Why try to spin it? It is what it is: we’re looking at a road game against one of the top 4 teams in the NFL (the others being, in no particular order, New England, Kansas City, and New Orleans … these would also be my current bets for who makes their conference’s respective title games this year). A team that just lost for the first time. A team dealing with a community in grief right now, looking for any sort of release/reprieve from the madness that is our world right now. In a stadium 80,000 strong, I could go on and on.
Meanwhile, here are the Seahawks. Their best running back is banged up. Their best three safeties are all either out for the year or banged up. Their best offensive guard is banged up. Coming off a disappointing loss at home, and they’ve immediately got to face a team that’s great passing the ball, a team that has the best running back in the game today, a team with a ferocious defensive line, a team with one of the two best head coaches going today, and a team with the best defensive coordinator of all time. Sure, Marcus Peters sucks this year because he’s playing through injury; they’re still going to find a way!
The only question that remains isn’t “Will the Seahawks lose?”, but rather, “How much will the Seahawks lose by?”
At home a few weeks ago, the Seahawks lost to the Rams by 2. It was a wonderful effort that came from out of seemingly nowhere. We ran for 190 yards (116 of which were Carson’s, who almost certainly won’t play this time around), Russell Wilson threw for 3 touchdowns, the defense picked off Goff twice, and we scored 31 points; normally that’s a recipe for a Seahawks blowout victory. Instead, we gave up 155 rushing yards of our own, let Goff throw for 321, and ultimately allowed the Rams to convert a 4th & 1 late in the game to seal the victory.
So, what makes you think we should expect better than that? Now that we’re dealing with everything I just outlined above?
It’s a lost cause. It’s a lost cause in a lost season. The Seahawks are going to find a way to finish 8-8 and that’s all there is to it. My numbness level for this season is at an all time high. There’s no scenario where I could possibly envision the Seahawks prevailing, other than an asteroid hitting the Rams’ team bus on the way to the stadium.
Oh, K.J. Wright is back and playing this time? Ooo, what a boon! You mean the old man with no possible hope of keeping up with the speedy likes of Todd Gurley, or any of their slot receivers running free across the middle? Other than him, and I guess Ed Dickson if you really want to get into the weeds, we have no extra help coming our way this week, and I don’t know about you, but I’m not exactly sold that Dickson was a worthwhile free agent signing.
Sure, when you’ve got Russell Wilson, you’ve got a chance, but I’m not buying it this week. The line – when I looked at it this morning – was the Rams favored by 9.5. I’m in the process of selling everything I own so I can put it all on the Rams to cover.
I think the Rams’ offense will have all day to move the ball down the field, but they won’t need all day, because inevitably our safeties are going to give up huge chunks of yardage on almost every drive. That is, when Todd Gurley isn’t bursting through holes the size of the Grand Canyon. Even if Russell Wilson has his very BEST day of all time, it won’t be enough to keep up with these Rams.
I plan on being super hung over on Sunday. Odds are, I’ll hit the road sometime around when the Seahawks start playing, and I won’t be missing a single second of the action. Because if I’ve missed the entire game, I’ll have done something right with my life. There’s more to all of this than watching the Seahawks frustrate and underwhelm. Literally anything else would be preferable.