Observations from Seahawks’ suffocating 6-3 win over Bears

It likely won’t carry any significance for the Seattle Seahawks’ playoff hopes. And it certainly wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing game.

But at the very least, Seattle is back in the win column.

Seahawks win | Playoff scenarios | Observations | Stacy’s column | Stats

The Seahawks rode their defense to a 6-3 victory over the hapless Chicago Bears on a rainy Thursday night in the Windy City. It snapped a two-game losing skid for Seattle, which improved to 9-7 and clinched its third consecutive winning season.

The Seahawks now have to hope the Arizona Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday night, which would make Seattle’s regular-season finale against the Rams a winner-take-all showdown for the NFC West crown.

Here are five things that stood out from the Seahawks’ victory:

• Defense thoroughly dominates woeful Bears: Yes, it came against one of the NFL’s worst offenses. And yes, it came against a 4-12 Bears team that’s now lost 10 straight games. But regardless of opponent, it’s no easy feat holding an NFL team to just three points and 179 total yards, as the Seahawks did on Thursday night. To put that in perspective, this was just the sixth time this season that an NFL team has been held to three or fewer points and less than 200 yards. And even as bad as the Bears have been, this was their worst offensive showing of the year. They matched their season low in points, they were held 65 yards under their previous season low, they mustered just two drives of longer than 16 yards and they drove inside the Seattle 40-yard line only once all game. Seattle’s pass rush brought pressure all night and racked up a season-high seven sacks, while limiting rookie No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams to just 16-of-28 passing for 122 yards and an interception. Since the beginning of their midseason defensive turnaround, the Seahawks have held six of their past eight opponents to 19 offensive points or fewer. They also have held six of their past eight opponents to fewer than 300 total yards in regulation.

Riq said nope. pic.twitter.com/yQPMf8XEg9

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 27, 2024

• Offense sputters: The night began in promising fashion for Seattle’s offense, which got its sputtering ground game going during an opening 71-yard field-goal drive. The Seahawks rushed for 53 yards on that possession, which nearly matched their 59 rushing yards from Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. But Seattle’s offense didn’t do much the rest of the night, totaling just three points and 194 total yards the rest of the way. After rushing for 91 yards on 15 carries in the first half, the Seahawks mustered just 31 yards on 10 carries in the second half – including just 16 yards on eight carries from their running backs. Geno Smith was relatively efficient, completing 17 of 23 passes for 160 yards and no interceptions. But Smith and the Seahawks struggled to create big plays downfield, with his longest completion spanning just 23 yards. It was Seattle’s lowest point total since a 37-3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 9 of last season, back when Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald was Baltimore’s defensive coordinator.

• Pass rush explodes: The Seahawks brought the heat with a season-high seven sacks, taking advantage of a Chicago team that entered the night having allowed an NFL-high 60 sacks. Defensive lineman Leonard Williams continued his tear with two more sacks, giving him nine for the season. Edge rusher Derick Hall continued his second-year breakout with his eighth sack of the season. After missing most of the year with a pair of injuries, edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu recorded his first sack of the season, which was set up by a blitz from rookie linebacker Tyrice Knight. Defensive lineman Jarran Reed and safety Rayshawn Jenkins each came up with a key third-down sack. Cornerback Devon Witherspoon was credited with a sack after chasing Caleb Williams out of bounds for no gain. And fittingly, on the game’s final play, safety Coby Bryant blitzed off the edge and hit Caleb Williams as he lofted a desperation fourth-down heave, which was picked off by cornerback Riq Woolen for a game-sealing interception.

Chen 🔟 takes him down. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/SAqksefcbb

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 27, 2024

• Big Cat continues his tear: Leading the defense was Williams, who continued his monster season with two more sacks, three tackles for loss and four quarterback hits. Even more impressive? He did so while facing double teams on 18 of his 33 pass rushes, according to NFL’s Next Gen Stats. He generated five of his six pressures – including one of his two sacks – while facing double teams. And he showcased his versatility by recording at least one pressure against each of the Bears’ five offensive linemen. Williams now has nine sacks and 15 tackles for loss this season, putting him one sack away from becoming the first Seahawks player to reach double-digit sacks since Frank Clark in 2018. Williams is the only player in the NFL this year to have three games in which he recorded both two-plus sacks and three-plus tackles for loss. He also accomplished the feat during back-to-back victories over the Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets in Weeks 12 and 13.

The @Seahawks with their seventh sack right before the two-minute warning#SEAvsCHI on Prime Video
Also streaming on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/syCt9TA6F3

— NFL (@NFL) December 27, 2024

• Witherspoon makes his presence felt: Witherspoon once again demonstrated why he was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, putting his elite playmaking talent on full display while recording three tackles for loss and a sack. Late in the first quarter, the second-year cornerback showcased his blazing speed by knifing into the backfield and taking down running back D’Andre Swift for a 7-yard loss. Early in the second quarter, Witherspoon shed a block from wideout Keenan Allen and brought down receiver DJ Moore on a swing pass for a 3-yard loss. And midway through the third quarter, Witherspoon initially dropped into coverage before snuffing out a screen pass and racing to hit Swift in the backfield for a 1-yard loss. Witherspoon also was credited for the aforementioned sack by chasing Caleb Williams out of bounds for no gain. Witherspoon hasn’t filled up the stat sheet the same way he did during last year’s sensational rookie campaign, but he’s still been playing at a high level. And his performance on Thursday night served as another reminder of that.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

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• Huard grades rookie season for Seahawks’ Bryon Murphy II
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• Bump dives into nuances of Seahawks’ play-calling debate
• Why it’s so hard to evaluate Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith

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