The Seattle Seahawks rode their top-ranked scoring defense to the Lombardi Trophy this past season, capped by a suffocating performance in the Super Bowl against New England Patriots quarterback and NFL MVP runner-up Drake Maye.
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What makes head coach Mike Macdonald’s defense so challenging for opposing quarterbacks?
Eight-time Pro Bowl QB Philip Rivers, who came out of retirement to make a fill-in start for the Indianapolis Colts against the Seahawks in Week 15, joined Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk to share some perspective.
“I’ve got to make sure I know where (Nick Emmanwori) is all the time,” Rivers said. “And then here’s (Devon) Witherspoon, that obviously is a heck of a blitzer as well and a great DB. And then there’s the defensive front, and how do we want to handle Leonard Williams? And what about (DeMarcus) Lawrence and Uchenna (Nwosu) and these guys rushing on the outside?”
Rivers repeatedly praised Emmanwori, who finished second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting after excelling as a hybrid defender in Macdonald’s scheme.
“As you’re going through the week, it really felt like the box was their strength, and you felt like (Emmanwori) was kind of the star,” Rivers said. “He’d be the kind of guy that I’d say, look out, he’ll wreck this game. And he can play. He’s as fast as anybody on the field, but he’s also as physical as any linebacker and any guy in the box.”
The 44-year-old Rivers gave the Colts a chance to win, completing 18 of 27 passes for 120 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He only took one sack against a Seahawks defense that totaled 47 sacks for the season, tied for seventh-most in the league.
Rivers led the Colts downfield for a go-ahead field goal with 47 seconds remaining, but Seattle responded with a game-winning field goal with 18 seconds left to pull out an 18-16 win.
“It was a heck of a game and a heck of a challenge,” Rivers said. “And obviously there’s no consolation prize and there’s no trying to put a feather in my cap. But I will say with you guys, as candid as I can, it didn’t feel all bad to see the Seahawks win the Super Bowl and go, golly, we had them on the ropes.”
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