By Mazvita Maraire Posted on

Seahawks suffer another frustraing loss filled with lack of execution and self inflicted wounds.

The 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings capsulated the Seahawk’s season. Many decent, maybe even good, things were coupled with poor performances.  To blame just one person would be wrong and downright unfair. If you ask the general collective, there are plenty of villains to go around.  Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb,  Geno Smith, the offensive line, Riq Woolen, Dre’Monte Jones, and the list goes on and on. You can throw in Mike Macdonald to ensure the list is complete. Given the time of the year, we want to ensure every list is complete.

GETTING BACK TO FOOTBALL

As for Sunday’s crushing loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the team looked and played its part early on. It came out with intent, fought hard, and made some decent plays. After the Vikings jumped out to a 7-0 lead, the Seahawks tied the game on their second possession of the game when good Geno Smith connected with DK Metcalf on a 25-yard pass play early in the second quarter. A third-down sack by Jarran Reed on  Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold forced a punt.  Three straight  Smith incomplete passes took noise out of the stadium as the Seahawks punted the ball back to the Vikings.

MOMENTUM KILLER

Life was brought back to Lumen Field when Reed and Leonard Williams held Vikings running back Aaron Jones to a two-yard gain on second and 10. The play invigorated the 12’s, who screamed their lungs out on 3rd  and 8.   When Derick Hall sacked  Darnold, it was so loud you could not hear yourself think. All turned to naught as  Tre Brown was called for defensive holding, which negated the sack and advanced the ball five yards.

On the next play, Darnold drilled a 14-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson, which extended the Viking’s lead to 14-7.  Smith threw the first of his two interceptions on their next offensive possession.  The Vikings cashed the miscue into a 52-yard field goal by Will Reichard for the 17-7 lead. And yes, one could hear a pin drop as bewildered  Seahawk fans looked on.

SOME LIFE

The defense continued to play its part, and Smith looked like he was up for the task when he engineered a five-play 88-yard drive that was capped by an 18-yard touchdown pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba just before.  Bewildered fans turned to each other and dared to hope as they went to the concessions stand and bathrooms for the halftime break. Hope turned to belief when Jason Myers‘s 43-yard field goal tied the game to start the second half. The Vikings took the lead on their next possession with a Reichard 48-yard field and that hope momentarily subsided.

SAME OLD ENDING

Another defensive stand brought the crow to its feed, and they stayed standing when the Seahawks took the lead when Smith found AJ Barner in the back of the endzone from the four-yard line to give the Seahawks a 24-20 lead with a little over four minutes left in the game. The crowd continued its yelling, chanting with the belief they were watching an upset win.   But it was not to be. On second and 10 from the Vikings 46-yard line, Darnold was sacked for minutes eight yards by Williams and Jones. That was until a face mask penalty was called on Byron Murphy for grabbing Darnold’s helmet.

 Before the disapproving crowd could sit down, Darnold hit Jefferson with a 39-yard laser beam pass for the touchdown. After the PAT, the Vikings led 27-24 and never looked back as the Seahawks continued their self-destruct routine.

CHANCE BUT NO CHANCE


With 3:51 left in the game and the ball at their 30-yard line, Smith threw back-to-back completions to,  Noah Fant for 18 yards and Ken McIntosh 15. Smith was sacked on first down and threw two incomplete passes. Facing a  4th and 15, Jason Myers attempted a 60-yard field goal, which was short. The miss deflated the fan’s hope of an upset win as exit plans were being discussed.  That hope returned when  Derick Hall sacked Darnold on  3rd and 7 with  1:47 left in the game. The Vikings punted, and the Seahawks fans mustered every ounce of hope for the miraculous comeback win. Those hopes were dashed when Vikings cornerback  Theo Jackson picked off Smith’s intended pass for  DK Metcalf.

BIG PICTURE

The Seahawks had more than a decent chance to win the game. One might say they gave it away due to the same ailments they have had all season—lack of execution, self-inflicted wounds, and a sheer desire to win the game at all costs. The fake punt on fourth down was a gusty move, but it was all for naught as the play monetarily extended the drive but brought no points. Give credit to head coach Mike Macdonald for taking ownership in another poor performance by his team.

” Against a team like this, the unforced errors has to get cleaned up. It starts with me. So we’ll look at it just like we do every week,’ said Macdonald after the teams loss to the Vikngs .”Look at it and make adjustments and move forward. But we have to clean up the procedural stuff.”

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