If at the beginning of the season I told you the Seahawks wouldn’t score their first touchdown until the 4th quarter of Week 2, you wouldn’t believe me. But here we are, it’s a reality. Thankfully, the Hawks defense was able to hold the 49ers TD-less for the second straight week.
Offense
It feels like déjà vu, the Hawks run game was all but nonexistent again for three and a half quarters. If it weren’t for rookie Chris Carson, I would be very, very worried. Carson had an explosive second half, gaining crucial yardage to put the Seahawks in position to run out the clock and secure the victory. Not to mention, he ended the game with 93 yards on 20 carries, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. Thomas Rawls was back on the field today for the first time since being sidelined with an ankle injury in early August but his 4 measly yards made no difference to the game.
Unfortunately for the receiving core, there were a lot of drops today which forced Blair Walsh to kick field goals instead of extra point’s and kept this a very low scoring game. Thankfully, Paul Richardson tallied Seattle’s first TD of the season to give them the lead in the 4th quarter and ultimately the victory. Tyler Lockett and Doug Baldwin had decent days with 64 yards and 44 yards respectively, however, the offense still looked slow and disconnected.
“I don’t want to take anything away from the 49ers but we felt like we should come in and have success. And it was ugly.”
Doug Baldwin
The o-line didn’t improve much from last week to this week allowing poor Russell Wilson to be sacked three times again, bringing his total to six sacks on the season so far. Wilson was not innocent though, he had quite a few missteps today as well which left a lot of fans on Twitter questioning if he was okay. However, we got to see a glimpse of vintage Wilson when he was able to escape pressure and find Richardson for a 9 yard score.
“I thought Russell was very resourceful today, maybe not as sharp because of the balls that weren’t handled as well, but when we needed it, he was making plays. The touchdown drive was phenomenal.”
Head Coach Pete Carroll
Eddie Lacy, the Hawks big off season acquisition, was a healthy scratch today and just didn’t play due to coaches decision, which is troubling to say the least. There are so many issues that need to be addressed on offense but I am trying to remain optimistic and remember that it is only week 2, we can’t jump to conclusions just yet!
Defense
Seattle’s defense held the 49ers to three field goals which would be more impressive if the Panthers had not just held them to one field goal in week 1. Michael Bennett and Frank Clark were each able to sack Brian Hoyer, which again would be more impressive if he had not been sacked four times the week before. I’m not trying to discredit their performance, however, it was the 49ers and we have a small sample size. Regardless, the LOB remained dominant aside for a few misses against the run, like when powerhouse Carlos Hyde broke free for a huge 61 yard run that nearly put the Hawks in real danger of starting the season 0-2. Here’s hoping Seattle won’t need to rely on their defense to bail them out again in week 3.
Up Next
The Seahawks travel to the “Music City” for a matchup against Marcus Mariota and the Tennessee Titans. Both teams are currently sitting at .500 on the season and looking to nab back to back victories. The Titans had a big time offensive showing in week 2, defeating the Jags 37-16, so the Seahawks are going to have their work cut out for them on Sunday, September 24th at 1:05pm PST. Go Hawks!
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