The Cardinals came into Week 12 in sole possession of first place in the NFC West, but there will be a new boss in Week 13.
Geno Smith and Jaxon Smith-Njigba hooked up for a touchdown just before halftime and the defense kept the Cardinals out of the end zone for the entire afternoon in Seattle. The 16-6 win lifts the Seahawks to 6-5 on the season and gives them a leg up on the Cardinals when it comes to tiebreakers.
The Rams will play on Sunday night and they could also get to 6-5, but the 49ers won’t be part of the logjam at the top of the division.
Smith-Njigba set up the touchdown with a 46-yard catch-and-run that stood out on a day when both offenses did a lot of scuffling. The Seahawks were unable to get back into the end zone after halftime, but Coby Bryant returned an interception 69 yards for a score and Jason Myers made it a 10-point game with a 50-yard field goal just after the two-minute warning.
The Cardinals tried to keep hope alive by trying a field goal with 15 seconds left, but Chad Ryland pushed it left and the Seahawks sealed their win.
Smith finished the day 22-of-31 for 254 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Smith-Njigba had six catches for 77 yards and DK Metcalf had four catches for 59 yards, including an 18-yarder that helped set up Myers’s kick.
Kyler Murray had a strong game in Arizona’s Week 10 win over the Jets, but his return from the bye was not a particularly strong outing. He was 24-of-37 for 285 yards and that costly pick by Bryant. Murray was sacked five times with Leonard Williams leading the way for the Seattle pass rush. He had 2.5 sacks and four quarterback hits as the Seahawks limited Arizona to a 3-of-12 mark on third downs.
The Seahawks will move on to face the reeling Jets next Sunday and then they’ll head to Arizona for a rematch with the Cardinals. The Cardinals will be in Minnesota for a game that will have plenty of playoff implications in the NFC.
The offense got the Seahawks the lead late in the first half against the Cardinals and the defense stretched it out in the third quarter.
Defensive back Coby Bryant snatched a Kyler Murray pass out of the air on a fourth down and returned it 69 yards for a touchdown. Murray delivered the pass while being pressured by cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who blitzed inside and then pivoted quickly to chase down Murray as he rolled right looking for a receiver.
The Seahawks were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after Bryant did a Marshawn Lynch imitation on his way into the end zone and kicker Jason Myers missed the extended extra point.
That leaves the score 13-3 with under seven minutes to play in the third.
The Seahawks punted the first four times they had the ball on Sunday, so they needed someone to spark their offense against the Cardinals.
Wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba turned out to be the guy they were looking for. Smith-Njigba turned a short Geno Smith pass into a 46-yard gain that put the Seahawks inside the Arizona 5-yard-line after the two-minute warning.
Smith and Smith-Njigba hooked up for a three-yard score a couple of plays later and that allowed the Seahawks to get to halftime with a 7-3 lead.
The Cardinals pass rush dropped Smith for four sacks and they’ve only allowed 21 yards on the ground, but their offense wasn’t able to take advantage of opportunities. They only had one drive that reached Seahawks territory and it ended with a field goal when a holding penalty took a Kyler Murray touchdown pass to Michael Wilson off the board in the second quarter.
Both teams will try to find more consistent answers on offense after the break and the team that does should position themselves for a win.
The Seahawks will not have tight end Noah Fant for Sunday’s home game against the Cardinals.
Fant was listed as questionable due to a groin injury and the Seahawks have him on their inactive list for the game. Tight end Brady Russell was also ruled out on Friday, which leaves A.J. Barner, Pharaoh Brown, and Tyler Mabry as the available tight ends.
Wide receiver Laviska Shenault, cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett, linebacker Trevis Gipson, guard Sataoa Laumea, and defensive end Myles Adams are also inactive.
Cardinals first-round pick Darius Robinson was listed as questionable to make his regular season debut, but he’s inactive with a calf injury. Cornerback Max Melton is active after being added to the report with an illness on Sunday.
Safety Jalen Thompson, linebacker Julian Okwara, offensive lineman Christian Jones, tight end Travis Vokolek, and wide receiver Xavier Weaver are the other inactive players for Arizona.
The Cardinals made a late change to their injury report for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks.
Cornerback Max Melton is now listed as questionable to play. Melton missed practice on Thursday with an illness, but returned for a full practice session on Friday.
Melton was a second-round pick out of Rutgers this year. He has only started one game, but has played 57 percent of the team’s defensive snaps so his absence would be a sizable one for the Cardinals.
Arizona is already down one defensive back with safety Jalen Thompson ruled out due to an ankle injury.
Melton has 37 tackles, one tackle for loss, three passes defensed, and a forced fumble so far this season.
The Giants benched quarterback Daniel Jones for business reasons, not for football reasons. And the Giants allowed personal feelings to interfere with what would have been the best business decision — prevent him from going elsewhere and proving the Giants wrong, Saquon-style.
But they’re going to waive him. Even though they haven’t done it, the owner has said it’s going to happen. (The reason for the delay isn’t clear, but it’s clearly coming.)
While many have adopted the narrative that Jones stinks, he doesn’t. He hasn’t. He helped lead the Giants to the playoffs in 2022. With Jones at the helm, the Giants beat the Vikings in Minnesota in the wild-card round. His struggles have typically traced to subpar offensive line play.
Once he’s released and clears waivers (he absolutely will), Jones will be free to sign with any team at any time. He’ll first need to ask whether to join a team now or wait.
Waiting would allow Jones to get a better feel for who the real contenders will be — and it might give him a chance to play sooner than later, if a starter gets injured elsewhere.
Regardless, consider the backup situations for the various contenders and ask whether a guy who earned a contract that paid $40 million per year and won a playoff game would be better than the current No. 2.
Buffalo: Mitch Trubisky. (Probably.)
Miami: Skylar Thompson/Tyler Huntley. (Yes.)
Baltimore: Josh Johnson. (Yes.)
Pittsburgh: Justin Fields. (Yes, but they seem to be committed to Fields as current backup and potential future starter.)
Houston: Davis Mills. (Yes.)
Kansas City: Carson Wentz. (Probably.)
L.A. Chargers: Easton Stick. (Yes.)
Denver: Jarrett Stidham. (Yes.)
Philadelphia: Kenny Pickett. (Yes.)
Washington: Marcus Mariota. (Probably.)
Detroit: Hendon Hooker. (Yes.)
Minnesota: Nick Mullens. (Yes.)
Green Bay: Malik Willis. (Yes, although Willis has played well this year.)
Atlanta: Michael Penix Jr. (Yes, but they likely wouldn’t do it.)
Tampa Bay: Kyle Trask. (Yes.)
Arizona: Clayton Tune. (Yes.)
Seattle: Sam Howell. (Yes.)
San Francisco: Brandon Allen. (Yes.)
L.A. Rams: Jimmy Garoppolo. (Probably.)
So, yes, someone who is currently contending should want Jones. Jones can afford to take his time. To wait for a clear shot to potentially contribute on a team that has the ability to go deep into the playoffs.
And maybe to wait to see if/when a starter gets injured and an immediate need arises for Jones to play, sooner than later.
The Chiefs are signing free agent left tackle D.J. Humphries, according to multiple reports.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the Chiefs are paying him up to $4.5 million for the rest of the season.
Humphries is medically cleared to return to play after recovering from a torn ACL in Week 17 of last year.
He visited the Giants in October, but they didn’t offer him a contract.
Humphries, 30, spent his first nine seasons with the Cardinals after they made him a first-round draft pick. He has started all 98 of the games he has played in his career, including 15 last season.
He made the Pro Bowl in 2021.
Cardinals defensive lineman Darius Robinson could make his NFL debut Sunday.
Neither he nor coach Jonathan Gannon committed to Robinson playing this week, but he had three limited practices in his return from a calf injury. The team lists him as questionable to play against the Seahawks.
Robinson injured his calf in an Aug. 22 practice, sending him to injured reserve to start the season. The Cardinals designated him to return Oct. 9, and he had a limited practice.
But Robinson’s mother died, so he didn’t practice again until this week.
The Cardinals ruled out safety Jalen Thompson (ankle) and list linebacker Xavier Thomas (back) and offensive lineman Jonah Williams (knee) as questionable.
The team added Thomas to the practice report Friday. Williams was limited all week but is trending toward a return.
Seahawks safety Rayshawn Jenkins will return to the lineup Sunday against the Cardinals.
Coach Mike Macdonald announced that the team will activate Jenkins back to the 53-player roster Saturday. Jenkins returned to practice this week, opening his 21-day window, and he was a full participant in all three practices.
He missed four games with a hand injury that required surgery after Week 6.
Jenkins has 38 tackles and a fumble recovery, which he returned 102 yards for a touchdown in a loss to the Giants.
The Seahawks have ruled out tight end Brady Russell (foot), according to Macdonald. Wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. (back) and tight end Noah Fant (groin) are questionable.
The Seahawks’ team facility returned to full power Friday, according to multiple reports from beat writers.
The Virginia Mason Athletic Center lost power as a result of severe winds that hit Tuesday night. The team spent two days working off generators with limited electricity and cold showers.
The bomb cyclone, carrying winds of 50-75 mph, killed two people in western Washington and knocked out power to half a million people.
“For the most part, the prep has been great,” quarterback Geno Smith said Thursday. “Obviously, without power at home, it’s going to hinder some things, but guys have been doing a great job at studying. It allows you to spend extra hours at the facility, you know, if you don’t [have] power at home. You’ve got power here, so you can spend extra hours here and just study.
“We’re not going to use it as an excuse. There’s a lot of people without power, and we’re just blessed to be able to come to work and still do our jobs.”
