The Seattle Seahawks saw their big trade acquisition, Quenton Nelson, make his debut in Monday’s 34-17 loss to the Chicago Bears on Monday night. But if they were wise, they’d add a wide receiver to their shopping list ahead of the Nov. 10 deadline.
The Seahawks offense had a rough night overall, and outside of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who finished the night with six catches for 118 yards, Seattle’s wide receivers combined for four catches for 33 yards.
The absence of Rashid Shaheed, who was out with a knee injury, didn’t help matters. But if Seattle is to compete, they’ll need to add another weapon as the deadline approaches.
Seattle Seahawks have a secondary receiver problem after Monday’s loss to the Chicago Bears
Smith-Njigba has been producing at a historic rate to begin the season, entering Monday’s game with an NFL-high 867 receiving yards and on pace to break Calvin Johnson’s record of 1,964 yards set in 2012. But the rest of Seattle’s pass catchers have been missing in action, with no other receiver entering Monday with more than 200 yards.
That trend continued in the first half against the Bears. While Smith-Njigba tore up the Chicago secondary with a 43-yard touchdown, he accounted for 92 of Sam Darnold’s 100 passing yards in the first half. The other eight yards came on receptions by Zach Charbonnet and Jadarian Price, meaning no other Seattle receiver recorded a reception in the first 30 minutes.
While the Bears took the air out of the ball in the second half, they also adjusted to hold Smith-Njigba to two catches for 26 yards after halftime.
The rest of the Seahawks receivers came out of their slumber but were still sleepwalking, with Tory Horton leading the secondary threats with three catches for 26 yards and Cooper Kupp grabbing a seven-yard touchdown for his lone reception of the night.
There were other factors that contributed to the mess, such as a leaky offensive line that was missing Charles Cross. Darnold also wasn’t on his game, completing 17-of-34 passes for 188 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. But having no threat outside of Smith-Njigba took its toll and should have general manager John Schneider working the phones.
Seahawks have plenty of options to upgrade at receiver ahead of the trade deadline
Seattle’s trade for Nelson opened the floodgates for activity, with several teams looking to make deals. In this case, the Seahawks will have no shortage of targets if they add to the receiving room.
The top target for Seattle could be Josh Downs from the Indianapolis Colts. With the Colts in the middle of a fire sale, Downs has requested a trade and could be the intermediate threat to complement Smith-Njigba in exchange for a third- or fourth-round pick, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
It’s unlikely the Seahawks would want to go big after already acquiring Nelson, but they have the option in Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. The cost would not be cheap, however, and after a strong rookie season with 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns, he’s combined for 58 catches for 824 yards and four touchdowns over the past two seasons, creating significant risk.
Calvin Ridley of the Tennessee Titans, Rashod Bateman of the Baltimore Ravens, Jerry Jeudy of the Cleveland Browns, and Jauan Jennings of the Minnesota Vikings could also be available. But no matter who they target, the Seahawks should have a sense of urgency.
Monday’s loss dropped Seattle to 4-4 on the season, and they stand 3.5 games behind the San Francisco 49ers, who were on a bye. While there’s half a season to make up that ground, the Seahawks are going to need more offense to pull it off.
The loss to the Bears, as well as the way the season has panned out, are two key reasons to make a deal, and it could lead to a worthy investment as Seattle looks to steer back in the right direction.
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