4 bold predictions: Seattle Seahawks defense stands up versus Browns in Week 8
- A defensive struggle?
- Can Jason Myers come through?
- Geno Smith squeaks through
By Lee Vowell
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Seahawks win a low-scoring game that only defensive coaches can love
I think this will be an ugly game for most NFL fans to watch and that's perfectly fine. 12s have gotten used to Pete Carroll teams winning close games that the team seems like it should lose but the wins come in weird ways. The point in the NFL, of course, is to just get a victory no matter how a team needs to get it. A 3-2 final is as good as an 83-0 win.
I also realize that the Browns beat the Indianapolis Colts in Week 7 39-38. But look at the box score. Many of the ways Cleveland won and scored are not necessarily replicable. Not every week is a team going to recover a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown, for instance. And not every week is a team going to score 39 points when their quarterbacks combined to go 16 of 37 for just 183 yards, zero touchdowns, but 2 interceptions.
Still, Cleveland's defense is good enough to limit a Seahawks offense struggling mightily in the red zone. Seattle has scored touchdowns on 12 of their 25 red zone trips, 21st in the league. The Browns have scored TDs on nine of 14 red zone trips, though 14 is the third-fewest red zone trips in the league.
This game will come down to how well Jason Myers kicks the football on field goal attempts. Seattle needs to go for points every chance it has, even if that means a few 45-yard-plus field goal tries. Seattle's defense will win this game overall, though, and the final will be 16-12.
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