What to watch for when Seahawks take on Lions in Week 2
RENTON, Wash. – If it’s another NFL season, then this must be Detroit.
To be clear, Seattle and Detroit are not in the same division. It may only seem that way as Sunday’s game at Ford Field will be the third between the two teams in 19 months – and they are also scheduled to play again in 2024.
All of it is due to the NFL’s scheduling formula – games in 2021 and 2024 are part of the divisional rotation, with the NFC West playing the NFC North each year. The 2022 and 2023 games are due to each team finishing in the same place in their respective divisions.
Seattle will hope this game goes similarly to contests in 2021 and 2022, in which the Seahawks scored a combined 99 points and beat the Lions twice (a 51-29 win in 2021 that turned out to be Russell Wilson’s last home game as a Seahawk, and a 48-45 win in Detroit last October in Geno Smith’s breakout game).
What the Seahawks also hope is for a performance that will make the Week 1 30-13 loss to the Rams the outlier that they spent all week insisting it is.
On to the keys:
Matchup to watch
Seahawks offensive tackles vs. Detroit edge rushers Aidan Hutchinson, Charles Harris
The Seahawks made it official Friday that they will go with backups at right tackle (Jake Curhan) and left tackle (Stone Forsythe) in place of injured starters Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas (Washington State). Each had to play most (Forsythe) or all (Curhan) of the disastrous second half against the Rams.
The Seahawks understandably say that a full week of practice should allow each to perform at a much higher level. Curhan also started and played well in five games in 2021 – including the win over the Lions – while Forsythe started at right tackle last year in a win over the Jets.
But this is going to be a tough assignment going against an improving Detroit defense, and it will be on the road in what will be a raucous environment. Seattle spent the week working on its silent counts, but no matter how much that is practiced, it can still be a challenge on game day. Hutchinson, the second overall pick in 2022 out of Michigan, had 9.5 sacks last year and seven pressures in their opening win at Kansas City. Harris missed much of last year due to injury but had 7.5 sacks in 2021 and played well in the opener with four pressures.
Player to watch
QB Geno Smith
Maybe lost in all the sordid numbers from the Rams game is that Smith’s 112 passing yards were the fewest of his 21 starts as a Seahawk. It was a game that also didn’t necessarily quell any of the questions about Smith’s statistical regression in the second half last season, with some wondering if that may be who Smith is, and not the quarterback who played at an MVP level in the first half of the year. This also figures to be a high-scoring game, and Seattle will need Smith to play similarly to how he did last year in Detroit – when he threw for 320 yards and ran for 49 – to get the win in this one.
Coaching decision to watch
How will the cornerback position shake out?
Rookie Devon Witherspoon, the fifth overall pick in the 2023 draft, has practiced fully all week and is expected to make his NFL debut against the Lions. But where will he fit in? Witherspoon had been playing nickel corner before he suffered a hamstring injury Aug. 7. But he also has been getting snaps at left cornerback in practice and he could see time at both spots against the Lions. Coby Bryant started at nickel against the Rams with Witherspoon out, and Seattle could split reps there. Tre Brown started on the left side against the Rams with Michael Jackson also getting a few series, but the Seahawks had obvious struggles in the secondary as Matthew Stafford threw for 334 yards. Witherspoon could potentially play outside in the base defense and inside in nickel and dime formations. Carroll was vague about it this week. The only sure thing seems to be Riq Woolen starting on the right side.
The X-factor
Seahawks’ desperation, Lions’ anticipation
This is a game that features two teams heading in opposite directions. Seattle is 3-7 in its past 10 games, Detroit 9-2 in its past 11. While the Seahawks are going on the road after a disastrous home opener, the Lions are returning home after a win against defending Super Bowl champ Kansas City. Some are saying this is the most anticipated Lions home game in decades. Can Seattle overcome all of that?
Seattle players said all the right things this week, and effort shouldn’t be an issue Sunday (though if it is, then there may be some serious issues). But whether effort alone will be enough is another question.
Player who could surprise
WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Maybe a first-round pick, and the 20th overall, shouldn’t be seen as a potential surprise player. But it’s fair to expect that Smith-Njigba might make more of an impact this week than he did against the Rams. It was his NFL debut and first time playing since suffering a slight fracture in his wrist three weeks previously, which caused him to miss a week of practice.
Smith-Njigba had three catches for 13 yards on five targets against the Rams. He played 30 snaps and was used mostly close to the line of scrimmage. Expect the Seahawks to try to get him in the intermediate and deep part of the field more this week.
Key stat
Third downs
This was the same stat we highlighted last week, but after a Rams game that Pete Carroll called “a third-down disaster,” it still fits as the key stat for the Seahawks. The Rams were 11 for 17 on third downs, including 5 for 5 on a tone-setting first drive. The Seahawks were just 2 for 9 – and 0 for 7 after converting their first two. Third downs on both sides of the ball were also an issue last year for the Seahawks, who put an emphasis on it in the preseason.
But obviously nothing worked right against the Rams. One key to converting third downs, of course, is to not have them be long ones. The Seahawks’ only two third-down conversions Sunday were 3 yards or shorter. Smith was 0-for-6 passing on third downs of 4 yards or more, with another ending in a sack. So, in a way, the real key may be doing better on first and second downs to create more manageable third downs on offense.
Prediction
Lions 31, Seahawks 23
The Seahawks have to play better in this game than they did against the Rams, if only because it’s hard to fathom they could play worse. But they’ll need to play an awful lot better to beat one of the hotter teams in the NFL. Detroit’s offense and Seattle’s offensive-tackle issues figure to be too much to overcome.