Observations from Seahawks’ pivotal win over Cardinals

The first-place Seattle Seahawks took a big step forward in their quest of an NFC West title on Sunday.

The Seahawks played one of their most complete games of the season and pulled off a season sweep of the Arizona Cardinals with a pivotal 30-18 victory at State Farm Stadium.

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Here are five things that stood out from the win:

Run game breaks loose: The Seahawks have been waiting for their run game to break out for quite some time, and it finally happened Sunday. After struggling on the ground for much of the season, they churned a season-high 176 yards and averaged 5.7 yards per carry behind a career day for second-year running back Zach Charbonnet. With starter Kenneth Walker III out with calf and ankle injuries, the hard-running Charbonnet led the way with a career-high 134 rushing yards and two TDs. Kenny McIntosh also provided a spark as a change-of-pace back with 38 yards on seven carries. Seattle had 121 yards on the ground at halftime, which was more than they in four quarters in 10 of their previous 12 games this season. Most importantly, the offensive line looked as good as it has all season when run blocking. There were holes opening up that weren’t there in previous games.

"CHARBONNET GOING THE DISTANCE"@Seahawks continue to hit big plays pic.twitter.com/ahe7S0jssV

— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 8, 2024

Defense continues disruptive run: The defense’s early-season struggles included a lack of ability to create turnovers. After forcing three turnovers in the season opener, the unit caused only one turnover over the next five games. But the Seahawks have flipped the script during a midseason turnaround with 11 turnovers forced over their past seven games, including two pivotal takeaways in the first quarter against the Cardinals. Linebacker Ernest Jones IV and safety Coby Bryant each nabbed interception in Cardinals territory to set up touchdowns and help Seattle build an early 17-7 lead. That comes after the Seahawks had pick-sixes in each of their past two games. Bryant has been a big part of it since taking over a starting role at safety. All of his team-leading three interceptions have come in the past seven games.

Another one, THANK YOU. pic.twitter.com/KXYwaeBx87

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 8, 2024

Geno gets to play game manager: The struggles from the run game and offensive line have put a lot of pressure on quarterback Geno Smith to perform this season. On Sunday he got the chance to play the role of game manager with the run game and defense leading the way. Smith was efficient, throwing 24 of 30 for 223 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, plus no turnovers and zero sacks. If the Seahawks can find a way to put Smith in situations like this more often, it will go a long way in helping their chances against tough schedule down the stretch.

Smith to Smith-Njigba for the score! pic.twitter.com/syvqbSRpHy

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 8, 2024

Defense dominates line of scrimmage: Leonard Williams had his way with the Cardinals’ offensive line in the last meeting. This time the entire defensive front had Arizona looking overmatched in the trenches. The Seahawks didn’t bottle up Arizona’s potent rushing attack to the extent they did in the first matchup, but the way they kept it in check early prevented the Cardinals from getting much going in the first half. The defensive front also was able to put constant pressure on quarterback Kyler Murray while keeping him contained as a runner. Seattle had just two sacks to show for its efforts up front, but Murray finished with just 16 rushing yards and was at minus-1 at halftime. The play up front also showed up in other ways. Arizona was called for holding first on Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed to put the Cardinals in a second-and-long, which led to Bryant’s interception, and then again on outside linebacker Derick Hall that negated a fourth-and-1 conversion and forced a punt in the third quarter.

Boye and Hank 💪 pic.twitter.com/kHQWxmFpNH

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 8, 2024

Playoff chances get huge boost: This was a massive game for both the Seahawks and Cardinals with each team’s playoff odds taking a dramatic swing. The Seahawks’ playoff odds’ jumped to 72% with the win and would have fallen to 22% with the loss, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. Seattle now holds the tiebreaker over Arizona with a series sweep over the Cards, and the Hawks improved to 3-2 in the NFC West after dropping their first two games in the division. The Cardinals still have time to catch up with a more favorable schedule, but it would take a collapse by the Seahawks for it to happen. It’s starting to look more like the season finale against the Rams in early January could be the game that decides the division.

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