Week 10 was a brilliant week for the Seattle Seahawks, as they were the only team in the NFC West to win a game. What’s more, their victory came against their biggest rival in a thrilling overtime classic.
The Cardinals suffered a gut-wrenching defeat to the Buccaneers, while the Rams fell to the streaking Steelers on the road.
The Seahawks are now in a great position heading into their bye week and have a chance to win the division outright. Let us dive a little deeper into the specifics of how Seattle’s rivals fared last week.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30 – Arizona Cardinals 27
The Cardinals lost a heartbreaker to the Buccaneers (3-6) on the road. Kyler Murray turned in a solid performance with three touchdowns and an interception and wide receiver Christian Kirk had a breakout game by catching all three of those TDs, with six total receptions for 138 yards.
Running back David Johnson was benched in favor of Kenyan Drake after the former fumbled in the third quarter, but the real story was the Cardinals’ poor defensive performance and the questionable officiating.
Jameis Winston may have thrown two interceptions, but he also threw for 358 passing yards. The Arizona defense had trouble containing Tampa Bay’s offensive attack and that ultimately led to the Cardinals’ downfall.
The Cardinals will play the 49ers (8-1) in a last-ditch effort to salvage their season on Sunday.
Pittsburgh Steelers 17 – Los Angeles Rams 12
The Rams dropped a game to the Steelers (5-4) as they continue to fall behind in the race for the division crown.
Pittsburgh’s defense shut down Sean McVay’s offense and forced quarterback Jared Goff into two interceptions while preventing any touchdowns. In perhaps the most crucial play of the game, Minkah Fitzpatrick returned a Goff fumble for a score to give the Steelers a 14-7 lead that they would not give up.
The Rams offensive line could not handle Pittsburgh’s defensive playmakers up front and could not open holes in the running game, and this cost them dearly. The Rams defense held sturdy for most of the game and they scored a touchdown in the first 14 seconds of regulation off a botched snap that was recovered by Dante Fowler, who then ran into the end zone, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the struggles of the offense.
The Rams return home to play the Bears (4-5), who are coming off a 20-13 home victory to the Lions. It is safe to say that it is now or never for the struggling Rams.
Seattle Seahawks 27 – San Francisco 49ers 24 (OT)
In what was perhaps the most intense game of the year, San Francisco fell to Seattle in its first loss of the season. A back-and-forth affair featuring multiple fumbles and defensive touchdowns, both teams refused to concede defeat even throughout overtime.
The 49ers didn’t have star tight end George Kittle, who was held out with knee and ankle injuries, but they kept the game close. Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 248 yards, a touchdown and an interception while their defense made several plays and stops that kept San Francisco in the game, including a fumble forced by Fred Warner and recovered by DeForest Buckner, who returned it for a touchdown to turn an 11-point deficit into a three-point one.
Rookie kicker Chase McLaughlin tied the game up at 24-24 with a 47-yard field goal in the waning seconds of regulation, but he shanked another 47-yarder wide left in overtime when a score would have won the game. Jason Myers would ultimately kick the game-winning field goal as overtime expired.
San Francisco plays Arizona (3-6-1) on Sunday in another showdown with an NFC West rival.
