- WHERE: State Farm Stadium (Glendale, Ariz.)
- WHEN: 8:15 p.m. ET
- WAYS TO WATCH: Prime Video, NFL+
The Cardinals and Seahawks will meet in a key early-season divisional matchup on Thursday at State Farm Stadium. Each team enters Week 4 in at 2-1, even if they appear to be approaching via different vectors.
After dropping a close one in Week 1, the Seahawks impressively beat the Steelers and Saints by multiple scores, thanks to an improving offense and terrific special teams. Arizona, meanwhile, was fortunate to win its first two games and couldn’t protect a late lead this past Sunday at San Francisco.
Seattle is going for its eighth straight win over the Cardinals. The Seahawks have beaten the Cardinals four straight times in Glendale, Ariz., with Arizona last beating them at home in 2020.
The loser will fall to 0-2 in the NFC West. According to NFL Research, only 18 out of the 187 teams that started 0-2 in division games made the playoffs (9.6%) since division realignment in 2002.
Three must-know storylines
1) Darnold coming on, but Seahawks' run game remains limited
It might be too soon to say the Seahawks have a top-10 offense, but that unit is trending in the right direction. Sam Darnold has been mostly good through three games in Seattle, completing 70.3% of his passes (sixth-best in the NFL), averaging a career-best 9.0 yards per attempt and taking only three sacks. Jaxon Smith-Njigba has assumed the lead receiving role, Cooper Kupp has been solid and rookie WR Tory Horton is making a case for more chances, with three TDs in three games. Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet have combined for 15 first downs and four TDs, even if the run game hasn't been phenomenal yet. Darnold hasn't scrambled much, and the Seahawks have yet to weaponize rookie QB Jalen Milroe as a runner, so perhaps we might see some of that on Thursday. The Cardinals have mostly done a good job defending opponents' ground games, and they've allowed only one first-half TD total this season, but defending the pass is a growing concern. They're neither supplying enough pressure nor making enough plays against the pass.
2) Cardinals offense stuck in neutral, must find answers post-Conner
As if Sunday's late loss to the Niners wasn't painful enough, the news that James Conner would be done for the season due to a foot injuyr might have hurt more. Trey Benson will hop into the lead role now, averaging 5.0 yards per rush in his career, but Benson has never had more than 13 touches in an NFL game. He's going to need help, and run blocking must be better. Left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. and his backup, Kelvin Beachum, are both injury questions for Thursday. But it's not just the run game that needs fixing. Kyler Murray hasn't been bad, but the passing-game limitations have been glaring. There were three critical dropped passes in the second half vs. the 49ers. Trey McBride has been good but is below his 2024 production rate. Surprisingly, so is Marvin Harrison Jr., who was guilty of a bad drop on Sunday and hasn't had more than six targets in a game this season. No other receiver or tight end has more than four receptions in 2025, and the Cardinals have only two TD passes in their past 10 quarters. Jonathan Gannon has defended play caller Drew Petzing, but the Cardinals have to show more offensively going forward.
3) Seahawks defense becoming a top-tier unit
You might be surprised to realize that Seattle is allowing the second-fewest points per game (15.7) through three weeks, allowing 18 or fewer in all three games. The biggest issue has been in the secondary, having played the past two games without Pro Bowl cornerback Devon Witherspoon (knee) and rookie defensive back Nick Emmanwori (ankle). Julian Love (hamstring) also was hurt in Week 3, although Derion Kendrick, who replaced Witherspoon on Sunday, had two interceptions. It's not clear who among those three will be available on Thursday at Arizona, but the Seahawks have made do without each of them. The run defense ranks third at 3.2 yards per attempt. The Seahawks are also generating the fourth-best QB pressure rate at 44.3 percent, despite blitzing at the second-lowest rate in the NFL (17.2 percent). One big reason has been the play of Byron Murphy II, who leads all NFL defensive tackles with 13 pressures. He's not been double-teamed as often this season and is wreaking more havoc inside.
Seahawks' Week 4 injury report
| Player | Mon. practice | Tues. practice | Wed. practice | Game status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elijah Arroyo, TE (groin) | LP | LP | ||
| Zach Charbonnet, RB (foot) | FP | FP | ||
| Nick Emmanwori, S (ankle) | LP | LP | ||
| Ernest Jones, LB (shoulder) | FP | FP | ||
| Josh Jones, G/T (ankle) | DNP | DNP | ||
| Julian Love, S (hamstring) | LP | LP | ||
| Boye Mafe, LB (toe) | LP | LP | ||
| Robbie Ouzts, FB (ankle) | DNP | DNP | ||
| Jalen Sundell, C (ankle/elbow) | LP | LP | ||
| Leonard Williams, DE (elbow/shoulder) | LP | LP | ||
| Devon Witherspoon, CB (knee) | LP | LP |
Cardinals' Week 4 injury report
| Player | Mon. practice | Tues. practice | Wed. practice | Game status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kelvin Beachum, OT (knee/rest) | DNP | DNP | ||
| Evan Brown, G (ankle) | LP | LP | ||
| James Conner, RB (foot) | DNP | IR | ||
| Akeem Davis-Gaither, LB (elbow) | LP | LP | ||
| Darren Hall, CB (ankle) | LP | LP | ||
| Will Hernandez, G (knee) | LP | LP | ||
| Paris Johnson, OT (knee) | LP | LP | ||
| Will Johnson, CB (groin) | DNP | DNP | ||
| Zay Jones, WR (concussion) | DNP | DNP |
