The Cardinals and Seahawks play for first place in the NFC West in a captivating “Thursday Night Football” matchup in Seattle that will be a letdown if it doesn’t have the most dramatic finish imaginable.
This is the rematch of an Oct. 25 game in Arizona won in overtime by the Cardinals, 37-34. The Cardinals trailed by 13 points in the first half and by 10 points late in the fourth quarter. They forced overtime with a field goal as time expired in regulation but missed a field goal in overtime when Coach Kliff Kingsbury opted to kick on second down. No matter. The Cardinals got the ball back with an interception of Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and prevailed, at last, on kicker Zane Gonzalez’s 48-yard field goal with only 15 seconds remaining in the 10-minute overtime.
That game featured the memorable chase-down by Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf of Cardinals safety Budda Baker on an interception return. It also included Seattle wide receiver Tyler Lockett amassing 200 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 15 catches. Wilson threw for 388 yards and the three touchdowns to Lockett but also was intercepted three times, while Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray threw for 360 yards and three touchdowns with only one interception.
And that wasn’t even the most dramatic Cardinals’ victory over the past month. That came, of course, when Murray threw a 43-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who made a leaping catch amid three defenders, with two seconds left to beat the Buffalo Bills, 32-30, Sunday in Arizona.
Now it’s Murray, not Wilson, being mentioned prominently in the league MVP discussion. The Cardinals lead the league in total offense and are legitimate contenders in only the second NFL season for Murray and Kingsbury. They’re trying to get the team to the playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season. The Cardinals, Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams have matching 6-3 records atop the rugged NFC West. Thursday night’s winner moves at least temporarily into sole possession of first place, with the Rams set to play Monday night at Tampa.
The Seahawks have lost two straight and three of their last four games. Wilson has thrown seven interceptions during the 1-3 skid. The Seahawks are ranked last in the NFL in total defense. They also have injury issues. Cornerbacks Quinton Dunbar and Shaquill Griffin are out, while Lockett and running back Chris Carson are listed as questionable for this game on the injury report.
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