Seahawks Studs and Duds from 26-0 shutout of Vikings

The Seattle Seahawks beat the Minnesota Vikings 26-0 in Week 13. The defense stepped up big once again to give the franchise their first shutout in a decade. Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores disguised his coverages and blitzed heavily, putting the offense under pressure and preventing them from scoring a touchdown until the fourth quarter.

Honorable mentions for Studs go first to Zach Charbonnet, who fought for extra yards on every rush despite defenders in his face all day. He scored the lone offensive touchdown in the game. Second, Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II, and Drake Thomas continue to form the most physical up-the-middle presence Seattle has seen since the Legion of Boom. All three created sacks and collected tackles for loss for themselves.

It’s hard to call Jaxon Smith-Njigba a dud, but he had his first quiet game on the stat sheet all year. He only received four targets and caught two passes for 23 yards. No receiver had more than Cooper Kupp’s 35 yards, so the whole passing attack was quieted- but the offensive line didn’t give the plays much time to develop, either.

Here are your Studs and Duds for Week 13.

STUDS

Ernest Jones IV

Jones returned from injury to lead the defense’s dominance today. He was the heart and soul in the middle of the field, grabbing two interceptions and returning the first 85 yards for the first score of the game. It was the first pick six of his career. He racked up 12 tackles and defended two passes as well. If he stays hot, he can challenge for an All-Pro selection at linebacker at the end of the season.

DeMarcus Lawrence

Lawrence took over the game once again for Seattle. His relentless effort to cause a fumble on Minnesota’s first drive of the second half set the tone for the team to close out the game. On 3rd and long, he recovered from being pushed down in the backfield to race down the sideline and strip running back Aaron Jones Sr. in Seattle’s own territory. This helped preserve the shutout and gave Seattle the ball back on their 37 yard line. The offense, which had sputtered to this point, drove 42 yards to give Jason Myers his 4th field goal attempt of the afternoon, which he converted to put the Seahawks up three scores. He’s been a consistent difference maker in big moments and did so again today. He also added a tackle for loss and a sack.

Jason Myers

The longest-tenured Seahawk on the roster, Myers went a perfect 4-for-4 on field goals in Week 13. He converted field goal tries from 33, 56, 54 and 40 yards, instilling confidence in his range that the team desperately needed today. Despite an excellent 19-for-21 record inside 50 yards coming into today, he was only 5-for-8 from 50+ on the year before this. Building confidence for himself and the team down the stretch is the reason he’s stuck around as long as other elite kickers. He also converted both extra point tries, remaining perfect on 38 attempts this season. Myers, like any kicker, can struggle with range at times, and rarely is appreciated when he does well. Today, though, he put the offense on his back when Minnesota put their gameplan in jeopardy.

DUDS

Anthony Bradford

Bradford has avoided the Duds list despite plenty of poor performances, but today was the straw that broke the camel’s back. As the Vikings blitzed consistently, he was overwhelmed by their deep pass rushing personnel to the point the other four linemen’s protection was challenged, too. It’s never all his fault, but with Olu Oluwatimi struggling in one-on-one pass protection, the Seahawks especially needed Bradford to buy quarterback Sam Darnold time against his former team. This also meant Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas had their hands full, and it contributed to Darnold completing just 54% of his passes- his lowest rate of the season yet. His run blocking also suffers, and despite his mauling potential once he gets in position, he’s had a rough year getting to that point at all. He did come out of the game with an injury that gave way to Christian Haynes, who finished plays better than we’ve seen from the right guard spot all year. Bradford’s health is important for the team’s depth, and Haynes has had his own struggles- but a change should be seriously considered for the starting job in Week 14 and beyond.

Klint Kubiak

After a scorching hot first nine weeks, Kubiak’s bag of tricks seems to be running low in the last three- and today, Brian Flores had him right where he wanted him. The run and pass game have struggled since the dominant Washington and Arizona performances, and one has to wonder what his answer is for good defensive lines. The Rams and Titans made life hard for his horizontal scheme, but JSN still bailed the offense out with big plays. Today, JSN was a non-factor on the stat sheet for the first time, and the offense looked plenty beatable. Their runs aren’t setting up the passes the way they were earlier in the season, and the big plays won’t come every week. The horizontal approach I and many others raved about in the season, which relied on hitting the middle of the field, didn't show up today. Darnold couldn’t complete passes, no deep shots were available, and the quick game didn't get into rhythm. The best offensive minds keep innovating, but Kubiak has struggled to do so in recent weeks. His calm demeanor is great for a well-oiled machine, but the comeback ability hasn’t been tested much, and when things go wrong, he’s not finding the answers. He’ll need new and unexpected wrinkles down the stretch, as his modern offense has already been caught up to.

Olu Oluwatimi

Oluwatimi was the next man up after Jalen Sundell went on injured reserve, and has had three tough tests against good defensive lines in the Rams, Titans and Vikings. However, he and Bradford have become the focal point for opposing defensive coordinators looking to exploit weaknesses on the offense. The once efficient passing attack has been kneecapped, and Sam Darnold’s ability to read the middle of the field can’t be utilized despite high blitz rates and open grass. Oluwatimi’s inability to anchor down in one-on-one pass protection creates problems for the rest of the offensive line. Opposing linebackers are getting to Darnold, and the sacks are beginning to pile up on the edges as well. While the team can’t make an obvious change til Sundell gets back, they desperately need Oluwatimi to communicate opposing fronts and pressures so they don’t get overwhelmed so quickly. They don’t have an ideal pass protecting back, and using tight ends in pass blocking makes finding route concepts even more difficult. Oluwatimi needs to work with the fullbacks and running backs in pass protection to stop a pressure-happy Falcons front from taking advantage of the growing holes as the team goes on the road next.

This article originally appeared on Seahawks Wire: Seahawks vs Vikings: Seattle Studs and Duds from NFL Week 13 win