Top 3 keys to victory for Seattle Seahawks at New York Giants in Week 4

What a difference a couple of weeks makes. The Seattle Seahawks are in second place in the NFC West, behind arguably the best team in the NFL in the San Francisco 49ers. After a messy Week 1, the team has gotten its 'grove back'. With 87 points the Seahawks are the second-highest-scoring team in the NFC, trailing only (you guessed it) the 49ers, who have scored 90 points.

As predicted, Seattle is a team that can and will score a lot of points. Sadly though, as many predicted, they are a team who allows a lot of points (88). How can a team have a winning record but have actually been outscored?

Truth is, we have been pretty lucky, and have got to watch some pretty exciting football games, and as luck would have it, we are 2-1. The reality of this season is we were handled by the Rams, we beat an incredible Lions team on the road, and then we played against a very improved (from Week 2 to Week 3) Panthers squad. Dare I say Dalton is better for the Panthers short-term than Young? Yes, I'll say it. Young is overrated, big time.

In Week 4 the Seahawks face the New York Giants on the road, on Monday Night Football. Ah yeahuh!
Get out your popcorn, and prepare for some fireworks. Let's take a look at the top 3 keys to victory for the Seattle Seahawks at the New York Giants in Week 4.

The Seattle Seahawks need to play better defense

The first key to victory is probably the most important one. The Seahawks need to play better defense. We need to stop the Giants from scoring. This may seem a bit obvious, but as mentioned we have allowed more points (88) than we have scored (87). The Giants are a real hit-or-miss team. When they show up, Daniel Jones and company can be a pain in the butt to face. When they are off, they are a cakewalk.

This game feels like the matchup the Giants have been waiting for. A 'slump buster', if you will. If we are going to avoid an embarrassing nationally televised matchup, the defense is going to have to be aces, and it starts with handling quarterback Daniel Jones.

Jones is a strange NFL quarterback. I do not think that New York actually wanted to lock him up long-term this past offseason. I think it was more of a "Who are we going to get that is better"? In his career, Jones has shown flashes of being a player warranted being drafted 6th overall (2019 Draft), just not often enough. Jones can run (last season he rushed for 708 yards) and has a decent arm, but his numbers this season are terrible. In 3 games he has thrown for 562 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. Yikes.

If we can take notes from the 49ers and Cowboys' game plans, we should be in great shape. This is going to start with putting Jones on his back. Dallas had 7 sacks in Week 1, and the 49ers held the Giants to 29 rushing yards in Week 3. With very few playmakers on their roster, Seattle needs to shut down Jones, tight end Darren Waller, and if he plays star running back Saquan Barkley. Barkley is still day-to-day with an ankle injury.

The narrative has to change, and this should be the week that we get our defense back on track. Offense, help keep the defense off of the field. Which brings me to my second key to victory.

Run the ball and control the clock

The second key to victory for the Seahawks in Week 4 is running the ball and controlling the clock. It has been nice scoring the second-most points in the NFC, but boy we could do a better job of keeping the ball out of the other team's hands. Last week against Carolina, we allowed late touchdowns during garbage time. Adam Thielen is old and is really not that good anymore. We made him look great. We can help the defense out by controlling the clock.

Run the ball. We have the best running back room in the NFL and it's time to let these boys eat. Kenneth Walker should easily exceed 100 yards and hopefully, keep his multi-touchdown game streak going. Let's make it three games in a row! Zach Charbonnet finally had double-digit carries last week and turned out his best performance of the season.

Coach Pete Carroll needs to cut the boys loose and run the ball all day. If Walker cracks 100 yards, and Charbonnet gets 15 touches (I am predicting he scores his first NFL touchdown), the Giants' defense will tire out and this game will be over. Run the ball, Pete. Keep feeding our boys.

Do not let the bright lights of Monday Night Football blind us

The third and final key to victory for the Seahawks is to not get caught up in playing in front of a national television audience. It's Monday Night Football. It happens often, players look forward to MNF, and forget to actually play football. The key here is to go out and just play ball. Keep the emotions in check.

Do not get too high, and do not get too low. Play the entire game one drive at a time. Players need to do their job every single play. It is easy to get worked up and lose focus if a player makes a mistake. Short-term memory, good or bad. The Giants have all of the pressure on them. They need this win, they are at home, and they are desperate for a win. Falling to 1-3 in their division could seal their postseason fate early in the season. Let them feel the pressure. If we go out and just play football, we should do fine.

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