Insider: What to know for Seahawks’ key clash with Vikings

Dec 21, 2024, 9:06 AM | Updated: 9:33 am

Seattle Seahawks next opponent Minnesota Vikings...

Justin Jefferson (18) and Sam Darnold (14) of the Minnesota Vikings celebrate a touchdown during a 2024 game. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

(Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

BY ZAC HERETH

Seattle Sports

With just three games left in the regular season, every contest from here on out carries major weight for the Seattle Seahawks.

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However, that isn’t much of a change, if any at all, for an 8-6 Seahawks team that’s trying to squeeze out a division title in the tightly contested NFC West.

But the Seahawks’ next challenge is perhaps the toughest they’ve faced this season, as the red-hot Minnesota Vikings (12-2) bring a seven-game winning streak into Lumen Field on Sunday.

During Thursday’s edition of Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy, Vikings insider Alec Lewis from The Athletic shared his insight on the matchup and what to know about Seattle’s next opponent.

Don’t expect the Sam Darnold of past

The Vikings are one of the NFL’s biggest surprises this season. Much of that has to do with the fact that they’re winning with Sam Darnold at quarterback.

Darnold was expected to be the backup this season after the Vikings selected Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 overall pick in the draft. But McCarthy went down with a torn meniscus in the preseason opener and was lost for the season.

Darnold, much like Seattle starter Geno Smith, was considered to be a big-time bust after a challenging start to his NFL career. After being taken No. 3 overall by the New York Jets in 2018 (the same team that drafted Smith in the second round in 2013), the USC product struggled mightily, posting a 13-25 record with a 59.9% completion rate, 45 touchdowns and 39 interceptions in three seasons as the starter.

The former first-round pick was then traded to the Carolina Panthers and struggled some more while bouncing between being the starter and the backup for two seasons. He landed in San Francisco and backed up Brock Purdy with the 49ers last season.

But Darnold is playing the best football of his career with the Vikings. He’s already set career highs with 3,530 yards and 29 passing TDs and is on pace for a career-best completion percentage at 67.6%.

Many have been waiting for Darnold to revert to his former self, but Lewis isn’t counting on that happening.

“I laughed, and I still do often, at people who were like, ‘Man, when is Sam Darnold just going to come down to earn and be Sam?’” Lewis said. “Well, that’s assuming that he’s going to come back down to earth and have (former Jets coach) Adam Gase as his coach all the sudden, and not have (Vikings wide receivers) Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison and not have the offensive line that he’s had.

“We talk so much about quarterbacks in this league, and I really understand it. They are the superstars, the most important position in sports. But I don’t think we put enough … on the impact of the infrastructure (around the player).”

Vikings share problem with Seahawks

While the Vikings have a quarterback that’s enjoying a career resurrection much like Smith did in Seattle two years ago, the teams also share another thing in common: Neither have been good on the interior of their offensive line.

Center Garrett Bradbury has allowed a team-high 31 pressures, left guard Blake Brandel is just behind him with 28 pressures allowed and a team-high six sacks, and right guard Dalton Risner has allowed 11 pressures in five games since taking over for Ed Ingram, who surrendered 16 pressures and five sacks while starting the first nine games.

According to Pro Football Focus grading, Bradburry ranks 18th among 61 centers. Brandel is 94th and Risner 63rd among 128 guards.

Minnesota has also dealt with penalty problems in the trenches. Left tackle Cam Robinson and Brandel each rank in the top 20 in penalties committed by offensive linemen with 11 and 10, respectively. Robinson, who was acquired in a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars earlier this season, has committed eight of his penalties during his seven games with the Vikings.

The struggles on the offensive line have led to Darnold being sacked 42 times, the fourth-highest mark in the NFL and one spot behind Smith (43).

“As you guys very well know, there’s Leonard Williams over there (on the Seahawks’ defensive line),” Lewis said. “… I think a lot of these NFC playoff teams have serious talent on the interior of their defensive line. … That will complicate things for the Vikings’ interior of the offensive line. I will say, the Vikings’ staff does a very, very, very good job working around protection, being very mindful of protection, as they game plan and design the offense for each of these games. But at some point, the players make the plays, and so that’s the spot that I’ve watched.”

A fascinating challenge for Seattle Seahawks

Keeping the theme of commonalities between teams, the Vikings, like the Seahawks, have a standout one-two punch at wide receiver with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison leading the way. However, the difference is Jefferson has a very legitimate claim to being the best receiver in the league.

Jefferson, a three-time All-Pro who led the league in receptions and receiving yards in 2022, is second in the NFL in receiving with 1,243 yards and leads a group of 30 players with at least 60 catches this season with an average of 15.2 yards per reception. The standout pass-catcher missed nearly half of last season with an injury, but has still already amassed 7,142 yards and 38 TDs in his five pro seasons. He currently averages 96.5 yards per game for his career, which is the highest in league history.

Addison, a first-round pick last season, has had a productive start to his career playing opposite Jefferson. After posting 911 yards and 10 TDs receiving as a rookie, he has 771 yards and seven touchdowns receiving in 12 games this season.

“Every week the Vikings play football, I’m so fascinated to see just how the opposing defense tries to defend Justin Jefferson,” Lewis said. “It is a question every single week of ‘Will they man him up? Will they shadow him with one specific corner? Will they bracket? Will they play cloud? If they allocate two defenders on him, does that mean Jordan Addison is one-on-one?’ Because Jordan Addison has produced to an exceptional level this year.”

It adds up to a tough challenge for top Seahawks cornerbacks Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen.

“I also am fascinated by this, specifically with this game, because as you guys know better than I, Devon Witherspoon (and) Tariq Woolen, these guys are long and they’re physical corners,” Lewis said. “I’d say one way to eliminate Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison is to be physical with those guys. So really for me, it’s how (Seahawks coach) Mike Macdonald tries to limit Justin Jefferson. … All of that to me is an every-week fascination, because these guys are very, very, very hard to defend.”

Listen to the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.