NFC West is the Rams to lose if Geno Smith is forced to miss time beyond Week 15

This season, first-time NFL head coach Mike Macdonald got the Seattle Seahawks off to a 3-0 start. Then came a bit of a letdown as the team dropped five of its next six games—including four consecutive home losses to the Giants, 49ers, Bills and Rams.

The ‘Hawks has seemingly righted the ship as of late. Macdonald’s club took a four-game winning streak into Sunday night’s clash with the visiting Packers.

Say goodbye to Seahawks four-game winning streak

The ‘Hawks were overmatched by the Packers, 30-13. In the third quarter, starting quarterback Geno Smith went down. Backup Sam Howell, acquired from the Commanders via trade during the offseason, took the helm with just over a quarter to play. It was a less-than-scintillating showing.

After the game, Seahawks’ head coach Mike Macdonald spoke of the injury to his starting signal-caller, and had high praise for Smith in terms of his resiliency.

“I’ll tell you this, this guy’s probably the toughest player I’ve been around. (It was) severe enough for him not to come back in the game. We’ll do all the tests tomorrow and kind of figure it out as we go. Right now, structurally it looks like it’s OK. We’ll get him imaged and all that stuff.”

Obviously, Macdonald was asked about Smith’s status. “We’ve got to get the tests done. I know we’ll do everything humanely possible to go play, but just don’t know right now.”

The Seahawks host the Vikings this Sunday, then close the regular-season with a trip to Chicago, followed by a rematch with the Rams. Back in Week 9 at Seattle, Macdonald’s club fell in overtime, 26-20. Currently, Seattle and Los Angeles are tied with identical 8-6 record, but Sean McVay’s team is currently ahead in the standings due to that earlier win at Seattle.

With Smith at the controls, the Seahawks entered Week 15 with the NFL’s third-ranked passing attack. Smith had thrown for 3,474 yards, 14 scores, as well as 12 interceptions. The offense has kept the team afloat most of the season.

It’s safe to Monday’s update on Smith may hold the key to the rest of Seattle’s season.