SEATTLE — The Seattle Seahawks face significant hurdles as they strive for a chance to compete in the playoffs.
Their only viable route to the postseason is to secure the NFC West title, but after a 27-24 defeat to the Minnesota Vikings, they find themselves one game behind the Los Angeles Rams.
To maintain their playoff hopes, the Seahawks (8-7) must win their last two games while the Rams need to falter against the struggling Arizona team this Saturday.
While Seattle put up a strong fight against Minnesota, who shares the top record in the NFC with Detroit, it wasn’t enough.
Geno Smith connected with AJ Barner for a 4-yard touchdown that gave the Seahawks a temporary lead in the fourth quarter.
However, a facemask penalty against Byron Murphy II allowed the Vikings to capitalize, as Sam Darnold threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson to reclaim the lead.
A late interception from Smith sealed the defeat and placed the Seahawks in a challenging position as they head into the closing weeks of the season.
“We just got to handle our part, which is win out,” linebacker Ernest Jones IV commented. “Then, let the chips fall where they fall. Hopefully, we catch a little luck and we can get in there. But it’s tough in there.”
In terms of positive performance, Jaxon Smith-Njigba shone brightly, hauling in eight receptions for 95 yards and scoring a touchdown.
With this performance, he has now surpassed 1,000 receiving yards this season for the Seahawks, becoming only the 10th player in the franchise’s history to achieve this milestone and the first since DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett did so in 2020.
Smith-Njigba has led the team in receiving yards for the past eight games.
“He’s a great player,” Smith remarked. “Been having a tremendous season. Those things are to be expected of him. I think he’s only going to continue to get better. He’s a fighter. Got a lot of heart. That’s something that goes a long way.”
On the other hand, the running game struggled significantly once again, with the Seahawks managing only 59 yards on 15 carries, averaging just 3.9 yards.
Kenneth Walker III had a mere eight carries for 31 yards, with an 11-yard run being the longest for Seattle on the day.
Currently, the Seahawks rank 30th in the NFL for rushing yards, leading to some scrutiny on offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb’s strategies.
Despite two interceptions, Smith’s overall performance was among his better outings this season, completing 72% of his passes (31 of 43) for 314 yards and three touchdowns, resulting in a passer rating of 96.5.
This marked the fifth time this season he surpassed 300 yards passing and the second time he threw for three or more touchdowns.
“Geno is probably our top competitor on our football team,” coach Mike Macdonald stated. “We’re not sitting here with life at the end of December unless Geno has done the things he’s done. He’s a fighter, man. I thought he played a good game.”
Unfortunately for the Seahawks, Tre Brown struggled during a pivotal moment in the second quarter.
A promising defensive play by Derick Hall was nullified by an offside penalty against Brown, leading to a 14-yard touchdown catch for Jefferson, putting the Vikings ahead 14-7.
Brown, who was starting in place of Riq Woolen, was unable to contain Jefferson effectively, who concluded the game with 10 receptions for 144 yards and two touchdowns.
Injury-wise, Walker exited the game in the fourth quarter due to an ankle issue, but coach Macdonald had no updates on his condition as of Monday.
Some key statistics from the matchup were noteworthy: the Seahawks opted to throw the ball on 75% of their offensive plays (45 out of 60), with one run being a 2-yard sneak by Julian Love during a fake punt and another an 8-yard scramble from Smith.
Zach Charbonnet, who had a strong performance two weeks prior with 134 rushing yards against Arizona, managed just one carry that resulted in a loss of a yard.
Looking ahead, the Seahawks will face the Chicago Bears on Thursday night, who have been on a nine-game losing streak.
