Here are the top takeaways and highest-graded players from the Seahawks’ 38-7 win over the Vikings.
Minnesota Vikings
– It was a rough day for pretty much every Vikings’ player, as none of them finished with a grade greater than +1.0. In fact, on offense, there was not a single player who got a positive grade. Many people wondered if QB Teddy Bridgewater (-2.0) would be good enough to lead his team to victory if a team was able to stop HB Adrian Peterson (-0.4). Well the Seahawks stopped Peterson, and unfortunately, Bridgewater was unable to get much going. Continuing a season-long trend, Bridgewater rarely attempted a deep pass, and when he did, he was mostly inaccurate. On passes over 10 yards in the air, Bridgewater was just 2 of 7 for 35 yards and an interception.
– There were two lone bright spots on the Vikings defense, although even these were not that bright. DE Brian Robison (+0.9) finished with a +1.6 pass rush grade, thanks to two sacks and three hurries, as well as a couple of other good pass rush plays. DT Sharrif Floyd (+0.2) also had one of only a few positive grades, finishing with a +1.9 in his run defense grade. He made three solo stops and had some good disruptive plays all game. However, he failed to record a single pressure in 24 pass rush attempts.
– The offensive line had a tough game, as all five starters finished with a negative pass block grade. G Brandon Fusco (-1.7) struggled the most in that regard, allowing a sack, a hit and two hurries en route to a team-low -2.6 pass block grade. T Matt Kalil (-2.5) finished with the lowest overall grade among them, as he allowed two hits and two hurries and was also beaten frequently in the run game. As a unit, the Vikings allowed three sacks, five hits and nine hurries. While nobody else on the offense was able to do anything really positive, the line deserves a lot of blame for poor play yesterday.
Top performers:
DE Brian Robison (+0.9)
LB Anthony Barr (+0.5)
CB Captain Munnerlyn (+0.3)
SS Harrison Smith (+0.2)
DT Sharrif Floyd (+0.2)
Seattle Seahawks
– Offensively, this game was all about Seahawks’ QB Russell Wilson (+7.2). He was incredibly effective throwing the ball, especially when it came to deep throws. He attempted just five passes more than 10 yards in the air, but he completed three of them for 102 yards and two touchdowns, and one of the incompletions was a great throw that was dropped. He also finished with a +2.6 rushing grade, thanks to 51 yards on nine attempts and a touchdown. He forced two missed tackles, and also had a 53-yard touchdown run called that was called back. Overall it was his highest graded game of the year, and if he continues this kind of play, the Seahawks could be very hard to beat.
– What a day it was for the pair of DE Michael Bennett (+7.8) and DE Frank Clark (+5.0). Bennett had an off week last week, and responded with a huge game yesterday, finishing as the game’s highest graded player. He had three big run stops and was seemingly involved in every rushing attempt the Vikings ran. He also finished with a sack, a hit and four hurries when rushing the passer. Clark had a monster pass rushing game, as his entire +5.0 grade was from his pass rush. He finished with two sacks, two hits, two hurries and two batted passes. It was the rookie’s best game in what has been an up-and-down season.
– The Seahawks’ offense definitely made an effort to get the ball into rookie WR Tyler Lockett’s (+3.1) hands more often, and he did not disappoint. Lockett saw seven targets, the most he’s seen in a game all season, and he caught all seven for 90 yards and his highest grade of the season. But it was the different ways he did it that made it more impressive. He forced missed tackles on screen passes, he beat his coverage off the line and made plays downfield. He also returned the only kickoff he saw for 47 yards. After a slow start to the season, Lockett has now been targeted 15 times in three games, and caught 14 of them for 176 yards, two touchdowns and five missed tackles forced. That’s a good sign for an offense that has shown the need for a playmaker at times during the season.
Top performers:
DE Michael Bennett (+7.8)
QB Russell Wilson (+7.2)
DE Frank Clark (+5.0)
LB Bruce Irvin (+4.2)
WR Tyler Lockett (+3.1)
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