1. Can a Seahawks defense on an impressive run of strong play slow down Packers running back Josh Jacobs?

Jacobs, who signed with the Packers as a free agent this spring after five seasons with the Raiders, has been a huge addition for Green Bay’s offense, rushing for 1,053 yards through his first 13 games, the third most in the NFL heading into Week 15, while also scoring 11 rushing touchdowns. And even if Seahawks fans haven’t watched a lot of Packers football this year’s they’re surely aware of his abilities thanks to his 229-yard performance in Seattle in a 2022 Raiders overtime win.

“Obviously they can run the ball, they run the ball really well,” defensive coordinator Aden Durde said. “Their ability to get off the ball, you see the speed of their o-line, the way they move off the ball. They create lanes and Josh Jacobs doesn’t need much space and then vertically, they can stress you. They’ve got gas all over their skill (positions). They’re good to watch. They do a lot of good things.”

As Durde mentioned, the Packers have a lot of speed on offense, and the running game helps create favorable matchups that have led to big plays in the passing game for Jordan Love, who throws a great deep ball, and his receivers. A good running game also makes it harder to get after the quarterback, which helps explain why Love has only been sacked 11 times this season.

“I think you have to create passing situations, and that starts with stopping the run,” Durde said of the pass rush. “Ultimately, I know it’s an old defensive line cliche, but you’ve got to earn the right to rush the passer in this league, especially in games like this. Once you get it, you’ve got to be locked in. You’ve got to be working as four or five players, whoever’s rushing, and you’ve got to go. To me, it’s a mindset and intention. There’s obviously technique of things that come in it, but it’s just the way you’ve got to take the field and go.”

The Seahawks have been really good on defense going back to their Week 9 overtime loss to the Rams, and they made considerable improvement on run defense starting with that game, but Jacobs and Green Bay’s running game will provide one of the biggest tests to date for Seattle’s defense.