Seattle will host Chicago in Week 8 on Monday Night Football, with newly acquired guard Quenton Nelson set to make his Seahawks debut.
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The Seattle Seahawks, who enter Week 8 with a 4-3 record, are set to host the Chicago Bears (5-2) on Monday Night Football, with newly acquired interior offensive lineman Quenton Nelson expected to make his Seahawks debut.
Nelson, an eight-time Pro Bowl guard previously with the Indianapolis Colts, comes to Seattle as one of the league’s top interior players and is expected to help make the Seahawks offense more efficient, including supporting a running game that has struggled.
A key storyline for Nelson’s first game is the adjustment required after spending his first eight and a half seasons with Indianapolis, where the team shifted from playoff contention to a rebuilding direction.
The evidence also points to a system and personnel change that could affect Nelson’s early production. The Seahawks’ running-game support on Monday is described as potentially depending on whether Zach Charbonnet is fully back from an ACL injury, whether rookie Jadarian Price returns from a chest injury, or whether Emaunuel Wilson is in for his fifth straight start.
Pass protection is another early test for Nelson with Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold, whose passing is described as more focused on longer-yardage routes than the Colts’ Daniel Jones. The Seahawks are averaging 6.6 net yards per pass attempt, compared with the Colts’ 4.9, which is listed as second-last in the league.
Seattle’s opponent adds a matchup wrinkle for Nelson. Chicago has added defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, a four-time Pro Bowl player previously with the Tennessee Titans, creating a reunion of sorts between two interior linemen who have faced each other as divisional rivals.
According to Brian Nemhauser, Nelson and Simmons have met in 19 one-on-one matchups in four games where both were healthy, with Simmons winning four reps that included two key pressures and Nelson winning four reps, though two of those were assisted by other offensive linemen.
The Seahawks will face a Bears defense that had 613 rushing yards through seven games, described as the eighth-fewest in the league, and the same source indicates that Chicago’s Simmons trade could change how difficult that front becomes for Seattle’s offense.
Against that backdrop, the evidence frames Nelson’s first game as a challenge that could involve culture shock, learning a new scheme, and facing a familiar but newly impactful opponent in Simmons.
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