The Seattle Seahawks were already reeling after their Week 8 loss to the Chicago Bears. Normally, a game against the Arizona Cardinals serves as a mini-bye week. Not this time. Seattle is facing too many injuries, none worse than the loss of Leonard Williams.
This is where I usually belittle the Cardinals and refer to them as the Seahawks' little brothers. They haven't beaten Seattle since their head coach was in diapers. Okay, it's really just been five years, and Mike LaFleur is three months older than Mike Macdonald. But this group has gotten better and plays hard to the last second. Just ask the Rams and Cowboys how much they like them.
On the other side of the coin, the Seahawks have gotten worse. Arizona has won two of their last three, while Seattle has dropped three of four. To make matters much worse, several of their top players will miss Sunday's game. The impact will hit the offense, defense, and special teams. But none will hit harder than the absence of the Big Cat, Leonard Williams.
Seattle Seahawks' Leonard Williams is a lot to handle and a lot to replace
Now in his 12th season, Williams has never been better. Mired in the dual purgatory of the New York teams, he was actively considering retirement until the Seahawks swooped down and rescued him in the middle of 2023. Rejuvenated, he's made the Pro Bowl in each of his two full seasons in Seattle and is now recognized as one of the NFL's best defenders and a leader of the Dark Side defense.
Now he'll miss only his second game as a Seahawk. Since you were about to ask, yes, Seattle lost that game. In fact, they were overrun by the Lions 42-29. Seattle doomed themselves with their own mistakes (sounds too familiar, right?), but Johnathan Hankins was a poor substitute for the Big Cat.
This time around, Mike Morris gets a chance to show he's up to the task. He did get Seattle's only sack in the Week 8 loss, so maybe he'll surprise us all and help pull off the win. One thing's for sure; those are some big cleats to fill.
Of course, the other issue is that Williams isn't the only elite defensive player to miss the game for Seattle. Uchenna Nwosu was clearly missed in Week 8, too. The Seahawks don't have a true replacement for him, though. Free agent signee Dante Fowler Jr. has been abysmal.
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