It was not the prettiest of wins, but the bottom line for head coach Mike Macdonald and his team is that squad is 8-3 and in the hunt for an NFC West title. In the sloppy win there were some positives by the Seahawks.
“ It’s a good win, you know. It’s tough coming east. 10 a.m. game for our guys. You got to get the Titans a lot of credit. They played extremely hard. I mean, their quarterback played really well. He’s a really hard guy to get on the ground, and extended plays and did a great job, especially on some of those third and fourth downs, “ said Mike Macdonald.
“ I mean, our guys were playing really hard there at the end, and I thought we showed a lot of maturity, you know, Working through all the things and how the game went, you would have liked for us to be able to close the game out earlier, but, they’re fighting hard and they played hard and they returned the kick for a touchdown and my guys showed a lot of resiliencey just keep playing.”
FRANCHISE RECORD
Jaxson Smith-Njigba had another banner day and in doing so, set the team record for most receptions in a single season. Smith-Njigba hauled in eight receptions for 167 yards and two touchdowns. One of the touchdown catches was an electrifying 63-yard reception. The 167 reception yards were a season high and saw Smith-Njigba break the Seahawks’ record for receptions in a single season with 1,313 yards, surpassing the 1,303 yards set in 2020 by DK Metcalf. More impressive is that Smith-Njigba broke the record with six games to go in the regular season.
“It means a lot, you know, this is a great organization, and great receivers have come through here, so, honestly, I look at it as it as a team award, honestly, because, you know, without Sam and without the protection, without Sheed and Coop, you know, you know, this doesn’t happen. And, you know, so I’m grateful, I’m thankful, blessed for my team, blessed to be a Seahawk,” said Smith-Njigba.
REDZONE STRUGGLES
One improvement for the Rams loss was the zero turnovers by Sam Darnold and the offense. Darnold rebounded from last week’s four interceptions, finishing the day with a quarterback rating of 118 after completing 16 of 26 pass attempts for 244 yards and two touchdowns. The continued regression for the Seahawks offense was red zone efficiency. Against the Rams, the Seahawks were 1/4 in the red zone; against the Titans, the offense was 2/4 in the red zone.
“ It’s good to get a win, obviously . I thought as an offense, we we were able to move the ball up down the field. Um, you know, we just got to finish when we get in the red zone. I think that’s the the story today, “ said Darnold. “ You know, and then, operationally, we can clean up some penalties, but overall, again, we were moving the ball at a high clip today, but you know, we just got to continue to finish. our drives and finishing the red zone.”
The penalties were an issue for the Seahawks, who had eleven penalties for 69 yards. The eleven penalties are one shy of the team’s season high of 12. Another needs improvement mark was the Seahawks’ special teams. The Seahawks gave up a 63 punt return for a touchdown.
Defense Overcomes Injuries
The Seahawks’ linebacking unit took a hit before the game when it was announced that Ernest Jones would be inactive and join Tyrice Knight who was also inactive due to a concussion. Patrick O’Connell was elevated from the practice squad and started the game next at inside linebacker alongside Drake Thomas. Things went from bad to worse when safety Ty Okada went down with an oblique injury late in the first half, and D’Anthony Bell took over.
The lack of depth showed as the Titans ran 68 plays to the Seahawks’ 47. The Cam Ward-led Titans offense was 6 /17on third down and an impressive 5/7 on fourth down. The inability to get off the field cut the Seahawks’ lead to a one-score game with 40 seconds left. The Seahawks were able to run out the game after an unsuccessful onside kick attempt.
“It’s the NFL, you know. They’re gonna make plays, too. It’s more so, I feel like, about how you respond in those moments, and I feel like, we responded well, and we ended up with the W, so that’s all that matters,” said Drake Thomas after the game
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