Seattle Seahawks
Seattle's defense has been among the best units in the league through seven weeks, and analysts treat it as a weekly starter. The disagreement is over how much to trust it against Chicago in Week 8.
Role
This is the full team unit, not a snap-share role. Week 8 is at home against the Bears, who are 5-2. RotoBaller lists Seattle as a 3-point favorite with a total of about 46.5. Per FantasyPros' preseason outlook, Seattle lost Coby Bryant, Tariq Woolen and Boye Mafe in the offseason. CBS's preseason piece named Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy up front, Ernest Jones IV at linebacker and Nick Emmanwori at safety. I did not read a current depth chart or injury report for the defense. Football Nation's Week 8 guide flagged an ankle injury to left tackle Charles Cross, which affects the offense, not this unit.
RotoBaller (Week 8) says they have arguably been the best defense in football through seven weeks. They rank second in EPA per play, first in pass rush win rate and fourth in points allowed per game. Seattle held Kansas City to 3 points in Week 7 for 11 fantasy points. Per Sportsnaut, Kenneth Walker managed only 36 yards on 14 carries. Football Nation notes Seattle allows about 234 total yards and 4.0 yards per play, with the fewest passing yards allowed in the league. It also says Seattle held the Chiefs, who had been undefeated, to 213 yards.
Chicago is 5-2 and owns a top-three offense per Football Nation, which also notes the Bears have won twice since Caleb Williams returned from a hamstring absence. Football Nation also says Seattle has allowed touchdowns on 78.57 percent of opponent red zone trips, though its yardage defense limits how often opponents get there. Draft Sharks' Week 8 projections are much lower than the others: it ranks Seattle 19th with a consensus projection of 5.5 points, and its ceiling is 8.7.
Where analysts split
The question is how to rate Seattle against Chicago's offense this week. RotoBaller puts Seattle seventh and tells readers to trust it. SI also has it seventh. Sportsnaut has it ninth. Draft Sharks has it 19th, which is a wide gap. The sources agree that the season-long defensive quality is strong, so the split is about this one matchup and about how much to weigh a 4-3 team's results.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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