Rapid Reaction: 5 Takeaways From Seahawks' 2022 Schedule Reveal

Russell Wilson will be back in his old stomping grounds right off the bat, while Seattle will have to weather a difficult slate of games in the heart of its schedule against four returning playoff teams. Reporter Corbin Smith breaks down the team's full 17-game docket with five key takeaways.

Set to break in a new quarterback and a new defensive coordinator, the Seahawks underwent a transformative offseason overhauling their roster and coaching staff. But while expectations outside the building may not be high entering a new era, Pete Carroll expects his team to remain relevant competing in the NFC West.

On Thursday, the road map for Seattle to surprise without Russell Wilson or Bobby Wagner was revealed with the NFL announcing regular season schedules for all 32 teams. As expected, Carroll's squad will face several contenders along the way, including a pair of matchups with the defending champion Rams, a trip across the pond to face Tom Brady and the Buccaneers in Germany, and a visit from Wilson and the Broncos in the season opener.

Seattle Seahawks 2022 Regular Season Schedule

• Week 1 - vs. Denver Broncos*
• Week 2 - at San Francisco 49ers
• Week 3 - vs. Atlanta Falcons
• Week 4 - at Detroit Lions
• Week 5 - at New Orleans Saints
• Week 6 - vs. Arizona Cardinals
• Week 7 - at Los Angeles Chargers
• Week 8 - vs. New York Giants
• Week 9 - at Arizona Cardinals
• Week 10 - at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Munich, Germany)
• Week 11 - BYE WEEK
• Week 12 - vs. Las Vegas Raiders
• Week 13 - at Los Angeles Rams
• Week 14 - vs. Carolina Panthers
• Week 15 - vs. San Francisco 49ers*
• Week 16 - at Kansas City Chiefs
• Week 17 - vs. New York Jets
• Week 18 - vs. Los Angeles Rams

*Prime Time Game

After taking a quick glance, here are five rapid takeaways from the Seahawks' just-released 2022 schedule:

A welcome home visit by Russell Wilson headlines a challenging opening two weeks.

In terms of compelling matchups, Wilson's return to Lumen Field may be the most anticipated in the NFL, so it shouldn't come as a surprise the league took advantage by scheduling the reunion in prime time right away. Back in March, the Seahawks traded the nine-time Pro Bowler to the Broncos for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick, and a trio of veterans, including quarterback Drew Lock. On paper, Wilson's team will be heavily favored, but he should expect a hostile environment coming back to his old stomping grounds and playing as a visiting quarterback will be a far different experience than he's accustomed to. That atmosphere may help keep things close throughout.

After a date with Wilson and a talented Denver team, things won't get any easier for Seattle in Week 2 as Carroll's squad will venture south to face San Francisco in its home opener. The 49ers will likely be busting out a new starting quarterback in Trey Lance who may endure some growing pains early in the season, but they still have one of the league's most ferocious pass rushing front lines headlined by Nick Bosa and a stout running game featuring a bevy of talented ball carriers. Swept by the Seahawks a year ago, they will be eager to enact some revenge, which could make it a long afternoon for the visitors.

The Seahawks drew a solid draw of opposing quarterbacks in the first nine weeks.

If there's a silver lining to Seattle's first half slate, Carroll and defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt won't have to game plan for many elite quarterbacks after pitting their wits against Wilson in the opener. Starting with Lance, only three Pro Bowl quarterbacks will be on the schedule from Week 2 to Week 9, and one of them - Saints signal caller Jameis Winston - will be coming back from reconstructive knee surgery. With the exception of two games against Arizona's Kyler Murray and a game against Los Angeles Charger standout Justin Herbert, that stretch lacks star power under center with journeyman Marcus Mariota starting in Atlanta, Jared Goff starting in Detroit, and Daniel Jones down to his last chance with the New York Giants.

Realistically, if the Seahawks take a step forward defensively with Hurtt at the controls as hoped and either Lock or Geno Smith takes care of the football playing a point guard role offensively, they should have a chance to get out of this first half hovering around the .500 mark. Winnable games against the Falcons, Lions, and Giants coupled with an upset or two would keep Carroll's bunch very much in the hunt in the NFC West with nine games left to play.

A brutal gauntlet of road games near the midway point could make or break Seattle's season.

Even if the Seahawks take advantage of a favorable schedule against mostly pedestrian quarterbacks in the initial eight weeks, their real test to stay relevant in the NFC playoff picture will start in Week 9. After a tough divisional road game against the Cardinals, they will fly overseas to partake in the first regular season game in Germany in NFL history and will be tasked with trying to slow down Brady and a high-powered Buccaneers offense while also keeping Lock or Smith upright against an aggressive, blitz-happy defense.

After a bye week provides a brief moment of reprieve in Week 11, Seattle hosts receiver Davante Adams and Las Vegas at Lumen Field, providing another difficult test against a returning playoff team. The following week, Carroll and his crew will hit the road again heading to Los Angeles, where Sean McVay, Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey, and company have dominated them over the years. It's possible the Seahawks could lose all four of those games and if that happens, they can kiss any reasonable chances of making a surprise postseason run goodbye.

Homefield advantage gives Seattle a chance to weather a difficult closing stretch.

© Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

In terms of level of competition, the schedule makers didn't necessarily do the Seahawks any favors over the final five weeks. Aside from home rematches against the 49ers and Rams in Week 15 and Week 18, they will have to travel to one of the most hostile road venues in all of sports on Christmas Eve to face Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 16. Even a Week 17 home game against the New York Jets won't be an easy task against an up-and-coming franchise that loaded up on young talent in the 2022 NFL Draft.

But while the opponents will remain difficult, Seattle will get to play the majority of the final month of the season in front of its own fans. Four of its final five games and five of its final seven overall will be in front of the 12s, and if the franchise can rediscover the homefield advantage that made Lumen Field such a treacherous place for opponents to play in the early 2010s, that could go a long way towards pulling off a few upsets late in the year. Even if they aren't a playoff team, winning at least three of their final five games would provide much-needed momentum heading towards 2023.

With superstar departures, the Seahawks lost a bit of their prime time appeal.

Making the playoffs in eight of the past 10 seasons, Seattle has consistently enjoyed being in the prime time spotlight in front of a nationally televised audience. A year ago, the team had five such games under the lights, including a pair of Monday Night Football matchups. But with Wilson and Wagner now gone and the franchise heading into a rebuild, the schedule makers didn't give the Seahawks a single Sunday Night game, marking the first time that has happened for the franchise since 2011.

As things stand, after Wilson's return takes place on Monday Night Football in the season opener, the Seahawks will only play one other prime time game over the final 17 weeks, as they will face the 49ers on Thursday Night Football in Week 15. Unless the team hangs around in contention longer than anticipated and has meaningful games left to play in the final two months, they likely won't have any games flexed into a night time slot either, keeping them in afternoon slots for the majority of the season.