The Seattle Seahawks take their 11-game overall winning streak to the desert this weekend and face an Arizona Cardinals’ team that they have dominated as of late. However, under new head coach Mike LaFleur, this looked like an improved football team last Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

The Cardinals entered last Sunday’s clash with the Los Angeles Chargers off a 3-14 campaign in 2025 and a season-ending nine-game losing streak to boot. LaFleur’s club dominated the Bolts, 26-14, and now look to upset the defending Super Bowl champions.

Meanwhile, Mike Macdonald’s club got some extra time to prepare for this divisional clash. The Seahawks rallied to beat the New England Patriots, 13-10, at Lumen Field on September 9 as the team played much of the game without starting quarterback Sam Darnold.

Seahawks vs. Cardinals History

The first game in Seahawks’ history came in 1976 at the Kingdome, a 30-24 loss to the then-St. Louis Cardinals. All told, the ‘Hawks own a 31-22-1 lifetime advantage in this series. And the difference is the team’s current nine-game winning streak in the NFC West rivalry dating back to the clubs’ second meeting in 2021.

A year ago, Seattle swept this series for the fourth consecutive season. In Week 4 on a Thursday night at Glendale, Jason Myers connected on a 52-yard field goal on the final play of the game to give Macdonald’s club a 23-20 win. Nine weeks later at Lumen Field, Darnold threw for 178 yards and one touchdown but overcame three turnovers as the ‘Hawks opened up a 35-0 second-quarter lead on the way to a 44-22 triumph.

Cardinals’ defense looks much-improved from 2025

It’s just one game, but Arizona’s 12-point road win over the Chargers was quite the contrast for a team that allowed the sixth-most total yards per game in the NFL in 2025. The Bolts were limited to 268 total yards, Justin Herbert was sacked three times and the Cardinals came up with a pair of takeaways.

Drew Lock makes his first start since Week 18 of 2024. He faced the Philadelphia Eagles as a member of the New York Giants, throwing for 138 yards and one score (1 interception) in a 20-13 loss. Lock’s last start for Seattle came in Week 15 of 2023, totaling 208 yards and one TD in a 20-17 win over the Eagles.

Keep an Eye on Seahawks’ OLB DeMarcus Lawrence

Only the Las Vegas Raiders gained fewer yards on the ground than the Cards a year ago. LaFleur’s team ran the ball 34 times for 116 yards, with Tyler Allgeier totaling 61 yards on 17 carries and rookie Jeremiyah Love rushing for 41 yards, including a five-year TD run on Arizona’s first possession of the season.

In his first season with the Seahawks, former Cowboys’ standout DeMarcus Lawrence finished with 53 tackles, six sacks, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. Two of the latter came in a Week 10 win over the visiting Cards, with Lawrence returning both for touchdowns in the first half of a 44-22 win.

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