What Wolf is watching for when the Cardinals face the Seahawks
Sep 27, 2019, 2:15 PM
Defensive end Chandler Jones #55 of the Arizona Cardinals sacks quarterback Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks during the second quarter at State Farm Stadium on September 30, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images)
In the Arizona Cardinals’ search for the first win of the season, they host the division rival Seattle Seahawks.
In his weekly segment on Fridays leading up to the game, Ron Wolfley shares what he’s watching for on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station’s Doug & Wolf.
Will the Seahawks use seven defensive backs and how much of it will they use?
Known as the “bandit” defensive look, Seattle started using this system in 2010 and employed it at times last season.
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The Cardinals run 10 personnel more than any other team in the league, meaning one runnnig back, no tight end and four wide receivers.
That’s going to call for plenty of defensive backs on the field for the Seahawks.
“This is the defense I think the Cardinals are going to see on Sunday,” Wolf said.
Can the Cardinals make Russell Wilson one-dimensional?
Wolf is spotlighting Arizona’s chance of shutting down a run game that has been mildly effective this year for Seattle, but not as great as it used to be.
The Seahawks are averaging 110.3 rushing yards per game, a middle-of-the-pack number.
Wolf believes if the Cardinals can force Wilson to be a passer and, more importantly, his offensive line to pass protect, Arizona can have some success.
“If they can make Russell Wilson one-dimensional, now all of a sudden that means the protection scheme of the Seattle Seahawks is going to come into play,” he said. “The offensive line is going to come into play. And I’ll take Chandler Jones and [Terrell Suggs] coming off the edge in those situations.”
The red zone on both sides of the ball is going to determine the winner of this game
As Doug aptly put it when Wolf read this last bullet point off, “uh oh!”
The Seahawks are the best red zone team in the NFL, converting on 89% of those trips for a touchdown through Week 3.
Wolf is looking for some regression on that unsustainable number.
“Can the Arizona Cardinals defend in the red zone and can they, when they get the opportunity to possess the ball in the red zone, turn those possessions into touchdowns?” he asked.
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