Week 15 will conclude in the Emerald City, as the Seattle Seahawks host the Philadelphia Eagles on a Monday Night Football showdown. The Seahawks are currently in a freefall. Losers of their last four games, Seattle is below .500 for the first time since Week 1 this season. For the record, Seattle did not dip below this mark again until December 24th last year.
However, the Eagles are hardly looking invincible right now. Despite being 10-3, Philadelphia has lost their last two games in horrific blowout fashion to the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. If they lose tonight, they will fall from the No. 2 seed to the No. 5 seed, aka the top wild card spot.
To put it colloquially, the vibes are definitely off in the City of Brotherly Love. Defensively, the Eagles have been a disaster. So much so that they decided to relieve their defensive coordinator (and former Seahawks defensive coach) Sean Desai of his play calling responsibilities. In his place will be former Detroit Lions head coach and New England Patriots assistant Matt Patricia.
Offensively, there is plenty to wonder about when it comes to the quarterback position. Jalen Hurts was shockingly downgraded to QUESTIONABLE yesterday due to a severe illness. The former Oklahoma Sooner did travel separately to Seattle, and is expected to play. But how he will fare, or if he will be able to be at full speed remains to be seen.
As for the other side, lingering questions regarding the quarterback position have been resolved. Geno Smith appears ready to go tonight.
#Seahawks starting QB Geno Smith, dealing with a groin injury, is playing, source said. A surprise.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 18, 2023
With Hurts and Smith both looking to play, we are spared from the matchup between backups Marcus Mariota vs Drew Lock. Although Lock played admirably overall last week, he did turn the ball over twice and could have had a few more interceptions had they not been dropped.
The Seahawks are in the middle of the lower end of the pack when it comes to the NFC. Ahead of them are three teams with 7-7 records: the Vikings, Rams and Saints. Behind them are the 6-8 Falcons and Packers. Seattle’s season, as far as realistic dwindling playoff hopes go, are likely on the line tonight. A win will keep them on life support. A loss will likely result them updating their football wills.
Prediction: Seahawks upset Eagles 28-26
I’m going back to the “vibes” colloquialism I used earlier. Something in my gut is telling me to pick the Seahawks right now. Yes, Seattle has lost four-straight. But two of those teams have been the Cowboys and 49ers. Two of the top three teams in the conference. In the rematch to San Francisco, and the Dallas game, signs of life and positivity were shown.
It is also important to note Pete Carroll has never lost to the Eagles. During his tenure in Seattle, Carroll is a lofty 7-0 against Philly. In fact, the Seahawks have not lost to the Eagles since Mike Holmgren was the coach. The previous three meetings between these teams were all in Philadelphia, which the last one was also on MNF. This will be the first times these teams have faced off at Lumen since 2017, when the Seahawks upset the the 10-1 Eagles by a score of 24-10.
Additionally, Seattle holds the NFL record for highest win percentage on Monday Night Football. Jalen Hurts is sick, the Eagles are struggling overall, and hosting a home MNF game? If there was ever a time for the Seahawks to get off the schneid and pull an upset, now would be the time. Perhaps the stars have aligned.
Sometimes in the NFL, it’s not who you play, it’s when you play them.
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