy, Stelton thinks that could be a game-changer in this contest.

“I think if they can get going, they (help force) some false starts or (the Seahawks) force (Lawrence) into a mistake … you know how that building just goes nuts when that starts to build,” Stelton said. “If you can get in a position to put that quarterback, that rookie quarterback, where he has to try to overcome a mistake he made and then do it with that crowd going just absolutely ape as they they’ve been known to do, that, to me is a huge key for this.”

Wyman said he’d love to see the crowd get involved in a major way, and he thinks Taylor is a guy who could make big plays to make that happen.

Wyman pointed to the game that Saints linebacker Demario Davis had against the Seahawks last week as what he’d love to see Taylor do against the Jaguars.

“He had what, four quarterback hits? He sacked Geno Smith twice, he knocked a pass down,” Wyman said. “I mean, that’s the kind of disruption that that you need. And you see how valuable just knocking a pass down is. That’s really a huge deal. So if you can, if you can get that done from a guy, and I think Darrell Taylor’s the one that’s most likely to do that, that would be my key. Get after that rookie quarterback.”

Listen to the full conversation at this link or in the player below.

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