Cardinals @ Seahawks
Final Score: Seahawks 19, Cardinals 9
Writer: Ben Brown (@BenBrownPL on Twitter)
The Geno Express came to a screeching halt on Sunday, as the Seahawks’ offense was unable to put up enormous numbers on offense like they had in previous weeks. However, Geno protected the ball and gave the Seahawks the chance to win the game, which they would end up doing. Kenneth Walker ended up replacing Rashaad Penny admirably, coming up three yards short of 100 yards in his first career start.
Meanwhile, for the Cardinals, Eno Benjamin was unable to take advantage of the Seahawks’ porous running defense and multiple Cardinals drives stalled out as a result. Kyler Murray was the leading rusher on the ground, but we’re starting to find out that he can’t be trusted to do everything and expect to win a game on the road in a tough environment. This game was a slog and was certainly not the most exciting game of the day.
Arizona Cardinals
Quarterback
Kyler Murray: 23/37, 222 Yards, INT | 10 Carries, 100 Yards, 1 Fumble (Lost)
After getting gashed on the first drive, the Seattle defense made some adjustments and ended up playing a really good game on Sunday. Kyler Murray started the game with a 42 yard scramble on 3rd and 5, then took the team down within striking distance after another third down conversion to Rondale Moore got them to the Seattle 3. Seattle’s defense bent but didn’t break, and on 3rd and goal they tipped the ball away on a short inside slant to AJ Green on what would have been a touchdown if not for the tip.
For the rest of the game, Seattle was bringing the pressure and Kyler was unable to escape for the most part. Even when he was, he wasn’t as sharp as usual. Arizona faced 4th and 4 deep in Seattle territory, and Seattle brought pressure. Kyler rolled out and had Moore wide open on the sideline, but his throw on the run was low and Moore was unable to go down and get it. Kyler was sacked six times on the day, and it just seemed like his internal clock was a few seconds off.
While the bulk of his rushing yards came on one play in the 1st quarter, a 100-yard day certainly can’t be overlooked and does help make up for the lack of touchdowns. He did fumble the ball on a 3rd down rush that went for nine yards and Seattle recovered. This ultimately led to a fumble recovery for a TD for the Cardinals on a muffed punt, so you could say that Kyler knew exactly what he was doing when he coughed it up.
Running Back
Eno Benjamin: 15 Carries, 37 Yards | 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 28 Yards
Keaontay Ingram: 3 Carries, 7 Yards
Eno Benjamin was not good in this game. Granted, his offensive line did him no favors all day and they really struggled to block anyone either in the running game or when Kyler dropped back to pass. When Benjamin got the ball in space he was able to make a play and earn some yards, however those chances were few and far between. I would have liked to see more designed pass plays for him to let him use his athleticism in open space, but those plays simply weren’t in the cards on Sunday (no pun intended). The lack of a rushing attack seriously hampered Arizona’s ability to do anything on offense. It seems like this offense is built to run through a guy like James Conner and is incapable of changing their style for someone with a different skill set.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Zach Ertz: 10 Targets, 7 Receptions, 70 Yards
Marquise Brown: 9 Targets, 5 Receptions, 68 Yards
Rondale Moore: 10 Targets, 6 Receptions, 49 Yards
A.J. Green: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 7 Yards
The target numbers here are lofty for Zach Ertz, Marquise Brown, and Rondale Moore. The passing game was a focus in this one with not much of a running attack on their side. With Kyler running around trying to avoid the pressure for pretty much the entire game, it was hard for these guys to do much downfield and therefore most of the targets were short.
Ertz’s targets didn’t balloon until the 4th quarter when the Cardinals were seemingly passing on every play. Were it not for this sudden explosion of short and intermediate catches with the Seahawks sitting in zone defense, it would have been a bad day.
On the first drive of the game, Rondale Moore converted a 3rd and 6 with a short crosser and took it down to the three-yard line on a 26-yard gain. I liked what I saw from Moore, and I wish he had gotten more of an opportunity with the ball in his hands. He was targeted on a 4th down play with Kyler Murray rolling out to his left, and the throw was short so Moore was unable to come up with it. A few more of his targets were just balls thrown his way due to the pressure on Kyler that he had no chance of catching.
AJ Green was targeted on a slant route on 3rd and goal but the ball was tipped at the line of scrimmage and knocked away. Green was open and likely would have had a TD if not for the good defensive play.
Seattle Seahawks
Quarterback
Geno Smith: 20/31, 197 Yards | 6 Carries, 48 Yards, 1 Fumble (Recovered)
Geno Smith was sacked five times in this game, but most of the pressure didn’t come until the second half. He wasn’t spectacular, just solid, and he put the Seahawks in a position to win without trying to do too much. He scrambled for 24 yards on one play on the Seahawks’ final drive of the first half, putting them in really good position to put points on the board. I wasn’t overly impressed with Geno on the day, but this was really the Kenneth Walker show and Geno was just there to facilitate and make sure the Seahawks went on to win the game.
Running Back
Kenneth Walker III: 21 Carries, 97 Yards, TD | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 13 Yards
DeeJay Dallas: 2 Carries, 1 Yard
Michael Dickson: 1 Carry, -10 Yards, 1 Fumble (Lost)
Kenneth Walker is special. I was really impressed by him in this game. He’s a broken tackle machine and he’s very slippery with the ball in his hands. Defenders struggled to get a hand on him, even when there were two or three guys around him. It always seemed like Walker was going to be able to glide through would-be tacklers as if they were ghosts who weren’t able to interact with the physical realm.
He took a direct snap for 17 yards on one play, then took the next carry for 34 yards as you can see here.
Kenneth Walker is my favorite RB in this rookie class. The ways he can win & create extra yardage on his own is legit! The fluidity, suddenness, and cutting ability 🔥🔥🔥
— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) October 16, 2022
Walker broke FIVE tackles on this play, and nearly broke a sixth. He might have taken it to the house if he broke the last one.
#Seahawks rookie RB Kenneth Walker making plays https://t.co/Psti31dGr4
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 16, 2022
Here hs is on his touchdown run. I love the little hesitation move he put on the defender before bursting toward the pylon.
Kenneth Walker continues to ball out! The most natural runner from this class!
— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) October 16, 2022
I’m now a big believer in Walker after watching his performance this week. He’s the real deal.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Noah Fant: 7 Targets, 6 Receptions, 45 Yards
Dee Eskridge: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 39 Yards
DK Metcalf: 7 Targets, 2 Receptions, 34 Yards
Marquise Goodwin: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 26 Yards
Tyler Lockett: 5 Targets, 2 Receptions, 17 Yards
Will Dissly: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 12 Yards
Colby Parkinson: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 11 Yards
DK Metcalf was targeted in the end zone on the final play of the 1st half. The ball was just out of his reach but he may have been held in the end zone. There was no penalty called on the play. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett were both quiet in this game, and it seemed like the constant pressure on Geno prevented him from getting good looks downfield to get these guys the ball. When the ball did come their way, the throws weren’t super accurate and they didn’t really have a chance to catch them. Lockett did have a deep target midway through the fourth quarter that was tipped away at the last minute by the defender, otherwise there wasn’t much notable for either of them.
Geno Smith loves his tight ends, and this week the biggest beneficiary was Noah Fant. Fant was a safety valve for Geno for much of the day, looking his way when things broke down and he needed a quick out to avoid getting sacked. He’s not an elite athlete with the ability to make guys miss or Moss anyone, but Fant is a big body with sneaky quickness which allowed him to get open often on Sunday. If he and Will Dissly could be combined into one player named Woah Dant, he would be fantasy relevant.
Marquise Goodwin‘s two catches came on the final drive of the first half. He took one for 22 yards but he didn’t go out of bounds and it cost the Seahawks some time. His second catch was a nice toe-tap on the sideline later in the drive. The decision to not go out of bounds may have been the reason the Seahawks had to settle for a field goal.