Seattle Seahawks lock in, take control, beat Cardinals 30-18
By Jake Parr, edited by Charles Hamaker
Glendale, AZ - Our Seattle Seahawks marched into Glendale just 14 days removed from facing the Arizona Cardinals at home. Eager to put the hurt on a division rival, the Seahawks took advantage of multiple first quarter interceptions to run up an early lead. With a ground game powered by Zach Charbonnet and an aerial assault by way of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the Seahawks offense dominated the first half. The second half wasn’t quite a smooth cruise, but it was enough to come away with a statement win as the Hawks look to clinch the topsy-turvy NFC West and make a trip to the playoffs. Two wins over the Cardinals, who have found themselves atop the division for a solid amount of the 2024-25 campaign, is critical for Seattle and they’ve come within a three week span and during their four-game winning streak. While the Seahawks season has been up and down (Three game winning streak to start the year, three game losing streak after that, two losses in a three game span, and now a four-game winning stretch currently), Seattle’s defense has shined and the offensive game seems to be finding some sense of consistency which could be massive for a late season year run.
As they’re doing in this photo, the Seattle Seahawks defense swarmed the Arizona Cardinals for their second win over their divisional rival in a three week span, as the Seahawks were victorious over the Cardinals by a final score of 30-18 on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 at State Farm Stadium. (Photo via the Seattle Seahawks website)
Belligerent Seabirds Ground Cardinals
Today’s contest didn’t start as cleanly for the defense as when Seattle and Arizona met back in week 12. That game saw the Seahawks defense prevent the Cardinals from scoring a single touchdown, limiting them to a pair of field goals. In today’s contest, however, Arizona got on the board quickly with a six play, 70 yard touchdown drive to open the game. The capper was a 41-yard Kyler Murray shot to wide receiver Michael Wilson who maneuvered around Seahawks safety Coby Bryant.
But after that drive the Seahawks defense clamped down on the Cardinals, forcing two interceptions on back-to-back drives. The first was performed by mid-season acquisition linebacker Ernest Jones IV, who cut across Wilson’s slant route from the other direction for the interception. The second interception was a Coby Bryant revenge snap. Under pressure, Murray tried to float the ball to wide receiver Zay Jones. Jones stayed back and waited for the ball to come to him, while Bryant charged the pass and came down with the pick, his second against the Cardinals in three weeks.
Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman Byron Murphy II and Johnathan Hankins smile after a play during their teams 30-18 road win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 at State Farm Stadium. (Photo via the Seattle Seahawks website)
The defense held strong for the rest of the half, only allowing an Arizona field goal in the second quarter. They struggled a tad in the second half, including allowing a second touchdown in the end of the third quarter. That touchdown was won in the trenches on a two yard short pass up the middle. The Cards fought for every point they could get their hands on, succeeding on a two point try when Murray legged it up the left side, but those would be the last points that Arizona would get for the rest of the game. It briefly seemed like they would score again late in the fourth, when Murray put together an impressive no-huddle drive. But that drive stalled out at the Seattle 21, necessitating a field goal try that Cardinals place kicker Chad Ryland doinked off the left upright no good. Seattle’s defense in the second half was a perfect example of their “bend, don’t break” mentality. They gave up handfuls of yards at a time, but never the explosive play, and never enough to let the redbirds back in it.
Airstrikes and Ground Pounding
While Seattle has had one of the best, if not the outright best, passing games in the NFL this year, the ground game has struggled to make a significant impact. Whether that is due to an injury-addled season for running back Kenneth Walker III (who was out today with a calf/ankle injury) or poor blocking from an offensive line that is in the top third of pressures allowed is a discussion for after the season. Right now, we have to give flowers to running back Zach Charbonnet who stepped in to fill K9’s shoes (which is probably pretty easy since Charbonnet is four inches taller than Walker).
Seattle Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet hits the hole during his 51-yard touchdown run in his teams 30-18 road win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 at State Farm Stadium. (Photo via the Seattle Seahawks website)
Charbonnet was the standout of the day, racking up 193 total yards (134 rushing, 59 receiving), simply refusing to go down to the first Cardinal to touch him. He scored two of Seattle’s three touchdowns today, the first being a one yard shove-in a few plays after Coby Bryant’s interception. The second touchdown, however, was a 51-yard adventure where he barged his way up the middle and through the clutches of at least three Cardinals defenders. And although it was Charbonnet with the ball, full credit must be given to the offensive line, who understood their assignment perfectly. Guard Sataoa Laumea and tackle Abraham Lucas came off their positions on the right side and served as a wedge to get Charbonnet through the secondary. Laumea folded one defender like a cheap lawn chair, and Lucas helped knock one Cardinal into another, sending them both toppling to the ground. From there it was Charbonnet’s speed that secured the six points.
Not to be overlooked, Geno’s air game this week was immaculate. He picked up 233 yards, averaging 7.8 per attempt. He also kept the football safe and out of the hands of Arizona, with no interceptions to his name in this contest. Somewhat surprisingly DK Metcalf was not his most productive target. Instead it was Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who is becoming a fan favorite in his sophomore season. After Jones IV picked off Murray in the first, it took just one play for the Seahawks to turn it into points when Geno and Smith-Njigba linked up for a 19 yard touchdown. JSN set up that Charbonnet 51-yard run when, with pressure coming, Geno released a ball that looked headed for the dirt. Instead, JSN came in on it and caught it just a fraction of an inch off the ground, picking up 24 yards on a third and ten play. If JSN doesn’t make that catch, Seattle would’ve been forced to punt and Charbonnet doesn’t get to make his dash.
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba finds open space during his teams 30-18 road win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 at State Farm Stadium. (Photo via the Seattle Seahawks website)
Birds of Prey on the Hunt
Today’s win is the fourth in a row for the Seahawks. After struggling through the middle part of the season, they’ve managed to turn things around. Now having swept aside Arizona, the Seahawks have just one divisional game left: an away game against the Rams for the final game of the regular season. With the Rams beating Buffalo 44-42 today and now sitting just one game behind Seattle, that game may very well decide who wins the NFC west.
Today the Seahawks did to the Cardinals what other teams did to them through the middle stretch. They took early control of the lead and forced their opponents into making mistakes. If they keep playing like this, it will be Los Angeles who’s playing from behind on January 5th, both on the scoreboard and the standings. Seattle’s defense continues their surge over the past handful of games, and their continued strong play will be critical down the stretch for the Seahawks considering that they’ve got matchups looming against the Packers, Vikings, and then Rams in terms of potent offensive units.
What’s Next?
After back-to-back away games, our Seattle Seahawks are coming back home to Lumen Field for a matchup against the Green Bay Packers. Green Bay, by virtue of being forced to share a division with a resurgent Detroit Lions and a powerful Minnesota Vikings squad, sits in third place in the NFC North. The Packers nearly pulled one out against the Lions this week until Detroit kicked a walk-off field goal on Thursday Night Football. Green Bay will surely be out for blood and looking to ensure their status as a Wild Card team when the regular season ends. With the Los Angeles Rams close behind, the Seahawks will need a statement win in primetime to keep control of both the NFC West and their own destiny this season. Kickoff is at 5:20PM PST, and the game will be broadcast on NBC/Peacock. If you prefer to listen to the radio broadcast of this contest, the game will be available on Seattle Sports 710AM and KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM.
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Check out our previous Seattle Seahawks articles here.
Check out our previous articles written by Jake Parr here, and his Lookout Landing articles here.
Cover photo and photos in this article from the Seattle Seahawks website.
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