Analysis: 2024 Seahawks Season By Game Analysis

By the most basic metric — opponents’ combined win-loss record in 2023 — the Seattle Seahawks have one of the easiest schedules in the NFL this season.

The Seahawks’ 17 opponents this year combined to go just 141-148 last season, a 48.8% win rate. Only six teams this year will face opponents with fewer wins in 2023.

There is no doubt that the attitude of an opponent before the start of the season may be completely different from the attitude of the team that will take to the pitch in November and December.

As the season begins, let’s take a look at the path the Seahawks will need to take in 2024.

September 8 vs. Denver: It would be cool to see Russell Wilson back, wouldn’t it? This matchup is intriguing enough, as is Mike Macdonald’s regular-season head coaching debut against potential future Hall of Fame coach Sean Payton — and former Oregon standout Bo Nix makes his first start at quarterback for the Broncos.

September 15 in New England: The Seahawks won’t get two rookie quarterbacks in two weeks, as the Patriots have named veteran Jacoby Brissett the starter ahead of Drake Maye — unless something happens in Cincinnati in Week 1 that makes Pats coach Jerod Mayo change his mind. Hopefully, once all the key players are gone from Super Bowl XLIX, FOX will forget this ever happened.

September 22 vs. Miami: The matchup of Macdonald’s defense against Mike McDaniel’s Tua Tagovailoa’s offense alone makes it worth the price. The coaching matchup on the other side will be entertaining, too. Miami’s new defensive coordinator is Anthony Weaver, who spent the past three years with the Ravens, the past two as an assistant head coach and defensive line coach, working alongside Macdonald.

September 30 in Detroit: Another year, another trip to the Motor City for the Seahawks. This is the third in a row. Not that the Seahawks have any bad feelings about Detroit. They won the last two years in what could be the most exciting game of each season, winning 48-45 and 37-31.

October 6 vs. New York Giants: The Seahawks will have a short week after a long road trip to prepare for the Giants, who have been one of the more difficult teams to predict this offseason. In large part because it’s hard to predict what they’ll get from quarterback Daniel Jones. Jones threw two interceptions, had a fumble and was sacked 10 times last year when the Seahawks beat the Giants 24-3 on Monday night.

October 10 vs. San Francisco: The hope is that the Seahawks are at least 3-2 at this point, but maybe even 4-1, which seems realistic. This is where the schedule starts to change with a game against the 49ers on Thursday night and the start of a tough series. The fact that the 49ers have won their last five games against the Seahawks, all by eight points or more, could be an equally important reason why Macdonald will be on the bench for this game instead of Pete Carroll.

October 20 in Atlanta: The game will be a homecoming for Macdonald, who went to high school in nearby Roswell and college in Georgia. Another interesting storyline is a showdown with Falcons coach Raheem Morris, who backed out of a scheduled interview with the Seahawks to instead accept an offer from Atlanta. Morris knows the Seahawks well, having been the Rams’ defensive coordinator for the past three years (L.A.’s sweep of the Seahawks last year is a big reason for the late-year coaching change).

October 27 vs. Buffalo: By the time that game arrives, we may know if the Bills’ Super Bowl window is starting to close. This game ends a four-of-five road streak for Buffalo, so perhaps the Seahawks can take advantage of what could be a team tired of road games.

November 3, vs. Los Angeles Rams: While Macdonald and the Ravens defense had their way with most opposing offenses, one that wasn’t was the Rams and Sean McVay, who put up 410 yards and 31 points — scoring touchdowns on three plays of 75 yards or more — before the Ravens won on a punt return in overtime. It’ll be interesting to see what each of them has up their sleeve this time around.

November 10: Bye. Hard to complain about a pause in the middle of the schedule.

November 17 in San Francisco: A streak of four of five games against teams with 10 or more wins in 2023 ends with a trip to the Bay Area. The 49ers gained 429 yards on Macdonald’s Ravens defense on Christmas night a year ago in Santa Clara, but Baltimore forced five turnovers en route to a 33-19 victory.

November 24 vs. Arizona: On paper, this game looks like one of the more certain ones on the schedule after the Cardinals went 4-13 in 2023. Arizona was 3-5 when Kyler Murray started at quarterback, including wins at Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. A full season of a healthy Murray — and the addition of quarterback Marvin Harrison Jr. — could mean a much-improved team in the desert.

December 1 at New York Jets: The big question is whether Aaron Rodgers — who turns 41 the day after this game — will be healthy? If so, this could be as entertaining a game as any on the Seahawks’ schedule. Rodgers has faced the Seahawks more often than any other NFL team outside the NFC North in his career, going 7-3 against the Seahawks in the regular season.

December 8 in Arizona: The Seahawks and Arizona will soon face off in a rematch that will be Macdonald’s coaching debut in the stadium where so much of the Seahawks’ history has been played. Given that history, something memorable — one way or another — is bound to happen.

December 15 vs. Green Bay: The scheduling formula spared the Seahawks a mid-December trip to Green Bay. It will be Jordan Love — who is tied with Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence as the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history at $55 million per year — making his first appearance at Lumen Field.

December 22 vs. Minnesota: Let’s talk about another tough team to figure out. Sam Darnold will be running the show after rookie JJ McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury in August. Darnold, the third overall pick in the 2018 draft, is 21-35 in his career as a starter, 1-1 against the Seahawks — the win would come against Carolina late in the 2022 season.

December 26 in Chicago: Who planned this? The Seahawks will have to travel over Christmas to play in Chicago on Thursday night. It should be fun to watch from the couch, as the Seahawks will get their first look at Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze as pros.

January 4/5: at LA Rams: It could be a Saturday or Sunday game to close out a four-of-six road streak for the Seahawks to end the regular season. They just hope their return to the Rams and McVay is something on the line.