Tag: leonard williams trade seahawks

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Previewing Week 9’s biggest NFL matchups

Dolphins-Chiefs! Seahawks-Ravens! Cowboys-Eagles! Bills-Bengals! Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar preview Week 9’s biggest NFL games in “The Xs and Os.”

It’s time for Week 9 of the NFL season, and as always, Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup, and Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire and the USA Today Sports Media Group, get you ready with tons of tape study and advanced metrics.

This week, Greg and Doug get deep into these games.

Tennessee Titans at Pittsburgh Steelers: Titans quarterback Will Levis had a historic debut on multiple levels against the Atlanta Falcons, but the Pittsburgh Steelers will have some different things awaiting him on Thursday night.

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Miami Dolphins “at” Kansas City Chiefs: Welcome to Frankfurt, Germany! The Chiefs have a deep-ball problem, and they might not be able to remove themselves from it. Meanwhile, the Dolphins are also trying to get back on track on offense… and Kansas City’s defense has no such issues.

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Seattle Seahawks at Baltimore Ravens: The Ravens now have the NFL’s best defense, and they’re doing it as much with scheme as talent. A fascinating matchup against Seattle’s explosive offense… and let’s not forget that the Seahawks just added Leonard Williams to a defense that has become quite good under the radar.

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Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles are coming off Jalen Hurts’ most Jalen Hurts-like game against the Washington Commanders, but Dan Quinn’s Cowboys defense presents a far more formidable challenge. Also, Dak Prescott is playing as well as we’ve seen in a while.

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Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati Bengals: The thing to watch here is that the Bills’ offense has suddenly gone full old-school K-Gun with its speed no-huddle passing concepts, and they’ll likely try that once more against a Lou Anarumo-led Bengals defense that usually shows you one thing pre-snap, and then changes the picture with authority. Also: Joe Burrow is all the way back, but the Bills have an exciting new cornerback in Rasul Douglas via trade.

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You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Leonard Williams could be the final piece for Seahawks’ evolving defense. Grade: A

The Leonard Williams trade gives the Seahawks another force multiplier in a defense that’s been evolving right under your nose.

The Seattle Seahawks, after their 24-20 win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, find themselves ranked 15th overall in Defensive DVOA, and ninth against the run. Both pretty decent upgrades over the 2022 season, when the Seahawks ranked 22nd in Defensive DVOA, and 24th against the run. Seattle did a lot in the offseason to upgrade their interior defensive line, signing former Denver Broncos star Dre’Mont Jones and journeyman Mario Edwards Jr., and bringing Jarran Reed back after seasons in Kansas City and Green Bay — Reed was Seattle’s second-round pick in 2016.

So, the Seahawks have had multiple guys who can stop things up inside, and can also show out in multiple fronts. That process accelerated seriously on Monday, when general manager John Schneider dropped the hammer on a trade that sends former New York Giants and New York Jets lineman Leonard Williams to the Emerald City for a second-round pick in 2024, and a fifth-round pick in 2025.

For the Giants, the thought process is obvious — they’re sellers at 2-6, and they were going to have trouble re-signing Williams, who’s in the last year of the three-year, $63 million contract extension he signed in 2021. 2024 is a void year in that contract, so the Seahawks rented Williams for the second half of the season and however far they make it through the postseason, and the Giants will eat a lot of the 2023 money.

For the Seahawks, this move gives them four legitimate inside/outside guys who can all disrupt the quarterback and stop the run, which is an obvious boon for defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt just as young edge-rushers Boye Mafe and Darrell Taylor starting to show up hard. Add in a linebacker group led by Bobby Wagner that’s playing lights-out, and a secondary with as much talent as any NFL team could boast, and… well, this might not be a return to the Legion of Boom, but it’s pretty impactful.

What does the tape show for Seattle’s newest defender, who has two sacks, 22 total pressures, 14 tackles, and 13 stops this season? Let’s get to it.

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