Seahawks versus Falcons: Our staff predicts happiness for 12s

The 12th Man Rising staff foresees mostly good things for the Seahawks in week one.

The Seattle Seahawks kick off their 2020 season with an away game against the Atlanta Falcons. It will be weird. There will be no fans in the stadium. Atlanta has an indoor stadium so each team might hear clearly what the other team is calling out. Strange times we live in.

But who will win when the Seahawks play the Falcons on Sunday? This is the 12th Man Rising team’s best guesses.

Willie Keeler, Contributor

The Falcons have been one of the most annoying teams to face during the Russell Wilson era, defeating the Seahawks in Seattle in 2017 and of course, knocking them out of the playoffs twice (2012, 2016). Last season the Seahawks got the best of the Dan Quinn led Falcons, taking a huge 24-0 halftime lead and then ultimately winning 27-20. Many believed that would be the last game Dan Quinn would ever coach in Atlanta, but the Falcons would finish the rest of the season 6-2.

The 2020 Falcons are a much different team from the 1-7 team that the Seahawks saw last season, with a much-improved defense including the addition of Dante Fowler Jr. Their offense also added Todd Gurley to go along with all of their former first-round picks.

However, I still see a similar result to last season. Both offenses will struggle with Seattle’s offensive line holding them back, and their defensive backfield and linebackers holding back the Falcons rush and passing attack. The Seahawks will have just enough to win taking a fourth-quarter lead and holding on to it till the end.

Prediction: Seahawks win 24-20

Karley Sibert, Contributor

Seattle has lost five out of six season openers on the road under head coach Pete Carroll. This matchup against Atlanta will mark their seventh road game to start the season. The Seahawks often start the season slow and find their groove after three or four weeks. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if they dropped this first game especially with high expectations on them. But I expect Russell Wilson and Jamal Adams to immediately ball out on their respective sides of the field and seal this game with a big W.

Prediction: Seattle 28 Atlanta 21

Geoff Shull, Contributor

Seattle has a history of starting the year off slow. This year is unlike any other. With the pandemic causing teams to forego a lot of the off-season activities and preseason games, this is really the first chance the team has at gauging its roster in action.

Pete Carroll openly stated that they are going to rotate players more than they typically would. This is because competition in games hasn’t been able to sort positions like it normally would. Could make for an interesting game.

I think Seattle is going to lose a close one. Seattle is 3-6 in their last 9 meetings. One of the wins came late in the year against a badly banged up Atlanta’s squad with a backup QB. Combine that with Todd Gurley’s dominance against Seattle, it could be a recipe for disaster.

Prediction: Atlanta 24, Seattle 21

Jake Luppino, Contributor

The 2020 NFL regular season is finally upon us in an offseason that has been unique, to say the least. While the games may look different with most teams announcing no fans, all that matters is 11 guys line up on offense and 11 guys line up on defense. Our week 1 matchup is in Atlanta against a Falcons team coming into this season with something to prove. As many Seahawk fans know, week 1 is typically a struggle. We start off slow and somehow manage to keep ourselves in the game up until the 4th quarter where Russell Wilson makes enough plays to get us the victory. Although I see both teams starting off slow due to the weird offseason, I do see the Seahawks picking up a nice road win to start the season. Against a weak Atlanta secondary, I see Russell Wilson starting off his 2020 MVP campaign with an impressive season debut.

Prediction: Seahawks 28 Falcons 17

Todd Vandenberg, Contributor

I see the Seahawks getting off to their usual slow start in the first week of the season. Consider all the changes they’ve made to both lines and the secondary. Now consider they haven’t had a single preseason game to see how they gel in live competition. This will just add to their typical Game One doldrums. However, those changes include some tremendous talent, especially on defense. Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson didn’t go anywhere. And Atlanta got exactly as much game practice as Seattle: none. That slow start I mentioned will be over by the third series.

Prediction: Seahawks 31 Falcons 13

Lee Vowell, Expert

All the Contributors here made excellent points. The Seahawks, though, have not scored more than 24 points in a season-opener since 2015. Seattle is also 2-3 in its last five first-games of seasons. In other words, as well as most Seahawks seasons end up under Pete Carroll – with a team in the playoffs – Seattle doesn’t start that well. As Carroll’s philosophy goes, how you finish is more important than how you start.

That said, this is a road game in the eastern time zone against a good quarterback in Matt Ryan and a coach in Dan Quinn who has had success against Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll (the Seahawks and Falcons are 2-2 since 2016). The Falcons will win, but it also isn’t the end of the world for 12s. The season will be a success in the long run.

Prediction: Falcons 24 Seahawks 21