The NFL season is here, and Rams fans have a pretty useful first-week homework assignment: keep an eye on Seahawks-Patriots on Wednesday night.
Seattle and New England are meeting in a repeat of Super Bowl LX, this time in Seattle, and the setup already looks different from the championship game. The Seahawks still enter as the defending Super Bowl champs, but the roster around them has changed enough to make Week 1 more revealing than routine. Some players left for bigger paydays, injuries have already hit key veterans, and the schedule is tougher than it was a year ago.
That doesn’t knock Seattle out of the picture. It just makes this opener worth watching, especially for Rams fans trying to gauge how dangerous the NFC West still is.
The first thing to watch is whether Seattle can run the ball with any kind of authority. Kenneth Walker III, who piled up more than 1,000 yards for the Seahawks in 2025, is gone to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Zach Charbonnet is working back from a torn ACL. That leaves rookie Jadarian Price with a heavy load right out of the gate, and that is a lot to ask in a season opener.
New England’s defense should be ready to make life difficult, and Price figures to get tested on blitz pickups immediately.
Then there’s the other side of the ball, where the Patriots get a shot at a Seahawks secondary that looks a lot less settled than it did last year. Seattle moved on from safety Cobe Bryant and cornerback Tariq Woolen, and Ty Okada is out in Week 1 with a hamstring injury.
The Seahawks were stingy against the pass in 2025, allowing 193.9 passing yards per game and 20 passing touchdowns while picking off 18 balls. But a chunk of the players who helped create those takeaways won’t be on the field for this one.
That makes this a real early test for the new-look back end, with Devon Wetherspoon carrying plenty of the burden and communication becoming a major factor.
Seattle’s passing game has its own question marks, too, and they start with staying healthy. Reigning Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba is still the engine, but he can’t do everything alone.
The Seahawks need Cooper Kupp, Rashid Shaheed, and tight end AJ Barner to help keep defenses from loading up on JSN. Last season, Seattle got through the year with its receivers intact.
This year, that feels less guaranteed.
Kupp’s arrival in Seattle came after the Horns moved on from him because he simply could not stay healthy in LA's offense. Shaheed brings a different kind of intrigue.
Before he was shipped to Seattle midway through last season, he was a productive Saints receiver, averaging over 55 yards per game. Once he got to Seattle, though, his biggest splash came as a return specialist, and his receiving production fell to 21 yards per contest.
The question now is whether starting him as the third wideout dulls what made him so dangerous.
For the Rams, this game matters less because of the Patriots and more because of what it says about Seattle. If Los Angeles wants to chase the division, it will need help elsewhere. The Patriots will be looking to settle their score with the Seahawks, and Rams fans will get a clean look at whether the champs still look as imposing as they did a year ago.
In Other News...
Rams Opener Just Took A Dramatic Turn Thanks To 49ers Injury Blow
The Rams Week 1 picture got a little clearer, and a lot more complicated, when San Francisco lost defensive tackle Alfred Collins for the season with a torn patellar tendon, as coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed. Collins went down in practice ahead of the opener in Australia, a setback that immediately changes the tone of a matchup already carrying plenty of intrigue between two NFC West rivals.
San Francisco is also dealing with injuries to Sam Okuayinonu, even as veterans George Kittle and Nick Bosa remain on track to suit up. Their availability gives the 49ers some stability, but the uncertainty around how much theyll be used leaves the Rams with a game plan that could look different by the time kickoff arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Just Sent Their Strongest Signal Yet About Melbourne
The Seahawks are leaning harder into their Australia push, announcing a strategic partnership with Collingwood that is designed to connect the two clubs fan bases in Australia and New Zealand. It is part of Seattles marketing rights under the NFL Global Markets program, another sign that the leagues international footprint is becoming more than a branding exercise.
Melbourne is already set to become a key stop in that effort, with the teams planning to co-host a kids AFL and NFL crossover flag football clinic there. For the Rams, it is another reminder that an NFC West rival is trying to build a broader identity far beyond its home market, and the reach of that move could matter well beyond one event or one summer. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Came Much Closer To A Different Pass Rush Splash Than Fans Knew
The Rams offseason pursuit of pass-rush help turned out to be broader than the eventual Myles Garrett deal suggested. Along with landing Garrett, Los Angeles also explored other big-name options, and NFL insider Tom Pelissero reported the team had Maxx Crosby on its radar before finalizing the move that brought Garrett to L.A.
Crosby ultimately stayed put with the Raiders after a proposed trade to the Ravens unraveled because of a failed physical, but the detail adds another layer to how aggressively the Rams chased impact talent up front. For a team always looking to tilt the line of scrimmage, it is a reminder that the splash they made was not the only one they tried to land. [Read more 🡒]