The Seahawks’ offense is ‘in a funk’ at the wrong time. Can it be fixed quickly? – The Athletic

RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks are entering the biggest regular-season game of the Mike Macdonald era with two of three units playing well enough to upset the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night at Lumen Field.

Jason Myers, the reigning NFC special teams player of the month, is fresh off a 6-for-6 kicking performance — including the game-winner — that might earn him a player of the week award. Seattle ranks third in special teams EPA (all stats provided by TruMedia).

The Seahawks’ defense leads the league in EPA per play and ranks second behind the Houston Texans in points per drive and points per game. That unit has played essentially one bad game all season (Week 5 against the Buccaneers) and has all the makings of a group that can lead the team through the playoffs.

The offense is a different story. The numbers over the entire season are great. Seattle ranks fifth in points per game (28.9), 10th in points per drive and 13th in EPA per play. But the past few weeks have been underwhelming, particularly in first halves.

The Seahawks haven’t scored a first-half touchdown on offense since Week 12 against the Tennessee Titans. They haven’t reached the end zone on offense in the first quarter since Week 10. Seattle has made a habit of coming alive in the second half, but despite improving after intermission in Sunday’s 18-16 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, the offense was held out of the end zone for the first time all season.

“We’re not getting the results we want,” Macdonald said Monday afternoon. “We can’t just say, ‘Let’s start better.’ Let’s go back to see how we’re doing our openers, how much we’re carrying, what we feel like the guys can execute at a high level, how we diagnose what their game plan is as soon as we possibly can. There’s a lot of things going on there that’s on the table right now.”

Play callers typically script the beginning of games based on scheme, matchups, opponent tendencies and other factors they feel will aid in starting hot. Macdonald said offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak has done a “tremendous” job designing Seattle’s opening scripts.

“We’re just in a little bit of a funk right now,” Macdonald said. “Let’s keep attacking until we can get out of it.”

Snapping out of that funk will be critical in a rematch with the Rams (11-3) that has massive playoff implications. Seattle (11-3) sits fifth in the NFC while Los Angeles occupies the top spot. The Seahawks’ odds of earning the No. 1 seed would increase from 26 to 50 percent with a win on Thursday and drop under 1 percent with a loss, according to The Athletic’s playoff simulator.

Macdonald does not like the idea of playing up the magnitude of any one game because he feels it distracts from the process required for the team to play its best ball.

“We’re focused on playing the game,” Macdonald said. “That’s our responsibility as coaches and players. That’s what works for us.”

But based on the current NFC playoff picture, the significance of this rematch cannot be ignored. The Seahawks are playing not only for a shot at the division but also for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, which would increase their odds of winning multiple postseason games for the first time since 2014. The Athletic’s model currently gives them an 11 percent chance of winning the Super Bowl, trailing only the two conference leaders (Rams, 19 percent; Broncos, 15 percent). A loss Thursday night would likely send Seattle to the playoffs as the fifth or sixth seed.

Slow starts are just one of the issues plaguing Seattle’s offense lately. The run game is inconsistent, and Sunday was one of the worst performances of the season. Ken Walker III (nine carries, 17 yards) and Zach Charbonnet (eight carries, 31 yards) combined for 48 yards. It was their least-productive game by rushing yards and success rate, and third-worst by yards per carry (2.8).

“We didn’t run it the way we wanted to,” Macdonald said. “It’s kind of a little bit of everything right now. It’s a little bit late in the year right now to be saying that, so I think we’ve got to pick it up on all fronts.”

When the run game is inconsistent, more is required of quarterback Sam Darnold and the passing attack. Darnold completed 22 of 36 passes for 271 yards against the Colts. He was sacked once and didn’t commit a turnover (his lone fumble flew out of bounds on a scramble). He saw an uptick in play-action usage in the second half after just one such dropback in the first half (which ended in a Jaxon Smith-Njigba drop). On eight play-action dropbacks in the second half, Darnold completed 5 of 7 passes (with one drop) for 92 yards and also had a 4-yard scramble for a first down.

Darnold also moved the ball in two-minute situations. He led a nine-play, 44-yard drive to set up a Myers field goal as time expired in the second quarter. Trailing 13-12 in the fourth quarter, Darnold led an 11-play, 82-yard field goal drive to take the lead with 2:27 remaining. That series stalled at the 12-yard line because of a miscommunication between Darnold and receiver Cooper Kupp on second-and-7, and then an inaccurate throw intended for receiver Rashid Shaheed on third down in the end zone.

“We missed (Shaheed) there in the red zone, and I think, unfortunately, that is a function of maybe he hasn’t just been here the whole time,” Macdonald said Monday morning on Seattle Sports radio. “That’s a route we run a good bit, and the ball was a little bit behind. Just seems the timing was just a click off.”

On the next series, Darnold connected with Shaheed for a 17-yard gain on first down. Then they hooked up again for an 8-yard completion, setting up Myers’ game-winning kick. Darnold’s poise and decision-making in those situations are attributes his teammates and coaches have praised him for throughout the year.

“There was no flinch,” left guard Grey Zabel said. “The rest of the offense, when we were going down there, the mentality is, ‘We’ve got to go win this game at the end, no matter the situation.’ He did an unbelievable job of commanding the huddle, having us ready to attack and then go and get ourselves in position to win the game.”

So, why can’t Seattle operate that way more consistently the rest of the game?

“We just need to get together and understand the game plan and execute,” said Smith-Njigba, who led Seattle with seven catches for 113 yards. “I’ll leave it at that.”

The Rams have the No. 3 defense by points per game and the fourth-best by points per drive and EPA per play. In Week 11, Seattle averaged 5.2 yards per play and outgained Los Angeles by 165 yards. But Darnold threw a season-high four interceptions, and the offense scored only one touchdown on four red zone trips (the Rams have the No. 2 red zone defense).

Darnold has one of the league’s lowest sack rates and was not sacked in the first game against the Rams. Seattle might have a harder time repeating that performance if left tackle Charles Cross (hamstring) is unable to play. Cross landed awkwardly and immediately grabbed the back of his left leg as Myers made the game-winning kick. He was helped off and later replaced by Josh Jones for the final kneeldown.

Macdonald said “it’s possible” for Cross to play Thursday.

“We’re just trying to gather the info right now, exhausting all options to see how fast we can get him back,” the coach said.

The Seahawks have won four consecutive games since losing to the Rams. Their point differential of plus-163 is the best in the league, slightly ahead of the Rams (plus-159). Seattle has one of the league’s best teams. Thursday night is an opportunity to prove it.

The defense played well in the first meeting and has continued to look sharp since. If the offense shows up to the party, Seattle will be in great position to secure its first division title since 2020 and make sure the road to Super Bowl LX goes through Lumen Field.