Bear Digest

Bears Spoiler Chances Center on Adding to Geno Smith Pick Total

Scouting the Seahawks: The Bears' opponents are in a must-win situation in their NFC West battle with the Rams and bring in a potentially explosive but faulty passing attack.

Gene Chamberlain

Geno Smith has taken a step back this year with 15 interceptions and 45 sacks but remains in charge of a potent attack.
Geno Smith has taken a step back this year with 15 interceptions and 45 sacks but remains in charge of a potent attack. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
In this story:

It's not much to look forward to at holiday and playoff time but it's just about all the Bears have beyond continuing to chart the progress of quarterback Caleb Williams and wide receiver Rome Odunze.

That is playing the role of spoiler.

What kind of fun is ruining someone else's playoff hopes? Probably not much, but the Bears can do that by beating the Seattle Seahawks in Thursday night's game at Soldier Field.

"Our destiny is not in our hands right now, which is tough," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald told Seattle reporters Monday. "But we still have a ton of football to play for.

"A break here or there, we're right back in it and rolling. So we'll dust ourselves off, chin up, chest out, and move forward. Onward we go."

Seattle trails the Rams by a game and would need to beat the Bears and then the Rams in the season finale to get to the playoffs. The Seahawks would also need the Rams to lose to the Cardinals on Saturday because the Rams currently hold tiebreaker edges in a Seahawks-Rams tie. The Rams won the earlier game with the Seahawks.

Seattle has had a somewhat surprising season considering the coaching change and some of the statistical performances, specifically QB Geno Smith putting up his worst passer rating since becoming the team's starter.

Here are the players the Bears can have matchup problems with facing the Seahawks on Thursday.

1. WR DK Metcalf

His catch totals have been down the last two years but Metcalf is always their most dangerous weapon because of his size/speed and receiving ability. At 6-4, 235, he's a modern day Calvin Johnson type and has 60 catches for 897 yards and four TDs this year. It hasn't been a case where the targets haven't been there, as they've thrown to him 100 times, just 19 less than last year. Having Jaxon Smith-Njigba rise in prominence may have taken a few key targets away from him but he still averages 15 yards a catch and is a jump ball nightmare.

2. WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

The former Ohio State receiver has exploded down the stretch in terms of catch totals and yardage during Year 2 of his career. He has had 18 catches for 178 yards the last two games and in the last seven games 50 catches for 701 yards and five TDs. Although listed as their slot receiver, he'll line up in various spots at times but does it with a combination of speed and route running. His catch percentage is up to 72.6% from 67.7% last year, and he Smith has a 102.2 QB rating when targeted.

3. DT Leonard Williams

The 30-year-old, 300-pound former Jets and Giants defensive tackle has been a wrecking ball on the interior of the line all year for the Seahawks in his second Seattle season after injuries derailed him last year. The video of his 92-yard return with an interception was replayed constantly for a few weeks for entertainment value. He has seven sacks, the most since 2020 and his 24 pressures are his most since that same year (42) when he had the career-high for sacks. He's beating the guards and getting to the QB, and that interior pressure is crucial to Seattle's defensive success. He also has 12 tackles for loss.

4. T Charles Cross

Graded 10th by Pro Football Focus among offensive tackles, the 6-foot-5, 307-pound former Mississippi State player has allowed six sacks and committed seven penalties from the left side. He has given up 42 pressures, according to PFF. He's made life a little easier for Smith to settle in and fire.

5. QB Geno Smith

Smith just had his season high for touchdown passes with three against Minnesota but also threw two interceptions. It's been an issue for him all year as his 15 interceptions thrown are his most since his rookie season of 2013 with the Jets. Perhaps not surprisingly, this is happening after Shane Waldron was fired in Seattle. Although Waldron was an abysmal failure with the Bears, he had helped revive Smith's career. Smith has only two more TD passes than interceptions but the one thing he has done is complete a lot of deeper throws or shorter passes that broke for big gains as he averages 7.5 yards per attempt. It's what's keeping his passer rating (90.4) at a respectable level. He has been sacked 45 times so that explains some of his troubles.

6. CB Tariq Woolen

Although a few other defensive backs have enjoyed better seasons in some respects, Woolen is still the most impressive member of the Seattle secondary at 6-4, 210, playing at cornerback with 4.26-second speed in the 40. Woolen has 13 pass breakups and two interceptions and a career passer rating against of 71.8 according to Stathead/Pro Football Reference. This year his passer rating against is a bit higher at 87.6 but still very good at covering as the right cornerback.

7. RB Kenneth Walker

It has been a rough year for Walker as he splits carries with Zach Charbonnet. The Seahawks are only 30th in rushing and Walker leads with 573 yards. He averages just 3.7 yards an attempt with 153 carries to Charbonnet's 106. So it remains a tag team as it had been. But Walker has seven TDs and when he is getting consistent yardage the Seahawks offense is at its best.

8. OLB Derrick Hall

With seven sacks and 18 QB hits, the former Auburn standout has emerged in his second season after he didn't get a sack as a rookie. He has helped provide a 1-2 outside rush punch with Boye Mafe, who has six sacks in his third season.

9. WR Tyler Lockett

He has been entirely de-emphasized in his 10th season and has just 44 catches for 552 yards, easily his worst numbers since 2017. However, he's still at a 66.7% success rate with fewer snaps at age 32 and in the next-to-last year of his contract. 

Twitter: BearsOnSI

Published
Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.