Seahawks
vs.
Rams
Week 2
NFL Pick
9/18/16
The Seattle Seahawks visit the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2. There currently is no line for this Game as Russell Wilson is listed as “questionable” for the Game after getting his ankle tangled up in Seattle’s Week 1 12-10 win over the Miami Dolphins. There is optimism coming out of Seattle that Wilson will in fact be able to play when the Seahawks visit the Rams on Sunday.
Wilson helped Seattle squeak out a win in Miami. Wilson threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin for the Game-winning Scorewith just 31 seconds remaining. Wilson finished with 258 passing yards, a touchdown and one interception, while completing 27-of-43 passes.
Baldwin led the way for the receiving corps, catching nine passes for 92 yards and the Game-winning touchdown. Jermaine Kearse added five receptions for 57 yards. Jimmy Graham was limited to only one reception with 11 yards.
Seattle’s running Game never really got going. They’re in the midst of trying to fully replace Marshawn LyNCh after he retired this past offseason. Christine Michael ran the ball 15 times for 66 yards. Thomas Rawls added 12 carries for 32 yards. It will be interesting to see how these backs work with Wilson going forward in the zone-read Game.
Defensively, the Seahawks were excellent. They held Miami to just 214 total yards. They put an emphasis on stopping Arian Foster and forcing Ryan Tannehill to beat them with his arm. Foster was limited to 38 yards on 13 carries.
While it may not have been the prettiest of wins for the Seahawks, at least it didn’t go as badly as things went in Week 1 for the Los Angeles Rams. They were shut out by the San Francisco 49ers 28-0 on Monday night.
Todd Gurley had an insignificant season debut after rushing for over 1,100 yards as a rookie a year ago. He was held to 47 yards on 17 carries. It’s going to be very important for the Rams to be able to open up some holes for Gurley if they are to see any success this season in the win column.
Case Keenum may have had the worst night of any of the Rams. He went an abysmal 17-of-35 through the air for 130 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. If the Los Angeles does not have success on the ground, they will not be able to rely consistently on Keenum to dig them out of holes.
Keenum did have one reliable target in Kenny Britt on the night. Britt caught Four passes for 67 yards. But, again, this is where Keenum is going to need help. If there isn’t good play from the weapons around him, it’s doubtful Keenum will be able to carry the Rams in a tough division like the NFC West.
Prediction: The Seattle Seahawks will do everything they can to slow down Todd Gurley. If they’re able to keep him contained, it’s going to be very difficult for Los Angeles to win this Game. No matter how long it takes Seattle to play good offensively, they should be able to find a way to get through this Game. SCore: Seattle 20, Los Angeles 10