The Seattle Seahawks are still considered to be one of the favorites in the NFC West and the conference to make a deep run in the playoffs, but after a close game on Monday night football and some injuries, questions are coming up and now the team will get the chance to answer some of those when they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 4:05 PM on television on Fox from CenturyLink Field in Washington.
The Seahawks are 7-1 on the season and leading the west division over the San Francisco 49ers and they are coming into a tough stretch this season with a road game coming next against the Atlanta Falcons. The team is happy to be back at home after playing three of the last four on the road and four of the last five weeks and the next game against Atlanta marks an end to another stretch of three road games in four weeks and then the team will play the Vikings before a bye in Week 12. Russell Wilson has been playing very solid despite missing Percy Harvin all season and now that Sidney Rice is out for the year, the team will need players like Golden Tate and Doug Baldwin to step up.
Pete Carroll and the Seattle offense has Marshawn Lynch as one of the best running backs in the NFL and he comes in having another great season ranking in the top 10 in yards, yards per game and touchdowns and the team is ranked in the top five in rushing yards per game with over 140 and now they will play against the terrible Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The bye week will be much needed for the Seahawks and they will likely get back Harvin soon and then they have one of the biggest games of the year with a home matchup on Monday night football against the New Orleans Saints and that will be a huge matchup. The Seahawks will next play against the Niners in San Francisco and that game will have division, conference and playoff implications for whoever wins and the 49ers will be on the lookout, as the Seahawks beat them already this season.
The Seahawks have won some close games this season against the Titans, Rams and also opening the season against the Panthers and they also needed overtime against the Texans. The team has won three in a row since the loss to the Colts and now they have the chance for number four heading into a game against the Falcons that is a rematch in Atlanta from the second round of the playoffs last season. The team finishes with tough road games against the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Giants on the east coast and then the team has game against Arizona and St. Louis in divisional games to end the season with the Cardinals and Rams at home.
The team has one of the best defenses in the league and Richard Sherman has been fantastic so far this season once again and the team has a top five defense against the pass and that should continue into the playoffs. The team started off 4-0 for the first time in history and they will need to get home field advantage to make a Super Bowl run, as they have played much better at home than on the road and a win over the Buccaneers would make it twice that the team has won against winless teams with the Jaguars also losing in seattle this season in a bad blowout and this could be a repeat performance if Wilson and the offense has a nice day.
