NFL Network analyst’s game-by-game prediction predicts sub-.500 season for the Seahawks

It’s the deadest, least interesting part of the NFL offseason, which makes it the perfect time to do stuff like a game-by-game prediction of the entire regular season. This is what NFL Network’s Adam Rank did a few days ago, and I will get straight to the point and reveal his breakdown of the Seattle Seahawks’ 2023 schedule.

Week 1: W vs. Los Angeles Rams

Week 2: L at Detroit Lions

Week 3: L vs. Carolina Panthers

Week 4: W at New York Giants

Week 6: L at Cincinnati Bengals

Week 7: W vs. Arizona Cardinals

Week 8: W vs. Cleveland Browns

Week 9: L at Baltimore Ravens

Week 10: L vs. Washington Commanders

Week 11: L at Los Angeles Rams

Week 12: W vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week 13: W at Dallas Cowboys

Week 14: L at San Francisco 49ers

Week 15: L vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Week 16: W at Tennessee Titans

Week 17: L vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 18: W at Arizona Cardinals

Total record: 8-9

Seattle’s over/under win total is set at 8.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook, so there is nothing absolutely outrageous about being boring and picking the Seahawks to finish roughly at their preseason projection.

We all do this knowing full well what a pointless exercise this truly is. It is inevitable that the Seahawks (and every other NFL team) will at some point benefit from or be victims of critical injuries to key players that directly impact game outcomes. Even at full strength, shit happens and some teams are worse than expected and others exceed expectations (kinda like last year’s Seahawks). Sometimes you get results like Seattle going 0-4 against a wretched NFC South but also pulling off comfortable wins over the playoff-bound Los Angeles Chargers and New York Giants.

On paper, Seattle’s schedule looks daunting, particularly that four-week stretch where they play the 49ers twice, the Eagles, and the Cowboys. For all we know, the Eagles remain a formidable foe but the 49ers and Cowboys drop off significantly.

While I imagine most of us (self-included) believe the Seahawks are poised to improve upon their 9-8 season, I absolutely don’t rule out Seattle being unable to overcome a potentially more challenging schedule.

A glance at the other predictions suggests that the only wins the Seahawks will have against above .500 teams are the New York Giants and the Thanksgiving showdown with the 49ers, and the Commanders will be by far the worst loss on the schedule. If you want to watch Rank’s breakdown, check out the video here since the NFL won’t allow embeds of their videos anywhere outside YouTube.