The Thanksgiving hangover may be in full effect, but the football just keeps on coming.
Week 12’s edition of Monday Night Football features two 2020 division champions— the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Football Team— who have fallen upon hard times and are currently on the outside looking in at this year’s postseason festivities.
Seattle’s chances are extremely thin in a loaded NFC West, while Washington could move within two games of the NFC East leaders with a win.
The Seahawks are a long way off of their usual standard, posting a 3-7 record with back-to-back losses in their past two games. Part of their struggles has come down to health, specifically that of Russell Wilson, who has missed time this year. Due to salary mismanagement and an overall deterioration of talent on the roster, Wilson’s absence effectively leaves the Hawks in a David vs Goliath situation, seemingly regardless of who they are playing.
After being in the top three earlier in the campaign, Seattle has now fallen to 14th in Real Quarterback Rating. This is down to both Wilson’s absence and his poor play since, as the former Super Bowl winner has thrown two interceptions and zero touchdowns in the two weeks that he has been back. The 32-year-old has also not gotten much help from his running backs, who, although they are ninth in Offensive Rusher Rating, do not even have 1,000 yards on the season.
If there is a positive for the Seahawks, it is their defense; the 12th man ranks second in Bendability, fourth in Defensive Hog Index, and eighth in Defensive Rusher Rating. They have not allowed a team to score 30 points since week three, and although they are very reliant on Jamal Adams and Bobby Wagner to be in the lineup, they are certainly holding serve on their side of the football.
Anything can happen in the NFC East— everybody knows that. After a 2-6 start to their season, the Washington Football Team has won two straight games, including a 29-19 result over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Washington drastically missed on their early-season expectations after they showed so much promise last year, but just as was the case in 2020, they are rounding into form in the back-half of the season.
Now, Washington’s recent run of form has not done enough to completely change the theme of its season; they still rank in the bottom-10 in Scoreability, Real Quarterback Rating, and Offensive Rusher Rating. However, with Taylor Heinicke’s ability to improvise outside of the pocket, they will always have the same chance of making a highlight play as they do a boneheaded turnover.
The biggest disappointment of Washington’s season has been the defense, who many thought had the best front-seven in football and also rebuffed their secondary. Instead, WFT ranks 27th in Bendability and dead-last in Defensive Real Quarterback Rating. They have done a decent job defending the run, especially as of late, but a season-ending injury to Chase Young limits their potential of mounting a playoff push.
Not to say that Taylor Heinicke is the player that Russell Wilson is, but he can have moments that rival the brilliance of the NFL’s top playmakers, like Wilson. If he can continue to hold off on the turnover, then Washington can absolutely take this game at home.
At the same time, Seattle has maintained authority over Washington in recent meetings. They have the more favorable metrics and, even if they have only scored 13 total points in their last two games, will consider themselves the hunted more than the hunters.
Monday’s game is going to come down to which team takes their opportunities when they can, setting the stage for an enjoyable three hours of football.
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