Snap Reactions: All Nickel, No Base As Seahawks Stymie Chiefs

And just like that the Seattle Seahawks are back.

After consecutive losses to the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos had fans in despair at the state of the title defense for the Seahawks, a resounding 20-3 thumping of the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football has changed things.

Seattle was far from an offensive juggernaut, but with the defense showing up in midseason form, all the offense needed to do was put points on the board, and that they did.

Anthony Bradford played every offensive snap in his return from injured reserve, while Charles Cross missed a dozen snaps after leaving with a high ankle sprain that is expected to keep him out of the lineup for some time. Josh Jones stepped in for Cross, playing more snaps against Kansas City than he had through the first six weeks combined.

At running back Emanuel Wilson continued to earn the bulk of the workload in Jadarian Price’s absence, while at tight end Nick Kallerup’s 26 offensive snaps had him on the field more than fellow tight end Eric Saubert and almost as much as receiver Tory Horton.

On defense, the Seahawks spent the entire game in nickel, with Julian Love, Nick Emmanwori, Devon Witherspoon, Josh Jobe and Ty Okada all playing every snap, with Nehemiah Pritchett joining the party for 11 snaps and Trevon Diggs on the field for a half dozen plays after being relegated to the practice squad, but then elevated for the game.

For those who might have expected a beefed up defensive front from Mike Macdonald to slow down the running back with the most rushing yards second most rushing yards in the NFL, Jarran Reed and Brandon Pili combined for just 21 snaps.

And on special teams there was a slight tweak as well, with Mike Morris finishing with 17 special teams snaps, which put him ahead of Brady Russell by a single snap. Rodney Thomas, Nehemiah Pritchett, Patrick O’Connell, Irv Charles and Jimmy Ciarlo all finished the game in double digits for snaps played on special teams.

And now it’s on to another Sunday of football without stressing about the Seahawks, as Seattle will host another primetime game at Lumen Field on Monday Night Football in Week 8 when the Chicago Bears come to town.