Seahawks’ only path to playoffs is to win NFC West, with help from Rams

SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Seahawks may face insurmountable obstacles on their narrow path to the playoffs.

Their only hope of reaching the postseason is to win the NFC West, and they’re a game behind the Los Angeles Rams after Sunday’s 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. That means the Seahawks (8-7) have to win their final two games and the Rams must lose to slumping Arizona on Saturday for Seattle to sneak into the postseason.

Seattle was competitive against Minnesota, which shares the best record in the NFC with Detroit. Geno Smith’s 4-yard touchdown pass to AJ Barner gave the Seahawks the lead in the fourth quarter, but the Vikings took advantage of a facemask penalty against Byron Murphy II on their next possession, and Sam Darnold found Justin Jefferson for a go-ahead 39-yard touchdown.

A late interception by Smith sealed the loss and put the Seahawks in a tough spot heading into the final two weeks of the season.

“We just got to handle our part, which is win out,” linebacker Ernest Jones IV said. “Then, let the chips fall where they fall. Hopefully, we catch a little luck and we can get in there. But it’s tough in there.”

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What’s working

Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued to shine, finishing with eight receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown on Sunday. He has 1,089 yards this season, becoming the 10th player in franchise history to reach 1,000 yards receiving and the first since DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett both did so in 2020. Smith-Njigba has led the Seahawks in receiving yards in each of the past eight games.

“He’s a great player,” Smith said. “Been having a tremendous season. Those things are to be expected of him. I think he’s only going to continue to get better. He’s a fighter. Got a lot of heart. That’s something that goes a long way.”

What needs help

The running game was a non-factor yet again. The Seahawks gained 59 yards on 15 carries for an average of 3.9 yards. Kenneth Walker III had eight rushes for 31 yards, including an 11-yard run that was Seattle’s longest of the day.

The Seahawks rank 30th in the NFL in rushing yards, and some of the blame will inevitably fall on offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb.

Stock up

Although he was intercepted twice, Smith had one of his better games of the season. He completed 72% of his passes (31 of 43) for 314 yards and three touchdowns for a passer rating of 96.5. Smith exceeded 300 yards passing for the fifth time this season and threw for three or more TDs for the second time.

“Geno is probably our top competitor on our football team,” coach Mike Macdonald said. “We’re not sitting here with life at the end of December unless Geno has done the things he’s done. He’s a fighter, man. I thought he played a good game.”

Stock down

Tre Brown had a bad series in the second quarter. A sack by Derick Hall on third-and-8 to seemingly force the Vikings to try a field goal was negated by an offside penalty against Brown.

On the next play, Jefferson got past Brown for a 14-yard touchdown catch that put the Vikings ahead 14-7. Brown, who started in place of Riq Woolen, hadn’t played a defensive snap since Seattle’s Week 6 loss to San Francisco, and he struggled to contain Jefferson, who finished with 10 catches for 144 yards and two touchdowns.

Injuries

Walker left the game in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury. Macdonald had no updates about Walker on Monday.

Key numbers

75 — The Seahawks threw the ball on 75% of their offensive snaps (45 of 60). One of their 15 runs was a 2-yard sneak by Julian Love on a fake punt in the fourth quarter, and another was an 8-yard scramble by Smith.

Zach Charbonnet, who ran for 134 yards two weeks ago against Arizona, had one carry for minus-1 yard.

Up next

The Seahawks play at Chicago on Thursday night. The Bears have lost nine straight.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl