We should have seen this one coming.
Operating at full power against a floundering team ripe for destruction, the Seattle Seahawks tightened their grip over a playoff berth with Sunday's 58-0 lashing of the Arizona Cardinals.
Along the way, the Seahawks broke a 35-year-old franchise record for points scored in a single game. At 8-5, they control their destiny for the conference's fifth playoff seed, and the NFC West crown remains a possibility, although the latter would require a near implosion by the 9-3-1 San Francisco 49ers. Either way, coach Pete Carroll's team has morphed into an outfit nobody wants to deal with down the stretch.
The Seahawks' physical pass defense tortured Cardinals quarterback John Skelton, who squeezed out just 74 yards on 11 completions. Skelton threw another four passes to Seahawks defenders before giving way to equally baffled Ryan Lindley. The Cardinals didn't have an answer for the Seahawks' multiple looks on defense.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
