Field Gulls
Happy Week 3, everyone! We’re just a few hours away from kickoff between the Seattle Seahawks and New Orleans Saints, which of course has great importance in Seahawks history in terms of playoff wins. In more recent times, however, the Saints have won four straight regular season matchups, most recently that ridiculous 39-32 shootout in 2022 that otherwise goes down in Seahawks infamy as “The Taysom Hill Game.” It’s about damn time the losing streak to the Saints and the losing run at Lumen Field are both ceased post-haste.
Let’s review last week’s predictions, which went a hell of a lot better than I thought.
Bold prediction: One of Kenneth Walker III or Zach Charbonnet will rush for 100 yards
It happened! K9 got 105 yards on the day while Charbonnet… well I was one 0 off. And he’s not going to have a chance to get 100 this weekend, either.
Seahawks offense prediction: At least eight play-action passes
Does 10 sound good to you? Darnold was 6/10 for 137 yards, a touchdown to Tory Horton, and a pair of interceptions. Cut down on those INTs and I think that’s a winning formula moving forward, certainly more so than whatever the hell the Week 1 plan was supposed to be.
Seahawks defense prediction: Sacks by both Boye Mafe and Derick Hall
They’re getting close but neither man has a sack yet.
Steelers prediction: DK Metcalf has a 1-to-1 touchdown-to-penalty ratio
DK got the touchdown but was not flagged for anything.
Game prediction: Seahawks somehow find a way to get in the win column
They were finding ways to lose in the first half but found every way to win in the 2nd half!
This seems like a lame bold prediction until you look at recent numbers. Seattle had at least one turnover in every home game in 2024, and while Geno Smith was a major reason for this by having a bizarre home-road split of interceptions, lest we forget the Dee Williams experience and some other key fumbles lost throughout the season. Dating back to 2022, there have only been four home games in which Seattle didn’t have at least one giveaway.
I’d like to think Mike Macdonald values taking care of the ball (and taking the ball away) as much as Pete Carroll does, and it’s time for the Seahawks to drop the carelessness and put a zero in the giveaway box.
Tory Horton notched his first NFL touchdown last Sunday in Pittsburgh, and it’s hopefully the first of many to come in a Seahawks uniform. Arroyo has three grabs in the early stages of this season, but that fake toss PA in which he was able to sneak across the formation and pick up over 20 yards (mostly after the catch) is the type of offense I love to...
