Division games are never a sure thing, as the Seattle Seahawks found out on “Sunday Night Football” after a punishing 28-12 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The Seahawks had the opportunity to clinch a playoff berth with a loss or tie, but instead fell to second in the NFC West due in part to the 49ers’ win over the Saints earlier in the day. This week, Seattle boasted one star but unfortunately fielded much more to criticize – here’s the good, the bad, and the ugly from the Seahawks’ prime-time outing at the Coliseum.
THE GOOD
Quandre Diggs: The trade for Quandre Diggs looks more and more like a steal as the safety picked off Rams quarterback Jared Goff in two consecutive drives, bringing life to a Seahawks team that trailed by 18 at the beginning of the second half. He brought the first interception back 55 yards to the house for six points on the first drive of the third quarter, then surprised Goff deep in the red zone on the next drive to save another Rams touchdown and give Seattle the ball back. Diggs has been involved in five turnovers this season, having notched three interceptions, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in just four games with the Seahawks.
THE BAD
The offensive line: Seattle’s offense could not seem to get anything going, despite a few solid opportunities (such as a blocked field goal in the third quarter) created by the defense down the stretch. Russell Wilson was sacked five times for 43 lost yards, taking 11 hits in all while having almost no time to throw the football before the Rams defensive line collapsed the pocket. They also accounted for 25 penalty yards (holding, false start, holding) in the fourth quarter, when the Seahawks most desperately needed to move the ball downfield to have a shot at a comeback.
The defense: Diggs had a fantastic game, but he was essentially the lone bright spot against Goff, who put up two touchdowns and 293 yards on a Seahawks defense that has shown much improvement in the second half of the season. In all, Goff had seven “explosive” passing plays (16 yards or more), splitting six of them between tight end Tyler Higbee (7/11, 116 yards) and receiver Robert Woods (7/9, 98 yards, 1 TD). Meanwhile, Rams running back Todd Gurley added 79 yards on the ground, as Woods and receiver Josh Reynolds also put up 29 yards apiece, making up the brunt of Los Angeles’ 162 total rushing yards. Next week, Seattle faces a dual receiving-rushing threat in Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey. Seattle will need to get back on track and be firing on all cylinders in order to take away his impact on the game.
THE UGLY
Rashaad Penny’s injury: Just a few minutes into the football game, Penny managed a 16-yard completion for a first down but was subsequently tackled by former Washington Husky Taylor Rapp. Penny remained on the ground, pounding his fist in pain, and was ultimately declared out by the team due to what Pete Carroll later described as a “significant” ACL sprain. For a young running back that was starting to heat up after a disappointing three months, the injury is just the latest in a promising career marred by missed time. For the team, it devastates their plans for the two-pronged rushing attack that was finally coming together. It will be back to the drawing board for the Seahawks, who will need to rely on C.J. Prosise and Travis Homer as backups to Chris Carson until they can figure out a new plan of attack going into the playoffs.
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