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Seattle Seahawks: 3 Toughest games of 2019 season

By Samuel Teets

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 14: Seattle Seahawks Head Coach, Pete Carroll speaks to Russell Wilson of Seattle Seahawks during the NFL International series match between Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders at Wembley Stadium on October 14, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 14: Seattle Seahawks Head Coach, Pete Carroll speaks to Russell Wilson of Seattle Seahawks during the NFL International series match between Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders at Wembley Stadium on October 14, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images) /
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New Orleans Saints mock draft
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JANUARY 20: Alvin Kamara #41 and Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints look on against the Los Angeles Rams during the fourth quarter in the NFC Championship game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 20, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

1. New Orleans Saints – Week 3

Let’s face it, the Rams got lucky in the NFC Championship Game against the Saints. New Orleans was one obvious pass interference call away from winning that game and giving us a Brees-Brady matchup.

The bottom line is that the Saints are on equal ground with the Rams. However, I think New Orleans is a tougher matchup for the Seahawks because there isn’t the division rivalry factor. We’ve seen in the past how NFC West games that should be one-sided turn into close races because there’s some X-factor that comes into play against a division opponent. That won’t be present against the Saints.

Of course, there are many other factors that will make this game difficult for the Seahawks. The Saints had the eighth best overall offense in 2018 thanks to dynamic playmakers that make passing and running the ball easy. Everything starts with 2018 MVP candidate and future Hall of Fame quarterback, Drew Brees.

Brees captains an offense armed with stars. At wide receiver, there’s First Team All-Pro Michael Thomas. The Saints also have one of the most dynamic running backs in the form of Alvin Kamara.

Left tackle Terron Armstead and left guard Andrus Peat were both Pro Bowlers in 2018 as well. Right tackle, Ryan Ramczyk is also developing nicely and looks like a future Pro Bowler himself. And all of these players were already in place before the Saints signed tight end Jared Cook in free agency.

Luckily for the Seahawks, the Saints pass defense isn’t on the same level as the offense. The defense gave up 268.9 passing yards per game last season, which ranked 29th in the league. That’s the weakness the Seahawks will have to attack when they face New Orleans because the Saints run defense is incredible.

New Orleans finished second in run defense last season, allowing just 80.2 rushing yards per game. I guess you can expect that kind of production from a front manned by Cameron Jordan and Sheldon Rankins.

Next. Every NFL team's best under-the-radar move. dark

The Saints are the most complete team the Seahawks will face all year long. While I do look forward to seeing the Saints run defense and Seattle’s run-heavy offense collide, the chips seem largely in favor of the Saints. As intense as this season will be for the Seahawks, they had just as hard of a schedule last season. Pete Carroll‘s squad is fully capable of reaching ten wins in 2019 and even taking a swipe at the division crown. It’s just going to be a stressful year for fans.

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