After a key NFC West win at home, the Seahawks head back on the road this weekend to face the New York Jets. The Jets (3-8), who have lost seven of their last eight games, leading to changes at head coach and general manager, are looking to get their season back on track coming out of the bye, while the Seahawks are looking to build off the momentum they've gained following impressive wins over the 49ers and Cardinals.

Here are five things to watch when the Seahawks face the Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium:

1. Does Geno Smith beat his former team again, and can he eliminate the occasional negative plays that have marred otherwise great performances?

Geno Smith has already faced the Jets, who drafted him in the second-round of the 2013 draft, helping lead the Seahawks to a win over them in 2022. He has also played at MetLife Stadium, having done so last year in a win over the Giants. Sunday's game will, however, be the first time he's faced his former team in that building, something he acknowledged will be a special moment, but only because of the appreciation he has for the organization that gave him his start in the NFL.

"I've always had tremendous love and respect for that organization," Smith said Wednesday. "Obviously, the team that drafted me gave me a chance out of the gate. A lot of great people there, some people that I was there with, a lot of those people are now gone. So as far as the whole revenge thing, that's not on my mind. Like I said, man, there's a lot of great people in that city that I still talk to and I still love and still support me and so it's the biggest game of the year because it's the next game. But obviously, because I was drafted there it's going to be a narrative that's built."

For Smith, Sunday's game is less about his past ties to the Jets and to New York, and more about continuing what has been a very good season while also finding ways to eliminate the occasional mistakes that have led to interceptions in eight of 11 games this season, though several of those haven't been entirely or even mostly the fault of Smith.

"I'm always going to look at the things that I can do better," he said. "I think that's the way I've always approached the game. You can make the right decision on every play, but one, and that'll be the play that I'll emphasize and will look at the most… There are many ways, everything can improve and that's something that I continue to work on daily. Where I think I am, I think I'm really a good player and I think I have a chance to be even better. So as long as I continue to work hard, continue to stay focused on my process as I talk to you guys about, I think good things will happen and I think some of that stuff that's unlucky will kind of weed itself out."

While the Seahawks are turning the ball over more than they'd like, and again, that doesn't all fall on Smith's shoulders, coaches also don't want to take the playmaker out of Smith.

"He knows how important ball dominance is to us, and to not turn the ball over," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. "He knows that we can't do that in those situations and we know he can't. It's not like we're losing trust in him or anything. We got his back and a lot of the things that make Geno a great player is his playmaking ability. So there is a fine line of, he arguably won us the game (against Arizona) with zero-checks and extending plays and commanding the line and giving him autonomy to do what he feels he needs to do in that moment. So there's a balance there. You never want to take the playmaker out of the player. So making some decisions to protect the ball in those moments, yeah, he could probably be a little more careful in those situations, but there's a fine line there."

2. In a battle of strength vs. strength, can the Seahawks passing game continue to thrive against a tough Jets pass defense.

With Smith and his playmakers like DK Metcalf, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Tyler Lockett leading the way, the Seahawks have had one of the league's most productive passing games this season. Yes, the Seahawks would like to run the ball more successfully, and will try to get that going this week, but in all likelihood, the offense is going to need Smith, who leads the NFL in passing yards per game and completions, and the passing game to come through for the offense to have a successful day.

And having a good day in the throwing game won't come easy against a talented Jets defense. Despite the team's struggles to win games, the Jets have still been very good on defense, and rank 13^th in points allowed and eighth in yards allowed. And the Jets have been particularly good against the pass, ranking second in yards allowed, second in passing touchdowns allowed, and fifth in opponent net passing yards per attempt.

"Pass rush, number one," Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said when asked about the Jets pass defense. "I think what they do is they try to make windows tight, and they make their pass rush come alive and basically say it's going to be really hard for you to make an accurate throw in this pocket. I think those are the things they do a pretty good job of, so you have to try to take those things into account and not put yourself in positions where you have to do that every play."

And on a related note…

3. Can Seattle's interior line, missing a starting guard, keep Pro-Bowl defensive lineman Quinnen Williams from being a game-wrecker?

One interesting storyline heading into Sunday's game is that the Seahawks have a competition going in practice this week to start at right guard in place of Anthony Bradford, who went on injured reserve this week due to a high-ankle sprain. Christian Haynes who has been the backup and at times split playing time with Bradford this season, took over for Bradford in Sunday's game against the Cardinals, but Macdonald said there will be a competition for that job between Haynes and fellow rookie Sataoa Laumea.

And whoever wins that job, along with the rest of the line, is going to be facing a tough challenge going against a talented Jets defensive line, led by former first-team All-Pro and two-time Pro-Bowler Quinnen Williams. Spending most of his time playing on the interior line, Williams has a team-high 6.0 sacks, 16 quarterback hits and seven tackles for loss.

"It's just knowing where he is and having some regard for how you can scheme against him in protection," Grubb said. "I think everybody knows that going into the game, and we're obviously going to know where he is every snap and do our best to make sure we get four hands on him as many times as possible."

4. Can Seattle's run defense get the job done again against the explosive Breece Hall? And on the flip side of that, can Seattle's run game get going?

The Seahawks have made a big turn on defense in the past few games, and a huge part of that has been the improvement they've made against the run. Prior to the bye, Seattle held the Rams to 68 rushing yards and a 2.8 yards-per-carry average, and last week, the Cardinals had a season-low 49 rushing yards, including just eight yards on seven carries from leading rusher James Conner. The 49ers managed a bit more, gaining 131 yards on the ground, but a significant amount of that came on Brock Purdy scrambles, and the Seahawks also had considerably more success slowing 49ers standout Christian McCaffrey than they have in past meetings, holding him to 79 yards on 19 carries.

On paper, a Jets run game that ranks 30^th in yards, 31^st in attempts and 22^nd in rushing yards per attempt might not seem too daunting, but the presence of explosive third-year back Breece Hall means the Seahawks need to be on top of their game, both against the run and the pass.

Hall was selected just five picks ahead of Kenneth Walker III, and just like his fellow 2022 second-round pick, Hall is an explosive back capable of making a big play just about every time he touches the ball.

Hall has just one 100-yard game this season and has rushed for 632 yards and four touchdowns this season, but don't let those relatively modest numbers fool you, he's still a very dangerous back, as is evident in the fact that he has averaged at least 4.9 yards per carry in four straight games. Hall also has 401 receiving yards and two touchdown catches, meaning the Seahawks will have to have a good plan for him every time he's on the field.

"He's got breakaway speed and he runs with power," Macdonald said. "How he runs some of their tracks is not unique, but just kind of unique to his running style. It's something that we have to do a great job preparing for throughout the week. His run after the catch and his breakaway ability is dangerous. We play great players every week, you have a kind of a different plan of attack each week, but it's going to take all 11. We've got to take great angles, we've got to tackle sound, we've got to get to the ball."

On the other side of the ball, the Seahawks are looking to finally have a breakout game on the ground after struggling to find consistency there throughout the season. Macdonald and Grubb have both seen encouraging signs, including some good runs late in the game on the drive that closed out Sunday's win over the Cardinals, but overall it's been tough sledding in the running game, with the Seahawks ranking 28^th in rushing yards and yards per carry (3.9).

"I think the biggest part is that we ran the football when we had to," Grubb said. "At the end of the game when it was the most important, I thought we executed at our best. I think that's the part that you've got to build on is that, when we really had to have it in some critical situations, holding the ball for eight minutes at the end of the game, I thought that gives us a lot of hope that we're headed the right direction."

5. Can the Seahawks keep winning on the road while also staying unbeaten at MetLife Stadium?

Last week, the Seahawks were looking buck a trend by ending a four-game losing streak at home, while this week they're looking to continue a positive trend, having won three of four games on the road so far this season, including two games that, like this week's against the Jets, featured a long trip east and a 10 a.m. PT kickoff.

Despite regularly being among the NFL leaders in miles traveled per season, road success is nothing new to the Seahawks, who have been one of the league's best road teams for the past decade, winning 55 of their road games dating back to 2013, the second most in the NFL over that span.

"It's hard to say one thing and it's probably different week to week, but having a mentality and kind of a goal and a togetherness being on the road has helped and our guys are locked in," Macdonald said. "I think all of our (football operations) people make it seamless for us to go on the road and our guys know what the challenge is each week, and you've got to go execute it. And we've done that three out of four times. But I mean it's kind of the same story as it is at home and obviously wish our home record was better, but it's an opportunity. We have a great opportunity now to go try to get another win and further our position here down the stretch."

In addition to continuing this season's road success, the Seahawks are also looking to improve upon a perfect record at the home of the Jets and Giants. Since MetLife Stadium opened in 2010, the Seahawks have a perfect 6-0 record in that building, having beaten the Giants four times, the Jets once, and, most memorably, the Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.