The Seahawks didn’t just beat the Chiefs on Sunday night. They slammed the door on the NFL’s last unbeaten team and suddenly shoved themselves back into the NFC West conversation.
Seattle rolled to a 20-3 win at Lumen Field, snapping a two-game losing streak and improving to 4-3. The result also tightened things in the division after the 49ers fell for the first time this season, 29-20, to the Falcons, leaving Seattle two games behind San Francisco.
This was the version of the Seahawks that looked familiar to anyone who watched them at their best last season: fast, physical and ruthless on defense. Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs’ signature weapon, never found a rhythm.
He finished 19-of-33 for 165 yards with an interception, and Kansas City managed just three points and no touchdowns while totaling 213 yards. Over the first six weeks, the Chiefs were averaging 414 yards.
Seattle also handled the ground game with authority. Kenneth Walker III, the NFL’s leading rusher and the Seahawks’ Super Bowl LX MVP, was held to 36 yards on 2.6 yards per carry as Seattle’s front seven controlled the line of scrimmage.
Offensively, Sam Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba delivered the kind of connection that can flip a game in a hurry. Smith-Njigba repeatedly beat man coverage, piling up nine catches for 150 yards and a touchdown while going after first-round rookie Mansoor Delane. Darnold threw an end-zone interception, but otherwise turned in a sharp night, finishing with 257 passing yards on 9.2 yards per attempt.
That all added up to Seattle’s most complete effort of the season, and it came at a time when the division is starting to take shape. The Rams, despite plenty of injury trouble, went to Las Vegas earlier Sunday and beat the Raiders by double digits while scoring 35 points.
Los Angeles is still 3-4 and carrying major issues, with receiver Davante Adams, defensive lineman Kobie Turner and edge rusher Myles Garrett out for the foreseeable future, but the Rams have at least begun to make a run at it. Their upcoming stretch against the Chargers, Commanders and Cardinals gives them a chance to keep moving.
Seattle, meanwhile, may be getting healthier at the right time. The team used its mini-bye to good effect and should have running back Zach Charbonnet back next weekend after activating him off injured reserve. Charbonnet has been out since tearing his ACL in the postseason during Seattle’s divisional round win over the 49ers on the way to the Super Bowl.
The schedule now gets interesting. The Seahawks remain home for three more games, starting with the Bears next week and then the Cardinals.
After that comes a trip to Las Vegas before a crucial Week 12 matchup in San Francisco. Seattle will be coming off its bye for that one.
For now, the 49ers still control the top spot. They already beat both Seattle and Los Angeles on the road, and their remaining slate includes several favorable matchups, with three of their final four against the Chargers, Eagles and Cardinals, who going into Monday night were a combined 4-15.
If San Francisco keeps playing to its level, the Seahawks will have to keep climbing. That likely means winning the rematch between the two teams.
But Sunday night showed why Seattle is dangerous. If the Seahawks can do that to Mahomes and the Chiefs, they can do it to anybody in the league, including the 49ers.
In Other News...
Seahawks Added Insult To Chiefs First Loss In Brutal Fashion
The Seahawks 20-3 win over the Chiefs in Week 7 was already one of the most lopsided results of the NFL weekend, but it carried an extra layer of embarrassment for Kansas City. Seattles defense controlled the game from start to finish, and the victory also came on a day when Travis Kelce reached a notable milestone, passing Tony Gonzalez for the most combined regular-season and playoff receiving yards by a tight end.
After the game, Seattle added a little more salt to the wound with a social media post that leaned into Taylor Swift, Kelces wife. The team included a friendship bracelet image and paired it with a caption quoting one of Swifts songs, a playful jab that kept the Seahawks in the spotlight even after the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
Kenneth Walker Couldnt Hide His Frustration After Seahawks Shut Him Down
Kenneth Walker III had a rough return to Seattle in Week 7, and the frustration showed after the final whistle. The former Seahawks running back, now with the Kansas City Chiefs, did not stop to greet his old teammates following Seattles 20-3 win, a departure from the usual postgame courtesies that drew attention after a game in which the Seahawks defense controlled the action.
Walker later explained his reaction by pointing to the loss itself, and it was easy to see why the evening left a mark. Seattle made a point of taking him out of the game plan, holding him to a season-low 36 rushing yards and helping set the tone for a defense that dictated the matchup from start to finish. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Face One Big Injury Question Heading Into Bears Week
Mike Macdonalds latest injury rundown offered the Seahawks a mix of relief and lingering uncertainty as they turn the page toward Bears week. Rashid Shaheeds knee injury is showing positive early signs, while Charles Cross appears to be dealing with a high-ankle sprain that could keep him out for another one to two weeks, leaving Seattle to juggle its protection plans up front.
The backfield situation is less clear. Zach Charbonnet is back to practicing at full capacity, but his game status is still undecided, and Jadarian Price is set to return to practice with his own availability still to be determined. For a Seahawks team trying to settle in before the next test, the biggest question may be less about who is available in a practice window and more about who is actually ready to take the field on Sunday. [Read more 🡒]