When you favorite NFL team travels on the road across country and properly lays to waste an inferior opponent, 37-9, such as the Seattle Seahawks did to the Atlanta Falcons, it can feel like a bit of a challenge summoning up interesting things to write about, afterwards. After all, Seattle was favored by 6.5 points to win this match, and the Vegas betters seemed see some pretty clear writings on the wall.

I think many fans could sense this was going to happen, as well. Seattle has been beating down a lot of struggling teams this year. Atlanta has a very talented pass rush, and some really nice skill players on offense, but a geriatric immobile Kirk Cousins was going to stand next to no chance against the speed, talent, and discipline spread across Seattle’s soul devouring defense.

I knew it, you knew it, and Vegas certainly understood it, as well. The question was how was Sam Darnold and the offense going to perform against Atlanta’s heavy blitz, but there was no question on how Seattle’s defense would hold court. This defense is that good.

As we get further into the 2025 football season, and we see before our eyes the greatness emerging out of Mike Macdonald’s Seahawk defense, fans are starting to search for nicknames for it. The Legion Of Boom is long retired, and cannot be brought back, but people are drawn to wanting to name this group of fellas, and it is understandable. They are playing that well together in dominating fashion.

Some nicknames within the Seahawk orbit that have been tossed around are the Death Zone, and/or MOB Ties. Seeing what this defense has done to Kirk Cousins, Aaron Rodgers, Trevor Lawrence, CJ Stroud, Jayden Daniels, Kyler Murray and many other overwhelmed veteran QB’s this year, however, I am almost inclined coin them The Super Soul Sucker Defense. Seriously.

The funny thing is, I don’t even think they are playing their best football yet as a unit, and that is a scary thought to opposing teams who have to meet them in the playoffs. Up to this point, Mike Macdonald has been working himself into Coach Of The Year consideration having to start third string players at safety and linebacker, and getting them to play like quality level NFL starters. Now, he is slowly starting to reincorporate pro bowl safety Julian Love into the mix, and he is getting top level defensive tackle Jarran Reed back.

When Love gets his feet back under himself better as the leader of this secondary, watch the fuck out on Sundays. They will hit another gear of defensive football.

Offensively, I believe Klint Kubiak just needs to not get too cute with play calling, and they have the talent at quarterback, receiver, tight end, O line, and running backs to be both efficient, and explosive enough to stress out any oppositional fanbase moving forward. They might have somewhat of a blemish on the interior of their offensive a bit, and I still question whether Ken Walker is an ideal running back for the zone blocking scheme that they want to deploy, but the talent and abilities are certainly there for them to remain explosive, and for Kubiak to scheme ways in which they can be complimentary explosive.

This game in Atlanta, if anything, showed that Seattle’s offense can match a good defense so long as it doesn’t overthink who and what they are, and how they can compliment this stellar, kick ass, soul chewing up defense. Sprinkle in some stellar and timely special teams play, and this is what you get; a solid, thorough beat down win on the road that is worthy of dreaming of bigger things about.

Here are some random thoughts I have about some key players in this game.

Sam Darnold might have had his best game as a Seattle Seahawk

Yup, I said it, and I stand by my words.

I know that for most of the first half of this football, Sam Darnold looked flustered, but I also know that Atlanta has a defensive front and secondary that can do that to quarterbacks, and I love how Sam and Klint Kubiak adjusted to it right before halftime, and carried it throughout the second half of that game. I also know Sam has had games this year where he put up prettier numbers. The games he had against the Commanders, the Bucs, and the Saints were flashier, for certain, but this one might have been my favorite game of his on the year.

The way unfavorable circumstances revealed themselves early in this one, some questionable play calling by Kubiak in the opening offensive series, the pressure that Atlanta was sending at him, the sacks, and the INT he threw when the ball bounced off of Elijah Arroyo on third and long, it was a delight to see Sam overcome these by making big time plays with his arm, and legs with the game on the line heading into the half, and then carrying through with it in the third and fourth quarters. As mentioned above, the real question heading into this game was how Sam Darnold was going to perform against an exotic Atlanta pass rush that does a lot of the stuff that the Vikings pass rush did to him last week, and in totality, I thought Sam did really well against it once adjustments were made. This is a positive sign moving forward, I believe.

Credit also Kubiak for making great second half adjustments dealing with Atlanta’s pressure heavy defense, getting a good balance of run and pass, and especially getting Sam throwing on the move with play action. However, after a slow start to the game, it was clear that yesterday’s Sam Darnold seemed a lot like the one who was kicking major ass against the Buccaneers and Commanders over a month ago. He was efficient, decisive, and accurate, and it felt like he felt in total command.

This is the type of game I wanted to see from him. I knew the Falcons would send a bunch of pressures his way because they are a league leader in generating sacks, but I also wanted to see more from Sam than just hanging in, and surviving against it like he did against the Vikings last week. I wanted to see him beat it, and he did for 20 of 30 completions, 249 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 23 rushing yards. Bravo.

Rashid Shaheed finally had his coming out party and it couldn’t have come at a better time

Much like Darnold, I am a big believer in Rashid Shaheed, and I am bullish about his long term potential as a Seattle Seahawk. I understand, however, why a degree of fans have been growing impatient in seeing what the big to do is about him as a player post midseason trade.

For me, I felt like it was only a matter of time before he and Darnold would start melding more together, and it was good to see it finally happen in this one. As the game unfolded, it could not have come at a better time.

Even before he opened up the second half of the game with that electric 100 yard kickoff return for a touchdown, he was making impactful conversion plays as a receiver on offense. He made critical catches when the Atlanta defense was covering Jaxon Smith Njigba, and as the game wore on, he was posing enough of a threat that JSN started to find his opportunities open up in the second half when the offense started to take over the game much like their defense was.

I cannot stress enough how much exciting potential exists in this offense when Darnold and Shaheed start vibing with each other. It would further open up opportunities for JSN, and Cooper Kupp, and others. Seeing Shaheed take this step forward with four games left to go on the season is really exciting stuff.

It is clear that when Seattle traded for him, they had a vision. I suspect this vision is likely very similar to the one they had years ago when they traded for Percy Harvin. Shaheed can do things as a receiver, a runner, and a returner that few in the league can do to the level he can. If this game is but a glimpse of things to come, Seahawk fans are in for a very special treat down the round.

Nick Emmanwori was the best player in the game yesterday and it wasn’t close

All due respect for Shaheed’s brilliant kickoff return, JSN doing JSN things, Sam having a solid bounce back game, Spoon and Ernest Jones making plays all over the field on defense, but this game for me, quite literally, felt like the Nick Emmanwori Show. Let’s process his contributions to the day.

He took points off the board for Atlanta with a critical blocked field goal after Darnold’s INT. He made critical stops in the run game, and in coverage. He made a critical second half interception when the game was still somewhat in reach for the Falcons, and he had a late game sack Cousins that looked like vintage LOB era Cliff Avril coming off the corner.

He finished the day with 5 solo tackles, a blocked field goal, an INT, and a sack, which are impressive stats to look at by any measure, but to see and feel him on the field is to understand his true impact with the frenetic chaos that he throws at quarterbacks, receivers, and running backs. This guy is such a unique x-factor, that I don’t believe you can properly pin a position label on him. He is a safety, a linebacker, a corner, and an edge rusher all in one.

Seattle operates primarily out of a 4-2-5 defense; that’s four down linemen, two linebackers, and five defensive backs on the field. Emmanwori lists as a safety, but the fact of the matter is that he is almost position-less. He plays nickel corner, linebacker, safety, and now they are using him as a rush linebacker, as well. At 6-3, 220 pounds, with 99th percentile athleticism, size, and speed, and strength, he is becoming Macdonald’s ultimate chess piece as a defensive play caller, and he’s just getting started at what he can become.

He is becoming so unique to Seattle’s defense that I wouldn’t be surprised if their front office looks to draft and develop players who compare to his profile behind him just to add depth to this position that is position-less. That could be easier said than done, however. He is that much of a true unicorn player, or so it seems.

I have spent many times on this blog applauding Seattle’s selection of left guard Grey Zabel in round one last Spring of the draft, but the truth is that when Seattle traded up to the top of the second round to grab Emmanwori, they essentially landed two blue chip first round pick players. When you factor the fact that Emmanwori is a tireless worker behind the scenes picking up all of these roles that Macdonald gives to him in this defense, it absolutely blows my mind when I future trip out on what he and this defense can be for the next decade of Seahawk football.

As it stands today, I am just basking on what I see out of him on Sundays. Bring on the Colts, and Rams.

Football Players Make Football Plays

Long time former Seattle Seahawks head coach and legend Chuck Knox had a bunch of pseudo zen tough guy sayings that would come out of his mouth in the eighties that were colorful and soundbite worthy. As an impressionable teenager, one of my favorites was his sayings was “football player make football plays” in reference to the hard hitting blue collar approach of his eighties Seahawk teams that largely over performed against seemingly stronger competition.

Personally, I think Mike Macdonald has a bit of that old school Chuck Knox mentality about him. He doesn’t need a roster full of the flashiest guys. Instead, he wants guys who will play hard, and who will take the art of football playing very seriously.

Knox was a football fundaments driven head coach. He believed that the teams that blocked better and tackled better would win most games most often. I see this same mentality with Mike, but with maybe a bit more creativity on defense.

I think we are seeing this stamp of his play out with the Seahawks this season. We see countless times Seahawk players making timely plays, and it is not by accident. It is being coached up, and the guys are serious minded enough to have it show through at critical times in games, as was the case against the Falcons.

Jarran Reed is a really good football player, and it was highly instinctive of him to knock that football out of the steely grips of Bijan Robinson for a fumble recovery. Julian Love is a great football player who came into the game after a month on IR to make a critical pass defense early. Ty Okada is a great football player who, even with Love back on the field, found opportunities to make an impact against the Falcons offense. JSN is a fantastic football player getting the better of shutdown corner AJ Terrell, and so is Shaheed.

I could make a very long list of players on the Seattle Seahawks who are great football players who make great football plays. It is a testament to the front office, and the coaches, for sure, but it is mainly a testament to them.

This is the type of team I want to root for. This is kinda like the Chuck Knox team that made me first fall in love with Seahawk football as a kid many years ago now.

In truth, I don’t need flash. I don’t need kissing babies. I don’t need cool soundbites that go viral.

I don’t even need to feel a facade of rich athletes who do great things for the community. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it is great if they do, but what I want, most of all, is to feel like I am watching a bunch of very smart, talented, really good football players that make good football plays on Sundays. I want to feel them as a dominant kick ass collective on offense, defense, and special teams.

I feel like we are getting this here in Seattle now, and it is just that start. I am excited about what this new standard of football can be here moving forward. Beat the teams who you are supposed to beat, and play tough opponents really fucking tough. I think that is kinda what this guys are as a team.

Final thought

Can these Seattle Seahawks win a Super Bowl this year?

I dunno. Part of me feels like they can, and another part of me believes that their offense might need another year to fully catchup to their defense. This is year one of Kubiak as the play-caller, and the zone blocking scheme, in general, takes time for blockers and runners to truly understand the nuances of it, and build proper chemistry. Seattle’s run game, while improving, still feels too frenetic for my comforts, at times. Then there is the competition they face in a tough NFC.

The Rams, Eagles, and even the 49ers have more recent pedigree on their side along with their talents, but I wouldn’t put it past these Hawks to be a surprise entry this year the way the entire league feels wildly wide open. Their defense feels championship worthy now, and there are tons of metrics going in favor of Seattle that Super Bowl winning teams have had in the past.

Darnold critics will say that you can never win a Super Bowl with him, but ultimately, they don’t know anything about it. It is just an opinion, and nothing more.

The Tampa Bay Bucs won a Super Bowl years ago with journeyman quarterback Brad Johnson. The Ravens won a Super Bowl in that same time frame with game managing Trent Dilfer, and the Eagles won a Super Bowl with backup quarterback Nick Foles. Even last year with Jalen Hurts, who has still has some limitations as a pure passer, the Eagles found ways to win another one.

For me, I think Sam has shown enough growth in these last two seasons for me to believe that he is a very good tier two quarterback in this league, and that is the same tier I would place Hurts in, and for what it is worth, I would also place Brock Purdy is this tier, as well. In fact, I believe if you placed this version of Sam in that Frisco offense with CMC and George Kittle, with Kyle Shanahan dialing plays, he would be lights out on Sundays for them, no question in my mind about it.

If I had to bet the farm on a wager, however, I would say that Seattle is still a year away from true championship contention, but they have four games left to change my views on that. I am excited to see what comes out of it, either way.

I will say that I really truly dig this team a lot this year. I love how this defense is trending, I love how Baby Harbaugh is coaching special teams, and I love the explosiveness I see on the offense. I love Mike Macdonald’s vision for this team. They have a lot of things that are working well for them that Super Bowl teams have had, and that is exciting stuff to think about, indeed.

These are good times.

Go Hawks.