Inside the matchup Seahawks vs. Cardinals

What a difference a few weeks can make. The last time these teams met, Seattle was 5-0 and on top of the NFC West division. The Seahawks have gone 1-3 since, including the overtime loss to Arizona, and find themselves in a three-way tie with the Cardinals and Rams with a 6-3 record. Since Seattle has lost to both these teams, they currently would not hold the tiebreaker to determine a division title or wild-card spot. A loss in this game would start to complicate Seattle’s post-season ambitions.

Kyler Murray has continued his MVP caliber season for Arizona. To say the offense revolves around him is not an understatement. In addition to his passing touchdowns, he also has ten rushing touchdowns, which puts him second in the NFL in that category. To put that in perspective, Cam Newton holds the record for touchdowns by an NFL quarterback in a season with fourteen in 2011. Before Newton, Steve Grogan had the previous record with 12 touchdowns back in 1976 as a member of the New England Patriots. Murray is also eighth in the NFL in rushing yards with 604. That’s only eight yards fewer than Arizona’s running back Kenyan Drake, and Murray has put up those numbers with forty-eight fewer attempts than Drake.

DeAndre Hopkins hasn’t slowed down since Seattle last saw him. Hopkins is second in the league in receiving yards per game with 95.7. Hopkins is also second in the league in total yards with 861. The Cardinals are now up to six players with at least one receiving touchdown this season. Christian Kirk, the forty-seventh overall draft pick in 2018, leads the Cardinals with six receiving touchdowns this year.

The good news is Seattle’s schedule is very favorable for the next four weeks. After this game, Seattle’s next four opponents are the Eagles, Giants, Jets, and the team formerly known as the Redskins, aka Washington. None of these teams have a winning record, and the Jets haven’t won a game this year. The combined record of these four currently stands at 8-28-1.

Several players for the Seahawks are listed as questionable for Thursday’s game; they are Carlos Hyde RB, Chris Carson RB, Ethan Pocic G, Quinton Dunbar CB, Shaquill Griffin CB, Benson Mayowa DE, Tyler Lockett WR, Greg Olsen TE, Travis Homer RB, KJ Wright LB, Nikon Thorpe CB, and Kyle Fuller C.