The Seattle Seahawks roll into the Mercedes-Benz Stadium at 9-3, aiming for an NFC playoff seeding and looking every bit like a contender with their explosive offense and a top-tier defense. Meanwhile, the 4-8 Falcons are hanging onto the playoff hopes by a thread, turning to Kirk Cousins after Michael Penix Jr.‘s injury. And with Seattle’s latest injury report, Atlanta’s challenges just keep piling up.

Seattle will enter week 14 with one of their cleanest rosters of the entire season. The Seahawks finally get their full starting defense back on the field with Julian Love and Jarran Reed set to return from IR. And if that wasn’t enough, the Falcons are also set for another punch in the gut.

Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold is good to go for the week 14 matchup. Despite an ankle injury last week against Minnesota, he powered through every snap, practiced fully, and didn’t even appear on the final injury report.

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Apart from Julian Love and Jarran Reed, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Anthony Bradford, and AJ Barner are also cleared after logging full practices.

But, despite a loaded roster, there are many reasons why MikeMacdonald‘s Seahawks shouldn’t take Atlanta lightly, who will be playing without wide receiver Drake London, who suffered a PCL sprain in week 11.

Falcons can pose a challenge to the surging Seahawks

Seattle has a 6-1 record since week 6, but this isn’t a “walk on and walk out” kind of game. The Seahawks can’t take the Falcons lightly in week 14, not with the way Atlanta’s defense has been heating up.

The Falcons have one of the highest blitzes in the entire NFL (36.7%), and that’s exactly the kind of pressure that’s given Sam Darnold trouble with sacks and turnovers lately, as he quoted the Falcons as “smart” blitzers.

During a media interaction, the Seahawks’ QB also highlighted, “Understanding when to be hot (throwing to called outlet receivers quickly) and get the ball out.”

The defense under Raheem Morris ranks in the top 8 of the league in terms of passing defense this season by allowing just 187.8 passing yards and 18 passing touchdowns. And with Darnold getting sacked four times last week, that’s a match-up worth watching. Apart from all these outings, the Falcons aren’t sleeping on the offense either.

Bijan Robinson is quietly putting together a monster season with 995 rushing yards and 5.1 yards per carry, and Atlanta averages 23 points per game at home. Cousins can still be dangerous if the O-line keeps him clean. He can hit impressive plays off play-action with weapons like Darnell Mooney or Kyle Pitts if Seattle’s newly healthy secondary takes even a second to shake off rust.