Witherspoon Expected, McLaurin Out vs Commanders

In his second year Mike Macdonald has transformed the Seattle Seahawks defense into an elite unit — top-ranked against the run, top-10 in yards and scoring defense, and strong in pass-rush metrics — but the unit has produced no forced fumbles and few takeaways. Star defensive back Devon Witherspoon is expected to return Sunday, bolstering Seattle’s secondary. Seattle’s offense has improved protection (Sam Darnold has been sacked just nine times) and leans on designed runs with Zach Charbonnet getting many red-zone touches. Washington (3-5) enters a critical stretch on a three-game losing streak, will get QB Jayden Daniels back from a hamstring injury, but will be without top receiver Terry McLaurin for Sunday night. The Commanders must revive their once-elite rushing attack to set up the pass against Seattle’s stingy run defense. Coming off a bye, Seattle is favored defensively in a strength-on-strength matchup that has important edge-matchup implications for both offenses.