“I think you have to approach it with an all-11 mentality,” Macdonald said. “So it’s always important how you connect the pass rush to the coverage, how you send from what angle, what pass rush lanes you want to fill and how you account for all the different pass rush lanes, and That’s not just.” Six-man drop-back pass or five-out, you also have to take that into account in the play-action game. It’s definitely in your head when you go through a game plan.”

However, as the Seahawks prepare for Thursday Night Football against the Bears, Macdonald and his defense will have to worry about a different kind of mobile threat: dynamic rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who has played some of his best football of late weeks, even though his team hasn’t won since October.

To that point, Murray would stand out as the most challenging dual-threat quarterback Seattle has defended through its first 15 games. Williams was drafted first overall out of USC in April and has some similarities in that he can cause problems on designed quarterback runs such as read options or as a scrambler rolling out of the pocket on booted legs and sprint-action plays, just like Murray can.

But at 6-1 and 215 pounds, Williams offers the size element that Murray doesn’t, which opens up the playbook for different types of concepts like quarterback power. He also improvises in a more sandlot-style manner when plays fail, often extending plays well beyond three or four seconds on dropbacks and forcing rushers to chase after him, as well as defensive backs and linebackers trying to get to receivers and tight ends cover extended period.

This tendency to turn stone into gold as an improviser has its drawbacks, as Williams has suffered under pressure an NFL-high 59 times, despite ranking second only to Jackson in average throwing time on those plays (4.14 seconds). lay. According to Pro Football Focus, he also ranks second among qualified quarterbacks in pressure for sacks (28.4 percent), behind only Will Levis of the Titans, so it’s obvious he has too many in his rookie season suffered huge losses.

At the same time, much like he was at the college level before he won the Heisman Trophy, Williams was often a wizard behind one of the league’s worst offensive lines. According to the PFF chart, he has completed undetected runs 43 times, the second-most in the league, and converted those chances into 340 rushing yards and 7.9 yards per carry. He also has rushed for at least 10 yards on 20 carries this year, the fourth-most among quarterbacks.

Williams has also been more effective lately on deep balls that traveled more than 20 yards, ranking second only to Jackson with seven big-time throws since Week 13, converting four of nine completions into touchdowns with no interceptions. Many of those passes were completed after the young quarterback tried to buy extra time, as he posted the fourth-longest average throwing time on 24 such attempts.

In his last nine games, Williams has not thrown picks regardless of passing distance, a streak that Macdonald hopes the Seahawks can break by keeping him in the pocket and confusing him with pre-snap covers.

“It’s impressive,” Macdonald said of Williams’ improved play, which reduced turnovers. “In this game it’s all about takeaways and how the ball is influenced. We have to force situations where they have to throw the ball, but he did a great job.”

With their playoff lives on the line, the Seahawks must perform a balancing act by attacking Williams aggressively while avoiding getting too far upfield and giving him escape routes as a runner. Teams have managed to get to him with four-man rushes this season, but blitzing was riskier as he threw seven touchdowns and just one interception when faced with additional pressure from the second level.

When Williams inevitably escapes the pocket and starts playing backyard ball, linebackers Ernest Jones and Tyrice Knight must be ready to defend sideline to sideline, while the secondary is tasked with hanging on to its receiver longer than normal to get the to take away the big plays that he has been using more often in the last few weeks.

If they can check off those boxes, at least in most cases, the Seahawks should be in a good position to snap a two-game winning streak. But containing Williams will be easier said than done, and even considering the Bears’ current nine-game losing streak, his unique talents alone give the home team a fighting chance of destroying Macdonald’s squad in prime time and executing the right game plan be crucial to prevent such a catastrophe.