The Seahawks (3-3) host the Chiefs (5-0) at Lumen Field on Sunday night as Seattle seeks improvements after back-to-back losses.
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The Seahawks (3-3) will host the Kansas City Chiefs (5-0) at Lumen Field on Sunday night, aiming to get back on track after losing consecutive games for the first time since late in the 2024 season. The Chiefs enter as one of the NFL’s three remaining unbeaten teams following a mini bye for Seattle after a Thursday night game and a full bye for Kansas City.
Head coach Mike Macdonald said the Seahawks had “some honest conversation” while assessing where the team stands through six games and how it can improve. “I am proud of the couple days of work that we put in,” Macdonald said earlier in the week. “I think we had some honest conversations and an honest process. We're definitely more aligned as a team than we were a few days ago, and I'm excited about where we could go.”
With a strong Chiefs team coming to Seattle, the game’s key matchups and storylines include whether Seattle’s defence can limit Kenneth Walker III and an explosive Kansas City attack, and whether offensive reinforcements and turnover reduction help the Seahawks’ attack get steadier.
Walker’s return to Seattle headlines a running back-versus-run defence storyline after his fast start with Kansas City. Walker leads the NFL in rushing yards with 665 and has a 6.3 yards-per-carry average, both among the league’s best marks, and he will face the Seahawks after playing earlier for Seattle. “He's playing at an extremely high level,” defensive coordinator Aden Durde said. “You're playing him, it's different to see, but you're also like, 'Good for him.' It's another challenge, but it's week in, week out. It's about us.”
The Seahawks have a recent track record of keeping opponents’ rushing in check. Last year, opponents averaged just 3.7 yards per carry against Seattle, the lowest mark in the NFL, and the Seahawks allowed only five rushing plays of 20-plus yards all season, the fewest in the league. Through this season, the opponent yards-per-carry average against Seattle has dropped to 3.5, ranking fourth, and Seattle has allowed only two runs of 20-plus yards.
Seattle’s run defence is also backed by a franchise streak heading into Sunday: the Seahawks have not allowed an individual 100-yard rusher in their last 35 games (including playoffs). Buffalo’s James Cook rushed for 111 yards against Seattle in Week 8 of the 2024 season, and since then no other opponent has topped that total, with Seattle’s opponents failing to rush for 100 yards as a team in 20 of those 35 games.
But Kansas City’s challenge extends beyond Walker. Head coach Andy Reid’s offence features quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce, and Seattle expects efficient, explosive production. Macdonald pointed to Kansas City’s offensive coach Eric Bieniemy, saying, “I have a lot of respect for (Offensive coordinator Eric) Bieniemy… He's a great football coach. Andy Reid's probably the best there is football coach.”
The Chiefs’ passing game has been a key part of that production. Kansas City has an 8.3 yards-per-pass-attempt average, tied for third best in the league, and has six completions of 40-plus yards, tied for second most. Seattle’s pass defence, meanwhile, has allowed just eight completions of 20-plus yards, the fewest in the league, and has allowed one completion of 40-plus yards, tied for the fewest.
Explosive-play trends also set up a matchup in how each defence limits big plays. Using NFL Next Gen Stats’ definition of explosive plays as runs of 10-plus yards and passes of 15-plus, Seattle has allowed explosives on 7.2 per cent of plays this season, the lowest rate in the NFL, and the third-lowest by any defence through six games since 2016. On drop backs, Seattle has allowed explosives on 7.5 per cent, with no other defence below 10 per cent, while Kansas City’s explosive play rate is 17.8 per cent and 19.8 per cent on drop backs, both second highest in the league.
On the offensive side for Seattle, the potential return of running backs and run-game reinforcements is another focus. The Seahawks have faced injuries and inconsistency in the rushing attack, and while Seattle has more rushing yards through six games than it did last year with Walker and a healthy Zach Charbonnet, Sunday’s game could offer more stability if Charbonnet is able to play.
Charbonnet tore his ACL in the playoffs last January, and he was a full participant in practice this week before being activated off the physically unable to perform list on Thursday. “The great thing about Zach is everybody in the building has a comfort level with him,” offensive coordinator Brian Fleury said. “There's a level of reassurance when he's out there.” Fleury also said that when Charbonnet runs, the line expects him to hit the hole correctly and generate extra yardage through contact.
Seattle is also expected to get back starting right guard Anthony Bradford, who returned from injured reserve this week. That move gives the Seahawks one of their post-physical run blockers as they look to control the game on the ground.
Another concern for Seattle involves turnovers and ball security. The Seahawks’ winning equation over the past year has been staying out of their own way, and since starting 3-2 last year the team has won 17 of its last 21 games. In the four losses within that span, all decided by three points or fewer, Seattle turned the ball over 14 times, including 10 in its three losses this season.
Thursday’s loss included two interceptions thrown by Sam Darnold, including one in overtime that led to the game-winning field goal. Linebacker Ernest Jones IV said the team expects the quarterback to respond. “We've seen him fix it before,” Jones said. “We've seen him go through this in certain ways or not play as well as he would like. So we've seen him battle back from this.”
Protection up front is also expected to be a major factor for Darnold as the season has shifted in recent games. In his first season in Seattle, Darnold was sacked 27 times and never more than four times in a game, with Seattle allowing one or zero sacks in nine games. This year has included more pressure: Darnold was injured on a sack on the first offensive possession of the season and missed the rest of that game and the following one, then after returning against Washington he was sacked three times by the Chargers, five times by the 49ers, and five times by the Broncos, with Denver recording 17 quarterback hits.
For Seattle’s receiving corps, the game also features a high-stakes matchup against Kansas City’s secondary with Jaxon Smith-Njigba. After a standout 2025 season, he has continued to surge in 2026, leading the NFL in receptions (49), receiving yards (717) and touchdowns (7) through six games and eclipsing 100 yards in five of six outings.
Keeping that pace against Kansas City’s defence, led by veteran defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, will be difficult. Spagnuolo’s unit has limited big plays, and Kansas City opponents have a 74.1 passer rating and a 6.1 yards-per-attempt average, both fourth-lowest in the league. The Chiefs have also allowed four passing touchdowns, the second fewest in the league, and 12 completions of 20-plus yards, tied for the fifth fewest.
Macdonald praised Spagnuolo’s approach and identity. “He's a heck of a football coach,” Macdonald said of Spagnuolo, who was Baltimore’s secondary coach when Macdonald began his NFL career there as a coaching intern in 2014. “They're very aggressive. He does a great job game planning. His team plays on one accord. They have an identity and style of play that you respect.”
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