Patriots opponent preview: Get to know the Seahawks ahead of Week 2

Fresh off a surprising win on the first weekend of the 2024 NFL season, the New England Patriots will return to Gillette Stadium in Week 2 for their home opener. They will square off against a rather unfamiliar opponent: the Seattle Seahawks will visit town for the first time since 2016.

While the two clubs don’t meet often due to their position in separate conferences, they have a common history thanks to their meeting in Super Bowl XLIX. That game will celebrate its 10th anniversary in February, and over the decade since both franchises have undergone a drastic transformation process.

Needless to say, this ain’t your dad’s Patriots or Seahawks. And with that, let’s take a closer look at New England’s Week 2 opponent.

Seahawks key stats

Like the Patriots, the Seahawks also had a successful start to the year. Their key statistics reflect this, even though the sample size is obviously the smallest possible size:

Record: 1-0 (2nd NFC West)

Offense: 26.0 points/game (t-13th), 304.0 yards/game (15th), -0.052 EPA/play (19th)

Defense: 20.0 points/game (t-12th), 231.0 yards/game (6th), -0.311 EPA/play (5th)

Scoring differential: +6 (t-12th)

Turnover differential: +1 (t-9th)

Are those numbers in any way reflective of the team Seattle has in 2024? Not really, but they give insight into how the club won its season opener against the Denver Broncos: by playing stout defense and combing it with average to above average offense. In that sense, the Seahawks are not that different from the Patriots.

Seahawks 2024 season

Obviously, not a lot has happened in 2024 so far. Still, there is one game in the books we can look back on.

Week 1: 26-20 win vs. Denver Broncos

The Seahawks opened the year at home and in positive fashion. While the final score indicated a close game, and Seattle had to come back from arguably the strangest 13-9 halftime deficit in recent memory, they did make life hard all day for Denver rookie quarterback Bo Nix and also moved the ball fairly efficiently and in a balanced fashion on offense.

As for that half time score, it included two safeties in favor of the Broncos — a penalty plus a tackle in the Seattle end zone — as well as a combined four field goals and a Seahawks touchdown with a missed two-point play. Weird things happening in the Pacific Northwest.

Seahawks roster

(Note: Roster up-to-date as of Sept. 11, 7 a.m. ET; *indicates projected starter)

Quarterback (2): Geno Smith* (7), Sam Howell (6)

Running back (3): Kenneth Walker III* (9), Zach Charbonnet (26), Kenny McIntosh (25)

Wide receiver (6): DK Metcalf* (14), Tyler Lockett* (16), Jaxon Smith-Njigba* (11), Laviska Shenault Jr. (1 | KR), Jake Bobo (19), Dareke Young (83)

Tight end (4): Noah Fant* (87), Pharaoh Brown (86), Brady Russell (38), A.J. Barner (88)

Offensive tackle (4): Charles Cross* (67 | LT), George Fant* (74 | RT), Forsythe Stone (78), Michael Jerrell (65)

Interior offensive line (7): Laken Tomlinson* (70 | LG), Connor Williams* (57 | C), Anthony Bradford* (75 | RG), Olu Oluwatimi (51), Christian Haynes (64), Sataoa Laumea (63), Jalen Sundell (61)

Interior defensive line (5): Leonard Williams* (99), Jarran Reed* (90), Johnathan Hankins (97), Byron Murphy II (91), Myles Adams (95)

Defensive edge (3): Boye Mafe* (53), Dre’Mont Jones* (55), Mike Morris (94)

Linebacker (7): Uchenna Nwosu (10), Jerome Baker* (17), Tyrel Dodson* (0), Derrick Hall (58), Trevis Gipson (50), Tyrice Knight (48), Drake Thomas (42)

Cornerback (5): Tariq Woolen* (27), Devon Witherspoon* (21), Tre Brown* (22), Dee Williams (33 | PR), Nehemiah Pritchett (28)

Safety (4): Julian Love* (20), Rayshawn Jenkins* (2), K’Von Wallace (24), Coby Bryant (8)

Specialists (3): Jason Myers (5 | K), Michael Dickson (4 | P | H), Chris Stoll (41 | LS)

Because we mentioned Super Bowl XLIX earlier, a look at the Seahawks’ roster shows that no player from that team is still around. The longest-tenured Seahawk is wide receiver Tyler Lockett, who joined the club a few months after that game.

Despite being among the most experienced players on the team, Lockett remains one of its top players as well. Together with DK Metcalf and 2023 first-round draft pick Jaxon Smith-Njigba he offers some quality in the passing game for quarterback Geno Smith; the former New York Jets QB, of course, has resurrected his career since joining Seattle in 2019 and replacing Russell Wilson as starter in 2022.

Defensively, Seattle combines a deep and experienced front seven with a young but intriguing secondary. Players like Tariq Woolen and Devon Witherspoon look like long-term cornerstones in the backend, and possible foundational pieces for the next “Legion of Boom.”

One other name worth mentioning is Uchenna Nwosu. The starting linebacker is expected to miss Sunday’s game because of a knee injury that already kept him out of Week 1. In his place, offseason acquisitions Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson — formerly of Miami and Buffalo, respectively — will lead the position.

Seahawks reserves

Practice squad (16): S Marquise Blair, DT Quinton Bohana, ED Tyus Bowser, CB Artie Burns, OT McClendon Curtis, QB Jaren Hall, CB Faion Hicks, RB George Holani, CB Josh Jobe, ED DeVere Levelston, TE Tyler Mabry, LB Patrick O’Connell, S Ty Okada, WR Ty Scott, LB Tyreke Smith, WR Cody White

Practice squad international (1): LB Kenneth Odumegwu

Injured reserve (2): ED Joshua Onujiogu, WR Marcus Simms

Physically unable to perform (3): OT Abraham Lucas, S Jerrick Reed II, DT Cameron Young (93)

The most notable name on the Seahawks’ list of reserves is offensive tackle Abraham Lucas. A 22-game starter since entering the league as a third-round draft pick in 2022, he remains on the PUP list and will therefore miss Sunday’s game.

Besides Lucas, the Seahawks also have a pair of notable names on their practice squad. Tyus Bowser and Artie Burns, after all, were both highly-drafted players back in the day and offer experienced depth at their respective positions.

Seahawks coaching staff

Head coach: Mike Macdonald

Coordinators: Ryan Grubb (OC), Aden Durde (DC), Jay Harbaugh (ST)

Like the Patriots, the Seahawks also restructured their coaching staff this offseason. Replacing long-time head coach Pete Carroll, the team decided to hire former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald — the youngest head coach in the NFL at the moment. The second-youngest will be on the other sideline on Sunday, the Patriots’ Jerod Mayo.