Curse Endures as Seahawks Fall to Cardinals at Home Again

Arizona has been giving Seattle problems at CenturyLink Field for several seasons running and with much on the line, the visitors played spoilers again with a backup quarterback steering the ship.

Looking for their 12th win of the season and a chance to stay in the running for one of the NFC’s two playoff byes, the Seahawks controlled their own destiny heading into Week 16.

With so much at stake, however, Seattle picked the worst time to turn in its ugliest performance of the season, dropping a 27-13 decision to Arizona at CenturyLink Field.

While the Seahawks still can lock up a division title next weekend against the 49ers, the Cardinals drastically diminished their chances of earning a postseason bye week by eagerly accepting the role of spoiler. Led by the dynamic running of Kenyan Drake and an unexpectedly dominant defensive performance, the visitors maintained their run of extended success in Seattle with another signature upset.

Coming out of the gates fast, the Seahawks marched down field with minimal resistance on their opening drive. Quarterback Russell Wilson completed three out of four passes for 46 yards, Chris Carson rushed for 24 yards on three carries, and Nick Bellore reeled in his first touchdown catch of the season to give Seattle an early 7-0 lead.

But from there, everything went downhill for coach Pete Carroll’s team, as the Cardinals continued their mystifying mastery of the Seahawks on their home field. Since 2015, Arizona has now won four of its past five games at CenturyLink Field, with its lone loss coming in a tight 27-24 loss last December.

“Boy, nothing worked out the way we would’ve wanted to other than the first couple drives,” Carroll commented after the game. “And then after that, we weren’t able to do enough to have a chance to win the game. It didn’t matter what phase we were in, we just weren’t good enough today.”

Immediately following Wilson’s touchdown pass to Bellore, Drake bolted untouched on an off-tackle run and raced for the sideline. With most of Seattle’s defenders left in the dust, safety Lano Hill failed to trip up the former Alabama star as he found his way to the end zone for an 80-yard touchdown to tie the game.

Over the next three-plus quarters, the Cardinals outclassed the Seahawks in all phases. With Drake, quarterback Kyler Murray, and future Hall of Fame receiver Larry Fitzgerald leading the way, Arizona built a 20-3 lead early in the third quarter as Seattle’s offense floundered and failed to protect Wilson.

After their opening touchdown drive spanned 89 yards in under five minutes, the Seahawks produced only 135 total yards and converted just one out of 12 third down opportunities. Losing Carson and C.J. Prosise to injuries in the second quarter only made matters worse, as the lack of a run game allowed stud pass rusher Chandler Jones to tee off with four sacks and six quarterback hits against Wilson.

On the flip side, the mobility of Murray and backup quarterback Brett Hundley gave Seattle fits, helping Arizona rack up 253 rushing yards and 406 yards of total offense. Before exiting with a hamstring injury in the third quarter, Murray had rushed for 40 yards, while Hundley rushed for 35 yards, including a back-breaking 14-yard run to move the chains on the Cardinals’ final scoring drive.

One play later, Drake punched it in from three yards out to extend the lead back to 14 points. Moments later, he showed off incredible determination plowing through several Seahawks tacklers to drive past the first down marker and put the game on ice, a play that was a microcosm of the entire game.

With much left to play for, it was a disappointing effort from a Seattle squad that lacked any sense of urgency. And as injuries to key players continue to pile up with Carson and Prosise likely done for the season, the prognosis heading towards the postseason isn’t looking good.

As Carroll noted, the Seahawks have no choice but to quickly flush this game out of their system. And while it might sound crazy considering how talented the 49ers are, if there’s a silver lining, at least his team won’t have to worry about game-planning for the vaunted Cardinals prior to next week’s unofficial NFC West title game.

“We’re fortunate we have a chance to play for the division this late in the year and what’s important for us is to be disciplined about this so that we can turn our focus to that week and not be affected by what just happened. We’re gonna do that really well and it’s already started.”