THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Time for some big-boy football for 3-0 Seahawks
Steve Cameron
The national media is not impressed by the Seahawks’ 3-0 record.
Now, what this army of writers and talking heads thinks or says really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.
Mike Macdonald won’t lose 15 seconds of sleep over the point spread that lists Seattle as a 3 1/2-point underdog against the Lions on Monday night in Detroit.
He wouldn’t phrase it this way, but Macdonald may — to some degree — be as curious as the rest of us about how his Seahawks will do when knocking heads with a genuinely good team.
The baying mob that covers the NFL is correct that Seattle hasn’t faced a decent team so far.
They’re talking about quarterbacks, and the Seahawks three wins have come against three distinctly sub-par QBs.
It was Denver rookie Bo Nix in the opener, and although Nix might turn into a legit NFL quarterback, he was rattled and out of sync as Seattle won 26-20.
The Hawks’ visit to New England produced a matchup against veteran Jacoby Brissett, who essentially is keeping a seat warm for hyped rookie Drake Maye.
Brissett is not Tom Brady, and the Seahawks escaped Foxborough with a 23-20 win.
NEXT UP was Miami, which would have been a dangerous matchup if Tua Tagovailoa were cleared for duty.
Tua, unfortunately, suffered a repeat concussion the previous week, so the Dolphins (and the league) are being super-careful.
Considering the lights-out hits that Tua has taken last season and now a week ago, there is a serious chance that the star from Alabama may have his career cut out entirely.
Meantime, the Dolphins had to go with rookie Skylar Thompson — and the result was a 13-of-19 afternoon for just 107 yards.
On the other side, Geno Smith was nicked for two interceptions, but he threw a 71-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf as Seattle cruised 24-3.
You can see why that 3-0 record looks a little weak.
Likewise, there’s no doubt that the Hawks will have to play some big-boy football to be competitive on Monday night.
You probably don’t need me to tell you that manic coach Dan Campbell has a hell of a football team – a bunch who were 12-5 in the regular season last year, and ultimately came within a field goal of making a trip to the Super Bowl.
They lost 34-31 to the 49ers in the NFC title game.
THE LIONS are not a rebuilding project.
They intend to reach the Super Bowl, and win it.
You’ve probably heard of QB Jared Goff, running backs David Mongomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, along with receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and tight end Sam LaPorta.
But the Seahawks aren’t kidding themselves, and they’re preparing for a slugfest in Detroit.
The Lions are bullies at the line of scrimmage, anchored by defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson — who plays different spots, and leads the NFL already with 6 1/2 sacks and 11 quarterback hits.
Yow!
“The reason we’re building from the front is that, in the NFL, you have to win at the line of scrimmage,” Macdonald said when he was hired.
“At every position, there’s going to be the guy that you have to beat — just physically beat.”
The Seahawks’ ratings in some of those categories have not been great so far. Among other things, their tackling has been dreadful.
This scrap with the Lions is a rematch of the Hawks’ 37-31 overtime win at Ford Field last year.
There’s bad news leading into this game, though, with the Seahawks injured (DT Byron Murphy II, hamstring) and playing poorly at spots — especially along the offensive line.
Hutchinson must be revving up his engines.
“Our goal,” Macdonald said, “is to build a team that can go into games like this and have other teams fear us, and never the other way around.”
Well, here you go, Mike.
Test No. 1 for your unbeaten Seahawks.
Email: scameron@cdapress.com
Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.
Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”