Grading The Seahawks Win Over The Rams

The Seattle Seahawks defense continued its upward trend and the offense scored two second-half touchdowns to seal the Seahawks 20-9 win over the Los Angeles Rams. The win propelled the Seahawks to their first NFC West Division Title since 2016. Here are unit grades.

OFFENSE

After scoring two first-half field goals the Seahawks scored two second-half touchdowns. It’s not so much that they scored its how and when the offense crossed the Rams endzone. The first of the two mammoth drives was on the Seahawk’s first possession of the second half. The seven play 70-yard drive chewed up 4:28 second of clock time and set the tone for the second half.

Russell Wilson was three for three on the drive. Two of three pass completions were on third down. A 23-yard pass David Moore on 3rd and 8th was followed up with an 18-yard reception to Carlos Hyde on 3^rd and 9.

The most impressive of the two drives was the last one. It was similar to the first drive in time the of possession and length of the drive. The second drive was nine plays, 80 yards, and eat up 4:29 seconds of clock time. What made the second drive more impressive was when it happened. The offense started from its own 20-yard line with 7:20 left in the game. When Wilson connected with TE Jacob Hollister for the game-clinching 13 yard TD pass play there 2:56 left in the game.

BIG TAKE AWAY

The Seahawks offense scored it needed to score against the NFL no. 1 ranked defense. Not sure there is much else to say there. Okay, one more thing. The offense was 5 of 8 on 3^rd downs in the second half.

GRADE: B

DEFENSE

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is quoted as saying his linebackers played their best game to date. The reason for Carroll’s high praise was the linebacker’s ability to stop the Rams stretch play. After eleven unsuccessful running plays aimed at running outside of their tackles, the Rams offense tried to run inside and rely on Jared Goff. Coming into the game the Rams had the 8th overall ranked offense because of the run game which was ranked 8th best in the league. Once the Rams offense became one-dimensional the Seahawks Dline was able to go after Goff. The result was three sacks and an interception. And of course, the unforgettable goal-line stance by the defense was a permanent moment changer.

BIG TAKE AWAY:

The Seahawks confidence is at an all-time high on defense. It is not just false bravado . The continuity has resulted in the emergence of rookie linebacker Jordyn Brooks, and  corner back DJ Reed. Brooks, Reed and  Jamal Adams all finished the game with eight tackles each.

GRADE :A

SPECIAL TEAMS

Jason Myers had another perfect day connecting on two first-half field goals of 45 and 49 yards. Punter Michael Dickson had five punts with a net average of 46.4 and place four of the five kicks inside the Rams 20 yard line. The one blemish was a roughing the kicker penalty on Ryan Neal that resulted in Rams first down. The defense forced a punt several players later so the gaffe became inconsequential. The team did have a missed opportunity when Ben Burr-Kirven forced a fumble on a kickoff return that was recovered by the Rams

GRADE: A

The unit was consistent except for the rare mistake by Neal. The Seahawks players understand the importance of special teams and are part of the reason the Seahawks are a contender for the Super Bowl.

COACHING

Credit defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr for a flawless defensive play that turned the Rams offense one dimensional. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer deserves credit for switching to an up-tempo offense in the second half and sticking with the run game through the game.