The 5-3 Seahawks take on the 3-5 Cardinals in Week 9. The records might surprise you if you just tuned in. But with each week that goes by, Seattle seems more and more real. This could be the week that the bubble bursts, however.
I only partly say that last part because what we have seen from Seattle this year is a bit difficult to believe, right? I mean, they look like a team that has played together for a few years and should be good. But in reality, this is a team built with a nearly career-long quarterback, a few good veterans and a bunch of rookies who are better than expected this early in their careers.
All that is OK, too. Geno Smith seems to actually be as good as he has been playing. Rookies like Ken Walker, Tariq Woolen and Coby Bryant (just to name three) look like they are going to help the Seahawks win a lot of games for many years to come. But what happens in Week 9 versus the Cardinals? Here are three guesses.
Bold predictions for the Seahawks vs. the Cardinals in Week 9
Prediction 1: Geno Smith gets his first game with 350 passing yards
For as great as Geno Smith has been, he hasn’t had a game where he has thrown for over 325 yards in 2022. He has had two games this year where he has thrown for more than 268 yards and had three games where he has tossed for fewer than 200 yards. Smith has been fantastic but not prolific.
That will change in Week 9. The Cardinals did sack Smith 5 times in Week 6 and they will probably get some heat on him this Sunday as well, but the Cardinals are struggling with pass defense lately. Arizona is 31st in the NFL in points allowed but in the last two games have averaged giving up 34 points a game. While the Cardinals did get two pick-sixes in Week 7 against the Saints, they also gave up 4 touchdown passes and 361 yards to Saints quarterback Andy Dalton.
Of course, the Cardinals and Seahawks always seem to play close games for the most part. This game might not be any different. But Geno Smith will throw for 379 yards and 3 touchdowns in Week 9 and continue to look much better than Russell Wilson.
DeAndre Hopkins scores 2 touchdowns but Tariq Woolen gets 2 picks
DeAndre Hopkins is really good. This isn’t new news but it still should be noted. In Week 6, Arizona didn’t have the then-suspended Hopkins and their offense was atrocious for most of the game. In the last two games, the Cardinals offense has averaged 26 points a game (they scored 42 against the Saints but two touchdowns were those returned interceptions). The biggest reason that the Cardinals offense is better is that Hopkins is back.
In two games this year, Hopkins already ranks third on the Cardinals in receiving yards, leads the team in yards-per-catch and is averaging 11 catches a game. He is going to be targeted a bunch against the Seahawks and he should be. Arizona needs Hopkins to be great for them to have any chance of success.
Seahawks rookie Tariq Woolen won’t cover Hopkins all over the field. Seattle simply doesn’t play that way under Pete Carroll and that’s fine because it has worked for the most part in the last 12 years. But because Woolen is big and Hopkins is big, the two will probably match up quite a bit in Week 9.
Woolen will get beaten at times by Hopkins because Hopkins beats everyone. But Woolen plays with no fear and is still trying to prove himself. By the end of the game, Woolen will have 2 more interceptions for 2022 and continue his run of excellence.
The Seahawks change a trend
Arizona and Seattle seem to go 1-1 against each other every season. Since 2010, only twice has a team won the season series against the other. Seattle beat the Cardinals twice in 2014 and 2018. Interesting. So every four years the Seahawks sweep the Cardinals. We are now four years removed from 2018 and Seattle has already won the first meeting between the two teams this year.
The Cardinals, even if they defeat Seattle on Sunday, aren’t going anywhere this year. They are stuck with an overpaid quarterback (Kyler Murray) and an overpaid coach (Kliff Kingsbury) and the coach has proven he can’t win in the second half of seasons. But Arizona getting off to bad starts for a season is unusual. Arizona is searching for answers.
The Seahawks, though, seem to be growing in confidence and realizing who they are. This team is loaded with young talent and some of that talent (such as Boye Mafe) are just beginning to make their mark. Seattle is 5-3 and already exceeded expectations but could also be better in four games than they are right now. This is a dangerous team.
Still, this is the Cardinals and history says Seattle splits each year with Arizona. Not in 2022, however. Seattle will win the game but it will be close and much higher-scoring than in Week 6. The Seahawks win 32-28.