By: Peter Vandeventer | @PeteVandeventer
After a rocky start to the game, the Seahawks defense tightened up and the offense stepped up as they went on to beat the Browns 32-28.
Thanks to feisty ball play as well as Baker Mayfield’s accuracy (or lack thereof), the Seahawks defense found a way to force four turnovers, three of which occurred within the Seahawks 40-yard line.
Offensively, the Seahawks took advantage of the errors and turned them into points which allowed them to erase a 20-6 point deficit going into the half. Through the rest of the game, the Seahawks offense rarely missed a beat and kept the game out of reach for the dynamic Browns offense.
Key Players
Russell Wilson
Russell Wilson is continuing to grow in his 8th season and keeps making spectacular throws that you won't see many QBs make let alone attempt. But still, Russ has yet to throw an interception *knocks on wood* while boasting the 2nd most TDs, 2nd highest completion percentage, and highest passer rating. To add to that, Russ has joined Aaron Rogers and Carson Palmer as the only players to have a passer rating over 100 in each of their first six games of the season. And if you're not impressed yet, then may I tempt you with a story:
Russ had an issue with his helmet and communication with the OC, but he went on to call his own 8 play, 88 yard drive. Honestly speaking, being Russ’ OC is one of the easiest jobs in the NFL that you can have. Russ knows the team just as much as the coaches and has an ability to make plays that no one else can and has a never-quit mentality that is extremely contagious.
Shaquill Griffin
Griffin has stepped up in the post-LOB Seahawks secondary and it showed today. He came away with a couple of pass breakups (one of which ended up being an interception) against a pretty good receiving core with OBJ and Landry. The best part of it all is it looks like the game is slowing down for Shaq in coverage, he is making plays on the ball in the air and as it makes contact with the receiver to dislodge the ball that only the best can do. Currently, Shaq has an 83.5 coverage grade which ranks 6th out of 110 eligible CBs.
Chris Carson
Surprise, the run-heavy Seahawks ran the ball with Chris Carson again and he was successful...NOT. It looks like the Carson has finally turned the corner with his fumble woes and it should scare every team in the league. With 124 yard on the ground, Chris Carson has now averaged 115 yards a game since his last fumble and puts him on pace for 1300 yard which will likely be surpassed.
Entire Offensive Line
Going into Sunday, the Seahawks knew that they would be without two of their leaders along the line in DJ Fluker and Duane Brown. In place of them, the Seahawks started George Fant and Jarmaco Jones… issue like such could severely hurt the offense and cause play calling issues all game long. Oh, and add the Myles Garrett/Olivier Vernon combo to the mix and that could've caused all sorts of issues for Wilson. But you can tell by the offensive production that the unit took a huge step up to the issue and only gave up 3 sacks (2 of which was to Myles Garrett). Though George Fant scored POORLY by PFF, Jamarco Jones didn’t (had an 84 pass pro grade) and continues to play so well that we might have a starter controversy in our hands when Fluker comes back from injury.
Key Takeaways
Whenever a team has to travel back east and play Sunday morning, you usually start slow and that definitely showed early on. Nothing seemed to have been working on the defensive side for most of the 1st half but it turned quickly when they finally woke up.
The Seahawks offense took a big hit Sunday and lost Will Dissly, their bona fide star at TE with what sounds to be a ruptured achilles. This loss is huge as Dissly has 4 TDs so far this year and grabbed a lot of Wilson’s targets to start the year. The Seahawks may have help on the way as Ed Dickson is eligible to return in week 9 from the IR.
Speaking of returning players, the Seahawks have Jarran Reed back and it couldn’t come at a better time. The Seahawks DL has performed poorly in the sack department, the unit didn’t collect a sack against an OL that gave up 4 sacks to the 49ers front seven. Reed and his 10.5 sacks from the DT position can really help provide pressure from the inside and open things up for Clowney and Ansah on the outside.
The Seahawks are 5-1, let me repeat that, the Seahawks are 5-1. It has been a commonality with Pete Carroll’s teams over the years that they start slowly and end up hitting their stride in the winter months. Well here we are, the Seahawks are a top 5 team in the NFL and they still haven’t played a complete game from beginning to end on both sides of the ball.
The Seahawks have Baltimore coming to town next week, a team with a dynamic QB, physical offense, and playmakers on defense (Hey, Earl Thomas). There is a great chance that this game will have more rushing yards than passing yards with Lamar Jackson and Mark Ingram coming into town to take on Russell Wilson and Chris Carson. This will be another great game and the Seahawks have a shot to go 4-0 against AFC North teams. But I’m not trying to get ahead of myself.