Three keys to victory

Three keys to Seahawks victory

1. Find a way to knock down Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner. The Cardinals have allowed one sack and averaged 29.5 points in their two victories. They've given up seven sacks and averaged only 13 points in their two losses. That makes it pretty clear that the key to disrupting Arizona's offense is to force Warner to make quick decisions.

2. Keep Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett in check. That's going to be a tall order given the state of Seattle's offensive line. Mansfield Wrotto started Week 5 at left guard, but Steve Vallos finished the game. Whoever's in that spot is going to have his hands full working against Dockett, who is one of the most disruptive tackles in the league.

3. Start fast. The Cardinals have scored 54 points in the first half, 31 in the second. That means the Seahawks must be ready to keep pace. Seattle has scored only one touchdown in the first quarter this season, and the Cardinals haven't allowed a first-quarter touchdown. Last week the Seahawks didn't really get going until they picked up the pace in the second quarter by occasionally using a no-huddle offense.

Three keys to Cardinals victory

1. Improve the pass defense. Arizona is allowing a league-low 71 yards rushing per game and a league-high 303 yards passing. Seattle showed last week what it can do to a suspect secondary when Matt Hasselbeck passed for four TDs against a Jacksonville pass defense ranked No. 31 in the league entering the game. The Cardinals have given up nine passing touchdowns and intercepted three passes.

2. Larry Fitzgerald will be the best player on the field Sunday; Arizona needs to get him the ball. In his past five games against Seattle, Fitzgerald has averaged seven receptions for more than 100 yards and scored a total of four touchdowns and that was with Seattle's No. 1 cornerback, Marcus Trufant, on the field. Will his production grow as Seattle plays at least one more game without Trufant?

3. Get first-round pick Beanie Wells rolling. Arizona is averaging 56 yards rushing, lowest in the NFC. Seattle's success against Jacksonville in Week 5 began with stifling the Jags' Maurice Jones-Drew. The Cardinals will need Wells to show why he was a first-round pick to keep the Seahawks' defense honest and respect the ability to run.

Matchup microscope

QB Matt Hasselbeck vs. safety Adrian Wilson. Wilson is the wild card of Arizona's defense. Hasselbeck must not only find where he is before every play, but he must identify what position he is playing. Wilson is a safety who is as big as some linebackers, capable of being a fearsome pass-rusher, and he's improved in coverage, too. Wilson is the heartbeat of this defense.

Series history

In Seattle's first four seasons in the NFC West, the Seahawks won six of the eight games between the teams. Not only that, but five of those six victories were by double digits. But Arizona has won four of the past six against Seattle, and three of those games have been decided by six points or fewer.

Danny O'Neil