Mina Kimes Doesn’t Hold Back on Seahawks After Beating Jaguars
The Seattle Seahawks‘ defense had a bounce-back performance in the 20-12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 6. After giving up 38 points in the shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5, the Seahawks’ defense responded with an impressive performance.
Furthermore, the group made life difficult for Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence. The Seattle defense sacked Lawrence seven times in the game as they wouldn’t allow a repeat of Week 5, where an offense did whatever they wanted.
NFL Next Gen Stats (h/t Seahawks.com) shows the Seahawks pressured Lawrence on 25 of his 50 dropbacks, marking the highest rate of pressure he has faced this season. Seattle’s defense sacked him seven times—already surpassing his total sacks over the first five games (6)—and added 17 quarterback hits.
On the October 13 edition of “NFL Live,” ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes gave the Seahawks’ defense their flowers for how they performed against the Jaguars, which was something she didn’t expect to start the game.
“Early on there were a couple busted coverages,” Kimes said. “I’m thinking this is going to be another shootout like the Tampa game. And then the Seahawks defensive line said, ‘Nah.’ This was a feeding frenzy at the line of scrimmage. Seven sacks, 17 quarterback hits, 25 pressures. Going back and watching all the sacks.”
Mina Kimes Talks Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald
Moreover, Kimes spotlighted the defensive play calling from head coach Mike Macdonald and how he never allowed Lawrence to get comfortable with the constant pressure that Seattle was generating.
“It really is amazing to watch Mike Macdonald,” Kimes added. “He’s a mad scientist at work with some of the overloads. He was using the defensive linemen like chessmen, the games they were
“Leonard Williams is the best defensive lineman in football that people don’t talk about. He was borderline unblockable in this game. He dominates week after week, but he is a truly special player and part of a truly special defensive line.”
Seahawks Defense Came Up Big Late
Nonetheless, while the Seahawks had an impressive performance, Macdonald noted that the team’s ability to shut the door on the Jaguars after giving up a touchdown to make the scoreline 20-12 was just as outstanding.
“That’s been an emphasis for us,” Macdonald said of the defense’s finish (h/t Seahawks.com). “We weren’t shying away from it, and our guys were awesome. I think you could sense it on the sideline that they wanted the opportunity to go out there and play, and that’s all you can ask for as a coach.
“It’s not like—there’s no secret play calls that you hide on your play sheet until the fourth quarter then all of a sudden you just start waving the magic wand. We’re executing our defense
“But I think the mentality was the driving force behind how we finished the game out, and that starts with our leaders on defense, our coaches—AD (defensive coordinator Aden Durde) did a tremendous job all week getting our guys ready to go. It was a fun group to be around as the fourth quarter
Former 2x Pro Bowler has made a shocking decision to retire mid-season
Prior to the 2019 NFL season, the Green Bay Packers made some drastic changes to their roster on the defensive side of the ball. Not only did they use their two first round picks that year on defensive players (Darnell Savage and Rashan Gary), but they also signed three of the biggest names on the free agent market to bolster their defense.
These players were safety Adrian Amos and pass rushers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith. All three had terrific tenures with Green Bay, though each of them eventually moved on to different teams.
The first to do so was Za’Darius, who, after making two Pro Bowls in his first two seasons with the Packers, had a massive falling out with the organization and ended up being released before his contract ran its course.
Former Green Bay Packers Pro Bowler Za’Darius Smith has retired from the NFL
Packers24 39 Hoffman
In his first season with the Packers, Smith had 13.5 sacks and made his first career Pro Bowl. In 2020, he had 12.5 sacks, made the Pro Bowl again, and was named Second Team All-Pro.
But in 2021, his third season with Green Bay, Smith came down with a mysterious back ailment and spent most of the year away from the team. And while he did return at the end of the year and played in their postseason game, it was clear that Smith and the Packers were on their way to a messy divorce.
And when Green Bay released him following the season, he made no secret that he held a grudge against the Packers. He signed with their hated rival, the Minnesota Vikings, for the 2022 season in order to get some sort of revenge against them. Smith had a decent season for Minnesota, notching 10.0 sacks and making his third Pro Bowl.
But since that year, Smith has had trouble sticking with any team. After one full season with Cleveland in 2023, he was traded midway through the 2024 season to the Detroit Lions.
And after the Lions opted not to bring him back in 2025, Smith remained a free agent until after the season started before signing with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Smith played five games and recorded 1.5 sacks for the defending Super Bowl champions this season, but has decided that enough is enough and has called it a career:
Smith ends his career with 70.5 sacks and 343 total tackles.
