The Seattle Seahawks defeated a good Atlanta Falcons team in Week 7 and now Seattle will face an even better Buffalo Bills team in Week 8. Buffalo is 5-2 and leads the AFC East by a relatively wide margin that is probably going to remain for the rest of the season. Buffalo is good, and their quarterback, Josh Allen, is great.
Still, many did not expect Seattle to beat the Falcons. Atlanta had a versatile offense, much like Buffalo does. Seattle's second half defense was nearly as good as the unit has played all season.
Buffalo also struggles to stop the run, just as the Seahawks do. Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet need to have great games. A huge question about Week 8 is whether Seattle receiver DK Metcalf will play.
Bold predictions for the Seahawks versus the Bills in Week 8
DK Metcalf plays and has 120 receiving yards
Metcalf is currently considered week-to-week with a Grade 1 MCL sprain. He suffered the injury in the second half of Week 7 when he was pushed sideways after catching what turned out to be an incomplete pass. The receiver, though, has been driven by skeptics coming out of college that he would get hurt a lot, and Metcalf has missed only one game in his career.
The receiver will have two splash plays early in the first half of the game that will account for 90 of his yards. He will have five catches. Metcalf will be one of the few Seahawks receivers to accomplish much against Buffalo.
That isn't because the receivers have bad games but because Seattle attempts to run the ball a lot. The Bills are 29th in the league in yards allowed per rush (5.1) and are 20th in yards allowed rushing per game (132.9). If there was a game against a good team that Seattle tried to use Kenneth Walker III a lot, then this is the one.
Seahawks force Josh Allen to throw two interceptions
Allen has become one of the more efficient quarterbacks in the league. He always had elite athleticism and great arm strength, but he was a bit raw entering the league. One issue he has had over the last three seasons, even though he otherwise has played extremely well, is interceptions. He has had at least 14 in each season. This year, though? Zero.
The odd part is that his completion percentage is its lowest since 2019. For much of the season, Allen has not had great receivers to work with (Buffalo did trade for Amari Cooper recently, however) so some of those misses are probably not Allen's fault. Still, the errant passes have yet to be picked off. Seattle will have two on Sunday which will keep them in a game they shouldn't be in.
Bills dominate time of possession by keeping the ball for 38 minutes (and lose)
Buffalo ranks only 25th in time of possession this season at 28:20 per game, but in 2023, Buffalo was second at 32:05. Seattle is 23rd this season at 28:24. In other words, something has to give.
The guess is the team that dominates time of possession is Buffalo because of Seattle's struggles to stop the run. Plus, the defense had loads of issues stopping the only mobile quarterback they have faced this season, Daniel Jones of the New York Giants, and Allen is much better than Jones. The Giants held the ball for 37:22 against Seattle in Week 5.
Seattle will still get the victory, though. Metcalf will have his early explosive plays and Walker will have two long runs. Seattle won't keep the ball long, but they will outscore the Bills 33-30.