Seahawks opposing quarterback profile: Cardinals’ QB Kyler Murray

A closer look at the Seattle Seahawks opposing quarterback matchup Week 7, Arizona Cardinals signal-caller, Kyler Murray.

The Seattle Seahawks are back in action this week, following a very successful bye week. After an early slate defined by more competitive, one-score games, it doesn’t get much easier for the Seahawks as they face the red-hot Arizona Cardinals and their dynamic quarterback in Kyler Murray.

Murray is one of the most exciting young quarterbacks in the game and provides considerable issues for opposing defenses. If looking at statistics alone, Murray is having an OK year. Last week against the Cowboys, he only completed 9 of 24 passes for 188 yards and two scores.

Although numbers never lie, they also don’t always tell the whole story. Going off the “eye test,” anyone who has seen the Cardinals play this year knows how much an impact Murray has on the field.

Murray’s mobility, strong arm, and background in baseball draw many comparisons to Seattle’s own Russell Wilson.

Last season, Murray played the Seahawks twice and went 1-1 against them. In the first meeting in Arizona, Murray completed 68% of his throws but had one interception and no touchdowns in a 27-10 loss. In the Week 16 rematch, Murray passed for 118 yards and had a lone score but left the game due to an injury as the Cardinals beat the Seahawks 27-13.

Now Murray is clearly growing into the role of a franchise-caliber quarterback, and will likely give the ailing Seahawks defense trouble –  especially with his new weapon, DeAndre Hopkins at wide receiver.

[lawrence-related id=68343]

Seahawks opposing QB preview: Rams’ Jared Goff

For the second time this season, the Seattle Seahawks are set to square off against the division-rival Rams and their QB, Jared Goff.

It’s finally here, the first divisional rematch of the season for the Seattle Seahawks and the first quarterback preview revisit as well. Up next for Seattle is a road showdown against the Los Angeles Rams on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 14.

These two rivals first met on Thursday night to kick off Week 5 back in October. Since the Seahawks and Rams first played, their quarterbacks have gone on different paths. Russell Wilson continued his lofty ascension in the MVP race, while Jared Goff’s turnover problems that plagued him the last time have only continued.

When the Seahawks first saw Goff, he had only six touchdown passes against six interceptions. He has hardly improved as he now has 13 scores against 12 interceptions. The rough year continues for the former Cal standout, especially over the past month.

In November, Goff did not throw a single touchdown pass. Yes, you heard that right. One of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the entire NFL, a former No. 1 overall pick and Pro Bowler, went an entire month without a touchdown pass. During that span, the Rams went 1-2 and Goff threw five interceptions.

He appears to have gotten himself out of his slump with a monstrous performance against the Cardinals in Week 13. Goff torched Arizona with 424 yards and two scores on 32-of-43 passing. The difficulty in defending Goff is that when he is allowed to really get into a rhythm, it is incredibly challenging to stop Los Angeles.

If Goff has truly turned a corner and is positioning the Rams for a late-season desperation push, then it will be significantly more difficult for the visiting  Seahawks. However, Seattle leads the NFC in defensive takeaways. If there is a team to get Goff back to his poor ball security ways and knock him out of sync, it would be the Seahawks.

[lawrence-related id=52230]

Seahawks opposing QB profile: Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins

A closer look at the Seattle Seahawks upcoming opposing quarterback Week 13 – Minnesota Vikings signal-caller, Kirk Cousins.

Following their 17-9 defensive slugfest victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, the Seattle Seahawks now have a much stiffer contest against the 8-3 Minnesota Vikings and their quarterback, Kirk Cousins.

Cousins will lead his Vikings against the Seahawks in a rematch of last year’s Week 14 Monday night game played in Seattle. Unfortunately for Minnesota, the Seahawks dominated in a 21-7 victory, further feeding the narrative of Cousins’ inability to win in primetime.

As a starter, Cousins’ record in the national spotlight is a paltry 7-13, with an 0-7 record on Monday nights. Cousins is somewhat of an enigma to evaluate. He always produces solid numbers, wins plenty of games to stay well within the playoff hunt, but is seemingly always incapable of winning the ones that matter the most.

However, the Seahawks certainly won’t be paying attention to Cousins’ lousy primetime record as he is in the midst of perhaps his best season yet. Cousins has thrown for 2,756 yards, 21 touchdowns against only 3 interceptions and a sky-high passer rating of 114.8, which is higher than Seattle’s own Russell Wilson and his rating of 112.1.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll certainly holds Cousins in high regard, even admitting he and Wilson were quite similar when both quarterbacks were interviewed by Seattle during the combine for the 2012 NFL draft.

“It was interesting back at the combine when Russ and Kirk were coming out,” Carroll said Wednesday. “I recall it as we went back to back with those guys in our meetings up in the hotel. You couldn’t expect to be more impressed by two back to back guys coming out and talking about the game, their future, their awareness, their resolve, their commitment and competitiveness.”

Cousins will now be leading an incredibly talented roster against the one team ahead of them in the wild-card standings. The Vikings will certainly be hungry to prove they can win on the road against an elite NFC team. The Seahawks are playing their best defense of the year and will need to keep their high level of play up if they want to defend CenturyLink Field from the invading Vikings.

[lawrence-related id=51854]