Most Seattle Seahawks fans likely expected a tough opening day game against the New England Patriots. But no one seemed very worried about Game 2 against the Aarizona Cardinals until Arizona suddenly looked good in beating the Los Angeles Chargers in their opening game. Now, 12s might rightly worry about the Cards.
By playing on Wednesday, Seattle would have ten days to rest up, heal up, and prepare for their second game. Seemingly best of all, that game would be against the presumably worst team in the NFC West, an Arizona club the Seahawks have defeated in nine straight games.
The last time the team from the desert beat the team from the rainy northwest was in 2021. In addition to those nine consecutive wins, Seattle has claimed 14 of the last 18 matchups. The Cardinals went 3-14 last year.
Seattle Seahawks' Week 2 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals suddenly looks a lot more challenging
That prompted an overhaul. Head coach, offensive coordinator, starting quarterback… all are new this season. It did not seem as if this was a team that could seriously threaten the defending Super Bowl champs.
But then, troublesome signs began appearing. The most obvious is the injury to Sam Darnold. The Seahawks’ starting quarterback is not expected to play against the Cardinals in Week 2. Drew Lock will be on the field.
The status of other key contributors like Nick Emmanwori, Ty Okada, and Tory Horton remains up in the air. Still, Seattle overcame the Patriots without those players, so surely the Cardinals can’t give them any trouble. Right?
Before Sunday, I doubt many Hawks fans were concerned about Arizona. Then Arizona went out and pulled off the biggest upset of Week 1. Led by new head coach Mike LaFleur and journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett, the Cardinals went on the road against a 2025 playoff team and came away with a win.
It wasn’t merely that Arizona topped the Los Angeles Chargers 26 -14 on Sunday. It was the way they did it.
The Chargers were a popular pick to make a deep postseason run this year, and perhaps they still will achieve that. The injuries that decimated their offensive line last year are in the past. And they brought in the offensive wunderkind Mike McDaniel to theoretically unlock all of QB Justin Herbert’s enormous potential.
Everyone seemed convinced that the Chargers would soar in Week 1. They entered as the biggest favorite of the week.
No one told Arizona.
They didn’t simply eke out an upset against the Chargers. They dominated, rolling up almost 400 total yards while holding McDaniel, Herbert, and company to 268. Arizona out-passed LA. They outran them, and they won the turnover battle 2-0. Most impressively, they held the ball fifteen minutes more than the Chargers.
The thunder and lightning backfield of Tyler Allgeier and Jeremiyah Love wasn't very explosive, but they effectively ground down the Chargers' defense. Tight end Trey McBride turned in a typically elite performance, and he was helped by strong play from wideouts Kendrick Bourne and Michael Wilson. Brissett outplayed Herbert by a wide margin.
On the other side of the ball, a trio of modest free agents – lineman Roy Lopez, linebacker Jack Gibbens, and safety Andrew Wingard – were excellent. They injected new life into Nick Rallis’ defense.
When Seattle travelled to the desert last year, they came away with a tough three-point win. Three years ago, it was a one-point victory. Even two years ago, in what turned out to be a comfortable win, Arizona was done in by a couple of Kyler Murray interceptions. For the most part, Arizona has played the Seahawks fairly evenly at State Farm Stadium over the past few seasons.
Seattle is an early 5.5-point favorite. But the Cardinals showed in Week 1 that point spreads don’t concern them. This has all the makings of a trap game for the Seahawks.
Oddly, the Cardinals' Week 1 upset of Los Angeles may be a blessing for Mike Macdonald. He should have no trouble keeping his team’s mind focused on the task at hand and not seeing the Cardinals as an easy win while Darnold heals up.
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