The Seattle Seahawks will look to make it three in a row when they hit the road to visit the Washington Commanders in Maryland. They'll do so against a decimated outfit, with Jayden Daniels likely to miss extended time with a shoulder injury.
The Seahawks will probably have Sam Darnold back after a couple of weeks on the shelf. With their elite defense leading the way and facing a struggling, winless team, this game could get out of hand and turn ugly pretty quickly.
Notably, that might open the door for some unlikely contributors to get an extended run in Week 3. Considering that, we'll talk about the three likeliest candidates to make a strong impression when no one expects them to.
3 Seattle Seahawks players who will surprise in Week 3
Christian Haynes
With Anthony Bradford heading to IR with knee and hip injuries, Christian Haynes is expected to be the next man up at right guard. The bar isn't particularly high, so he might put on a show to prove he's the right guy for the job.
The Seahawks' stout running game shouldn't find much trouble against Dan Quinn's defense, which has never been strong on the ground. This looks like a golden opportunity for him to make this a legitimate debate.
Rookie Beau Stephens is also expected to be in the mix, though it feels like the team doesn't think he's quite there yet. If he gets the job done, Haynes will have a month to make his case as the team's missing piece in the interior.
Emanuel Wilson
Jadarian Price and George Holani are both banged up, and with the Seahawks likely taking things easy on Darnold in his return, that leaves Emanuel Wilson as the most likely workhorse back for this game.
The Seahawks will likely try to run the clock down and just get this one over with, especially if they jump to a big lead early. There's no need to put Price or Holani in harm's way, given their status as the team's RB1 and RB2, respectively.
The former Green Bay Packers backup made a strong impression when given more of a run in Week 2 vs. the Arizona Cardinals. So, Brian Fleury might want to ride the hot hand and give Wilson another big role.
Rashid Shaheed
After a couple of quiet games, and given that he's never been much of a factor in the passing game since arriving in Seattle, watching Rashid Shaheed have a big game for a change would be a surprise at this point.
That said, this is the perfect setting to help him gain some confidence. The Commanders' secondary is terrible, and they don't have someone who can keep up with one of the fastest players in the league.
Sam Darnold or not, the Seahawks have two gunslingers who can put some air in the ball. And after signing him to a big deal in the offseason, it's about time this team gets some return on its investment.
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