Aug 15, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) celebrates with quarterback Sam Darnold (14) after rushing for a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs during the first quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

ESPN puts Seattle Seahawks in utterly-insulting spot in NFL 'watchability' rankings

Originally posted on Seattle Seahawks on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Aug 21, 2025 5:00 PM ET

The Seattle Seahawks have an elite defense, one that should be good enough to carry them. The offense has a few crucial question marks, but that defense will be good enough to offset some of the issues. That isn't, unfortunately, a recipe for watchable football for the average fan.

Fans like touchdowns and big plays, and ESPN decided to rank teams based purely on watchability, factoring in the high-octane offense, close games, notable players, and other interesting reasons to watch. Sadly, there apparently aren't many for Seattle.

Seahawks get ripped as unwatchable in 2025

The Seattle Seahawks have a great defense and a lackluster, as of now, offense. It could end up being good, but there's too much uncertainty right now to project that. However, if Klint Kubiak and Sam Darnold can star together, this might change.

Both offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and quarterback Sam Darnold delivered some of the greatest watchability of last season," ESPN's Ben Solak said.

"It was Kubiak in the early season in New Orleans, when he had Derek Carr dropping historic offensive efficiency throughout September," he added. "A nd it was Darnold over the course of the year, when he turned an early-season curiosity into a season-long reclamation story."

But the important thing is that we still don't know if this is Darnold or if it was a flash in the pan. If he's good, this changes, but the floor is pretty low, which hurts their watchability. "Teams with elite defenses -- of which the Seahawks might be included -- but non-functional quarterbacking are far less watchable than we think. See: Jets, New York (2024)," Solak said.

For now, that leaves Seattle ranked 29th in watchability, which is staggering. It's only higher than Kansas City Chiefs (shockingly), New Orleans Saints, and Cleveland Browns. That's maybe not the best company to be in.

This article first appeared on Seattle Seahawks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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