In a must-win contest for both teams, the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals are meeting for the second time in three weeks on Sunday.
Once again, the lead in the NFC West is on the line. It’s a real possibility that whichever team loses could be excluded from the playoffs, while the victor will be in the driver’s seat for a postseason bid.
Seattle (7-5, 2-2 NFC West) has won three in a row, including a Week 12 victory over the Cardinals. Though they are currently in first place in the division, it’s a fragile advantage. Arizona (6-6, 2-1 NFC West) can retake the lead with a win in Week 14.
Both teams have been up and down through 12 games. But the Seahawks are on the up and the Cardinals are trending down heading into this game.
Still, both teams have displayed top-end play this season while also hitting slumps. The Cardinals have lost two straight, but the Seahawks also lost five of six games in the early part of their season after beginning 3-0. The NFL is a battle of attrition.
Seattle has just one division game remaining after Week 14, and that comes against the Los Angeles Rams in the final game of the regular season. Arizona, however, still has games against the San Francisco 49ers and Rams.
Thus, if the Seahawks don’t want to wait for those games to break at the end of the season, this becomes a must-win game.
Even though Seattle’s offense has taken steps back over the last three games, the defense has been vastly improved. Nearly every defensive metric has been better since the Seahawks’ bye week, while the offensive numbers have been down. Despite that effect, the wins keep rolling in for the Seahawks.
The Cardinals were limited on offense the last time these two teams met, with Arizona being held out of the end zone and lead running back James Conner picking up just eight yards on seven carries. That put the stress on quarterback Kyler Murray’s arm, and Seahawks safety Coby Bryant’s long pick-six changed the game in the Seahawks’ favor.
Arizona’s defense, however, held Seattle to just 10 points. The Seahawks’ running backs tallied just 63 yards rushing on 22 carries. Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb has to be hoping for more scoring on that side of the ball.
Seattle and Arizona kickoff at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday at State Farm Stadium. For a full game preview, check out the video above as Corbin K. Smith and Connor Benintendi discuss the Seahawks’ Week 14 game against the Cardinals.
