Why is no one talking about the Seattle Seahawks?

The Seattle Seahawks have gone under the radar so far this season and now have a 5-2 record and atop the NFC West, ahead of the highly rated San Francisco 49ers. A 24-20 win over the impressive Cleveland Browns, and I feel has not been talked about enough following this weekend’s round of games, so I am here to give the Seahawks their flowers.

The first noticeable thing is they are always in games. This season they have beaten the Carolina Panthers, New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals, all of which would be expected. However, that win over the Browns and going into Detroit and beating the Lions didn’t get much notice taken of either and that game showed how good the Seahawks really can be. 

Their two defeats are to the Los Angeles Rams on opening weekend who started the season off hot and then a four-point road defeat to the Cincinnati Bengals who have turned it up a notch and are always one of the favourites to win it all.

Offensively they may have the best receiving core in the league with DK Metcalf being your big play vertical receiver, Tyler Lockett is barely touched and is a safe pair of hands, then now you have first round pick Jaxon Smith-Njigba hotting up with his fourth quarter touchdown to win the game against the Browns this weekend, they have receiving options galore.

Throw in a wildcard guy like Jake Bobo who has been a threat in the run game and defences don’t really know who to give most of their attention to. 

In the backfield Kenneth Walker III has been brilliant again, with his six touchdowns on the season so far and having the seventh most rushing yards in the league with 516. This weekend saw backup running back Zach Charbonnet show off his skills too and pick up 53 yards of his own to give Seattle a different option.

The only slight knock offensively is that Geno Smith hasn’t quite shown the levels he displayed last season, throwing just nine touchdowns and six interceptions so far, including two against Cleveland. If he manages to reduce the interceptions and continues to find those weapons of his then there is no real ceiling on this Seahawks team.

Now we move over to the defence and Darius Butler recently said on the Pat McAffe Show that he believes “this secondary on paper are probably the most talented, deepest group in the NFL.”

I am inclined to agree that they really are up there as one of the best when it comes to secondaries. Jamal Adams we all know how great he can be when not healthy and can also have an impact in the run game. Quandre Diggs is experienced back there and great cover if they use Adams at the line of scrimmage. His partner at safety Julian Love came up with a pick at the weekend and has started the season strong. 

Their corners are so young and athletic too that they could become the new Legion of Boom in the North-West. Tariq Woolen exploded last season in his rookie season with six interceptions and claimed his first of the season against the Browns.

Alongside him you have Devon Witherspoon, a first-round pick out of Illinois, who has shown his ability to tackle and go toe-to-toe with receivers.

At linebacker they have the experienced Bobby Wagner who as a leader for this youthful defence is a great asset. Before initially leaving Seattle for LA, Wagner was arguably the best off-ball linebacker in the league and regarded as one of the best defensive players in the NFL.

They even have made moves to improve their pass rush with the addition of Frank Clark, another player who spent time with the Seahawks before moving to the Kansas City Chiefs and winning two Super Bowls. 

Just days before the deadline they added another experienced pass rusher in former sixth overall pick Leonard Williams from the New York Giants in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2024 draft and a fifth in the 2025 NFL draft.

This coming weekend they have a very tough matchup on the road with the Baltimore Ravens who are 6-2 and have been impressive on both sides of the ball. 

Looking ahead to the rest of the regular season and the Seahawks do still have to face the 49ers twice, the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles, all of which will be tests as to how good this Seattle team is.

For me, they have been incredibly underrated this season with their quarterback not performing to the levels of what we know but that is also a good sign of a team. If Smith returns to the form of last season, then they will be tough to stop.

I expect them to make the playoffs and push San Francisco for the division title, and who knows how far this team can really go.