Seahawks’ defense looking Super once again

Michael Bennett could not resist sticking the boot into the Eagles. “Tell the Philadelphia police to put an APB out,” said the Seahawks defensive end in the wake of his team’s 24-14 win at the Linc. “[Mark] Sanchez is trying to impersonate a good quarterback.”

It was a well-delivered line, if also slightly unfair. Sanchez had struggled on Sunday – completing 10 of 20 passes for 96 yards, and offsetting his two touchdowns with a costly fourth-quarter interception – but he was hardly the only one. Despite sustained efforts to establish the running game, LeSean McCoy mustered just 50 yards on 17 carries. When Sanchez did drop back to throw, his receivers struggled to create separation from defenders. The Eagles’ offensive line was repeatedly overwhelmed.

The consequence was a game that felt far more lopsided than the scoreline would suggest. Philadelphia finished up with just 139 yards of total offense – their fewest, by some distance, since Chip Kelly took over as head coach last year. Whilst they could certainly have done some things better, this ultimately was more a reflection of the Seahawks’ defensive brilliance than it was of Philadelphia’s (and Sanchez’s) shortcomings.

Seattle boast the stingiest defense in the NFL this season, giving up an average of 274.5 yards per game, but even that figure fails to reflect how good they have been lately. They were actually rather sloppy at the start of the year, but have quietly turned things around since losing to St Louis in October. Monday’s Seattle Times noted that they have allowed just 234.5 yards per game over the last eight weeks.

Identifying this turnaround is one thing, explaining it quite another. The returns of linebacker Bobby Wagner and safety Kam Chancellor have had a clear impact, but performances were already improving before they came back into the line-up. Percy Harvin was traded away just before that Rams game, but he plays on the other side of the ball.

Perhaps there is some truth to the notion that the receiver had become a divisive presence in the locker room. Without mentioning Harvin specifically, head coach Pete Carroll attributed his team’s improvement on Monday to a renewed sense of camaraderie among players.

But a more simple explanation might be that his team is just a little bit more focused than it was at the start of this season. Maintaining the intensity that carried them to victory at Super Bowl XLVIII for a full 12 months would have been extraordinary. But with most of the key players still in place from that run, this group knows what it takes to succeed at the business end of the campaign.

Chancellor sought to play down comparisons to last season’s run, insisting on Sunday that “this is a whole different team right here”. But for Seattle’s rivals across the league, the similarities are starting to look ominous. PB

Panthers roar in the NFC South

With a 2-11 record, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have finally been ruled out of the NFC South’s title race. But the division’s remaining three teams remain very much alive. Atlanta and New Orleans continue to lead the way with five wins apiece, but it was Carolina who renewed their hopes on Sunday by beating the Saints 41-10, a thrashing that came from nowhere.

It was a victory that left even the most experienced reporters feeling utterly bewildered. “In 20 years of covering Carolina, I can’t remember a more inexplicable, astounding rout,” wrote Scott Fowler in the Charlotte Observer. “The Panthers (4-8-1) hadn’t won a game since 5 October and were facing a team that blew them out in Charlotte the day before Halloween.”

The Saints have been bad for most of this season, but there had been no evidence to date that the Panthers were capable of such an offensive explosion. With quarterback Cam Newton hobbled by an ankle problem and rookie wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin dropping more balls than he should, Carolina had averaged just 19 points per game.

The return of Jonathan Stewart at running back certainly helped on Sunday, as he rushed for 155 yards on 20 carries. This season might well have looked different for the Panthers were it not for the seemingly endless series of injuries to their offensive backfield. But that alone cannot explain the travails of a team who have lost six games by 18 points or more – including that previous match-up with New Orleans.

Perhaps this game was just what it looked like: a freak occurrence facilitated by an extraordinarily poor start from the Saints, who turned the ball over twice on their first three offensive plays. Or maybe this was the herald of a late-season rally for Carolina. With Tampa Bay, Cleveland and Atlanta to play in their final three games, a division title sounds a lot less implausible than the win they pulled off this weekend. PB

Jim Harbaugh suffers in Oakland

Oakland v San Francisco is dubbed the Battle of the Bay, but to suggest a battle took place on Sunday would be far from the truth. The Raiders bounced back from a 53-0 shellacking at St Louis to stun the fading 49ers 24-13, seriously denting their playoff hopes and fuelling the argument – if the tank isn’t already full – that head coach Jim Harbaugh will not see out the final year of his contract next season.

It’s a fierce battle whenever the teams meet and Oakland were looking to recover from an embarrassment but the plot surrounded Harbaugh, who began his NFL coaching career as an assistant with the Raiders back in 2002. He reached the field pre-game and instantly engaged with Raiders owner Mark Davis. Question is: was it small talk or 2015 planning? Harbaugh’s name has been linked with a move back to Oakland – or at least anywhere but San Francisco – after CEO Jed York apologised to fans via Twitter for their display against Seattle recently.

So why hasn’t he committed to a future in San Fran? Perhaps Davis got the answer here as Harbaugh’s most influential coaching decision – the move to make Colin Kaepernick the starting quarterback in 2012 – slipped further into disarray. Kaepernick was sacked five times, called a chump on Instagram by Sio Moore, threw two interceptions and was outplayed by Derek Carr (254 yards on 22 completions and 3 TDs). The Niners once had an explosive and dynamic offense, but have now failed to score 20 points in six of their last seven games.

Pressed after the game if he has managed to stay calm during a rocky period, Harbaugh answered “yes”, while stating on his future that “my priorities are winning games”.

San Francisco are two games behind three teams in the NFC wild card race with three games remaining, with Seattle on the road up next. Unbelievable then that after three straight NFC Championship appearances and one Super Bowl, it looks as if Harbaugh’s time is up. One lasting question on this discussion: Would 49ers fans rather have Kaepernick or Alex Smith under center right now? MW

Want competition? Head to the AFC North

The AFC North: Welcome to the most competitive and entertaining division in football. Two big wins and two big losses shook things up again in this wild division, only half a game separating the top three.

Let’s start with the two victors. Pittsburgh and Baltimore, who won at Cincinnati and Miami respectively. The Ravens seem like the surest bet for the postseason, partly because it’s so damn hard to figure the Steelers out. Pittsburgh scored 25 points in the fourth quarter behind a sublime day from Le’Veon Bell, who rushed for 185 yards, caught six passes for 50 yards and scored three touchdowns in the second half to become the sixth player in NFL history to have 200 all-purpose yards in three straight games. Walter Payton was the last to do so in 1977.

They defeated the Bengals, religiously clinging to their tie (8-5-1) in order to remain top of the pack behind quarterback Andy “wilts under pressure” Dalton, who has navigated two straight home defeats to division foes.

Meanwhile the Ravens began slow but finished strong behind another running back at Sun Life Stadium, riding Justin Forsett late to outduel the Dolphins in a wild card showdown. Trailing by 10 points in the second quarter, Joe Flacco saw his teams playoff chances slowly fading and props to John Harbaugh who went for it on fourth down in the final quarter. That led to a first down and the score that put his team ahead for good. Baltimore gave up just 249 yards, a gargantuan effort without their suspended star Haloti Ngata.

And the saddest story? Those Cleveland Browns. Deciding to stick with Brian Hoyer after a wealth of backing from his team-mates in midweek, the Cleveland native played what might be his final start this season, failing to take advantage of his defense scoring 17 points. With just three first downs after half-time, their dream run may be over but this season has been a valiant effort from a team no one expected to be competing in the most surprising division of the year. MW

Quick outs

No official word yet, but it very much appears that the Johnny Football era is about to begin in Cleveland. The Browns came agonisingly close to beating the Colts on Sunday, jumping out to a first-quarter lead and never trailing thereafter until the final minute of the game. But Cleveland’s successes came in spite of Brian Hoyer, not because of him; the quarterback completed just 14 of 31 passes for 140 yards and two interceptions. Head coach Mike Pettine said afterwards that he had not considered a change during the game, and that he would take his time to re-evaluate the position this week. But he added that, “I think it’s natural to lean the other way, given the results.”

Just the three sacks this week for JJ Watt, who failed to score a single touchdown, safety or field goal against Jacksonville. Debates over his worthiness for the MVP award continue to rumble on in the meantime. More significant to his chances than anything he could do individually would be a victory for the Texans in Indianapolis next week. It is hard enough for a defensive player to win the award at the best of times, but even offensive guys typically need their team in the playoffs to get recognised.

Two shut-out wins in a row for the Rams, who might not be heading for the playoffs, but could feasibly finish above the 49ers, the way things are trending right now. “Our team is good,” tweeted defensive end Chris Long on Sunday night. He’s right, too.

Arizona’s playoff hopes took a huge boost with a nervy 17-14 win over Kansas City, but nothing is guaranteed for the Cardinals yet. Bruce Arians’s team are 10-3, but still have to face all three of their division rivals. And the way the NFC is shaping up, it is quite conceivable that a team with double-digit wins will not make it into the postseason.

After winning 24-13 in San Diego, the Patriots now look like clear favourites to keep hold of the AFC’s No1 seed. They would certainly have earned it, losing just once in a five-game stretch that pitted them against the Broncos, Colts, Lions, Packers and Chargers. Two of New England’s remaining three games are at home, where they have not lost since 2012, although there is still some potential for a costly slip. Their next opponents, Miami, did beat them at Sun Life Stadium in September, after all.

So, Joseph Fauria, want to talk us through that tweet a little bit more?

Troll of the week: Jeff Fisher.