Seahawks vs. Bears: Position by position breakdown
By Lee Vowell
Which team has the advantage in head-to-head position groups in Monday’s Seahawks vs. Bears matchup? I take a gander.
The Seahawks are an injured team. Doing a head-to-head position group advantage is almost unfair. Seattle will not have either starting linebacker against the Chicago Bears on Monday night. Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright are both out.
So is receiver Doug Baldwin. The Bears will have the advantage at receiver simply because the Seahawks best receiver won’t be playing. Unfortunately, Baldwin, Wright and Wagner are not the only Seattle players likely to miss.
This, of course, is the NFL, though. Every player gets paid nice money and is expected to do a nice job. So here is how each position unit ranks against the other when Seattle plays Chicago.
Offense
Quarterback
Russell Wilson is better than Mitchell Trubisky. Anyone who thinks otherwise has probably never watched a football game. But Trubisky could look good against the Seahawks because of all the injuries to the Seahawks defense. Wilson, though, might not look as good because he is going to face another good pass rush. The Bears have Khalil Mack but Seattle might not have anyone that can block him.
Advantage: Seahawks
Running back
Chicago has a very good back in Jordan Howard. Howard has the size and ability to chew up clock against a weakened Seattle defense. The Seahawks have a solid backfield too with Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny. If Carson had a good offensive line, he would be a 1,000 yard-plus runner for the next several years. But the Seahawks haven’t proven they have that good of a line yet.
Advantage: Bears
Receiver/Tight end
The Bears best receiver is Allen Robinson. Robinson is a good receiver but not great. The issue for Seattle, though, is that the cornerbacks are decimated with injury. Nearly any good receiver should be able to put up decent statistics against Seattle’s corners. Even Shaquill Griffin may not be able to play for the Seahawks.
On the opposite side, Baldwin is out. But Tyler Lockett was really good against the Broncos in week one. And Brandon Marshall is still better than average. The depth is unproven, though.
Advantage: Bears (because of what Chicago’s receivers will be facing)
Offensive line
The Bears offensive line is pretty good. And Seattle’s may not be. Of course, the play calling in week one for the Seahawks did the line no favors. And neither did Russell Wilson. If Seattle were to try to run the ball, I think the line would be effective. But we all know that Seattle is going to rely on Wilson as they always do.
Advantage: Bears