Seattle's defense sets the tone
The Seahawks visit the Raiders in Week 10 with a chance to build on their second win in three games. Kickoff at Allegiant Stadium is set for November 15 at 4:05 p.m. ET. Seattle beat Arizona 17-3 in Week 9, matching the three points it allowed in a Week 7 victory over Kansas City. Between those wins, however, the Seahawks lost 34-17 to Chicago. That defensive contrast is central to this matchup: Seattle has recently shown it can keep opponents quiet, but it has not done so consistently.
Different paths to similar records
Seattle enters 5-4 with 202 points scored and 162 allowed, a plus-40 scoring margin. Las Vegas is 4-5 with 238 points scored and 268 allowed, a minus-30 margin. The Raiders have scored 36 more points than the Seahawks but allowed 106 more. Their recent results underline that imbalance. Las Vegas lost 38-17 at San Francisco in Week 9 after beating the New York Jets 38-33 in Week 8. Before that, the Raiders fell 35-21 to the Los Angeles Rams. Las Vegas has surrendered at least 33 points in each of those three games. Tightening that defense would reduce the scoring burden on its offense.
Smith-Njigba leads the fantasy projections
Jaxon Smith-Njigba carries the matchup's highest listed PPR projection at 22.3 points. Seattle running backs Zach Charbonnet and Jadarian Price follow at 14.5 and 11.9, respectively. Brock Bowers leads Las Vegas at 15.4 projected PPR points, ahead of Ashton Jeanty at 13.6. Tre Tucker is projected for 8.4 and kicker Matt Gay for 8.3. The quarterback projections list Drew Lock at 17.6 and Sam Darnold at 16.3 for Seattle, with Fernando Mendoza at 13.5 for Las Vegas. Those estimates are fantasy projections, not a declaration of Seattle's quarterback order.