Losing Streak Showdown

When this many losing streaks converge, something has got to give.

The Seahawks have lost two in a row, getting blown out on the road in Oakland before being humiliated at home against the Giants.

Arizona has dropped three straight, though they were competitive in the last two losses, getting edged at home by the Bucs, then stumbling in overtime against the Vikings.

Seattle last won in Arizona in 2005; that’s a 4-game losing streak.

The last time the Seahawks savored victory, it tasted like Cardinal.

However, Arizona typically finds a way to win at home; the team is 2-1 on its own turf this year.

To put it mildly, the Seahawks struggle on the road. We are 1-3 as visitors this year, recording our only victory in Chicago.

This week looks a lot like that one, in that no one is picking Seattle to win this game. Maybe this is the kind of team that rises to the occasion when everyone assumes they’re doomed. But it doesn’t seem wise to count on lightning striking twice.

The stakes are high. At 3-5, Arizona lurks just one game behind the 4-4 division leaders, Seattle and St. Louis.

With a win, Seattle could essentially eliminate Arizona from the race for the division title. A loss would hand sole possession of the division lead to St. Louis, if the Rams can beat San Francisco, or create an ignominious three-way tie for first place, if the 49ers eke out a home victory today. People have derided our division for years as the NFC Worst, but imagine the scorn that will be heaped upon us if Arizona, Seattle and St. Louis wind up tied atop the west with losing (4-5) records.

The players and coaches on both teams are on record recognizing the magnitude of this game.

It is tempting to imagine the Seahawks picking up where we left off three weeks ago, when we last played the Cardinals.

But this time, Arizona won’t do us the favor of starting rookie Max Hall under center. Instead, they will field the more competent veteran Derek Anderson at quarterback.

The last time we played the Cardinals, our D-Line stuffed the run and exerted consistent pressure upon Arizona’s passers. Since then, our injury-riddled defensive front has allowed opposing quarterbacks and running backs to have their way with them.

If we intend to compete today, the linebacking corps and the defensive backfield will need to pick up the slack.

When we beat Arizona last month, our offense was anemic, scoring only one touchdown. Since then, our offense has been pronounced legally dead.

As always, the trouble starts up front, with a feeble O-Line that keeps Marshawn Williams in Least Mode, struggling just to avoid negative yardage. His shifty counterpart Justin Forsett only needs a few inches of daylight, but our front five hasn’t even been able to manage that.

Incredibly, the offensive line provided good pass protection for Charlie Whitehurst last week, holding the fierce Giants pass rush to zero sacks. Perhaps they can build on that and branch out into the largely unexplored frontier of run blocking.

Hopefully, Matt Hasselbeck will return rustless and ready to lead his unit to unaccustomed competence. Given our uncertain ability to execute, offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates will need an inspired playcalling performance to make us competitive. In past weeks, his predictable calls have posed perhaps the greatest obstacle to our offense’s inability to gain any kind of traction.

How we perform today will say a lot about the character of this team and its coaches.

Go, Seahawks!