Mike Macdonald’s defense has officially put the NFL on notice. While both offenses the Seattle Seahawks have faced this year have their own issues, one thing is clear: there will be pressure on the quarterback.
Last week, the Seahawks pressured Brock Purdy on 57.9% of his drop-backs. For their follow-up performance, they pressured Aaron Rodgers on 40% of his drop-backs while only sending four or fewer rushers. While the Seahawks only sacked Purdy once, they got to Rodgers three times.
Those are elite numbers in the pass-rushing department, and it's translating to more success across the defense.
Seattle Seahawks pass rush is going to be a problem for other teams
Last week, Purdy was able to overcome the pressure, largely thanks to lapses in coverage. By and large, those issues didn’t travel to Pittsburgh. The pressure complemented the coverage more often than not as Rodgers was particularly inefficient when trying to push the ball down the field. He was 2-9 for 42 yards and an interception on attempts traveling 10+ air yards, according to Next Gen Stats.
Last week, Rodgers was under heavy pressure too, but he was most lethal down the field against his former team. He was 5-6 for 92 yards and a touchdown. He faced half as much pressure in that game, for what it’s worth. But that really only points to the impacts made by the Seahawks’ defense in Week 2.
For anyone surprised by the pressure Macdonald’s defense creates, they shouldn’t be. The Seahawks had 45 sacks last season, tied for the 6th-highest total in the league. The pass rush only got stronger with Uchena Nwosu returning from injury this week and the signing of veteran DeMarcus Lawrence during the offseason.
They didn't even create the sacks this week. Byron Murphy had 1.5 while Jarran Reed had one, and Leonard Williams had .5 a sack.
What Seattle’s front line lacks in national star power, it makes up for in executing a tried and true scheme that brought Macdonald over from Baltimore in the first place. But of course, the true mark of this statement win for Macdonald grows from there.
With their win on Sunday, the Seahawks broke a 14-game winning streak for the Steelers when they held a lead at halftime, and that stems back to the defense. Seattle gave up the go-ahead touchdown late in the first half. In the second half, Seattle held Pittsburgh to three points while also picking up both of their turnovers.
While Week 1 bore some concern, there’s some solace in the fact that it was just Week 1. Now, Macdonald and his defense have a statement win under their belt and can look to stack more, beginning with the New Orleans Saints next week.