SEATTLE – Cancel that film release about Geno’s Heroes, the story of the brave underdog Seahawks of 2022 who beat the odds and, dramatically, week after week, prove a nation of unbelievers wrong.
It was fun while it lasted, with Geno Smith playing a likable leading man succeeding in the place of a missing-but-unmourned quarterback, and a gang of rookie draft picks too raw to understand that they shouldn’t be as effective or mature as they’ve shown. .
But the story simply had no legs. Or arms, or whatever part of the body is needed to tackle opposing ball carriers.
Against a Carolina team with 4 wins, in front of a home crowd that was up for the challenge, the Seahawks proved this week that the doubters were absolutely right.
Failing to stop the run again, in historic fashion, the Seahawks fell 30-24. They’re 7-6 right now, so they’re not out of anything yet. At least not mathematically.
But they slipped out of the wild-card playoff picture with the loss, and without curing their congenital defensive flaws, the postseason prospects will likely disappear into the distance (presumably carrying a football into the end zone).
The San Francisco 49ers eliminated Tampa Bay 35-0 on Sunday to advance to 9 wins and secure their position atop the NFC West Division. The Niners are banged up and playing backup at key positions, but they’ll still be tough to beat when they arrive at Lumen Field on Thursday night.
Pulling off an upset on that one would at least revive Seattle’s hopes a bit. His best chance may be that every football-carrying Niner shows up dehydrated from drooling so profusely while he watches movies of Hawk’s defense.
In many cases, you can save the analysis and recognize that football is about pushing others, physically dominating the man in front of you. But in the case of the Seahawks, the numbers are illustrative.
The past five opponents have averaged nearly 200 rushing yards per game.
And 13 games this season, the Hawks have been hit for 2,086 yards. That’s more rushing yards than the Hawks have allowed in full 16-game seasons since 2002 (2,441 yards). But they have four more chances to break that mark.
In something of a freak, the Seahawks have now lost all four games this season against opponents in the NFC South, the only division in the NFL with all four teams under .500.
Carolina didn’t come out trying anything complicated. And in a way, she’s a bit insulting; they didn’t have to come up with a creative scheme to beat Seattle. At times, the Panthers placed three 300-plus-pound linemen at positions considered eligible receivers. Basically, they hitched the mules up front and dared the Falcons to stop them.
They didn’t even come close.
“It just makes you sick to your stomach,” safety Ryan Neal said. “That irritates my soul.”
Coach Pete Carroll knew what the Panthers were going to do and confessed that he prides himself on finding ways to work against it, he said. “I have to do better.”
Absent defensive linemen Shelby Harris (ill) and Al Woods, out with a heel injury, left them shorthanded at key positions. But that was only a small part of the problem.
As for Smith, he threw for three touchdowns but had two interceptions. In one, he threw a risky ball into what he felt was going to be a “free” play, based on an apparent offside by Panther. But the penalty was not called and the ensuing interception stood.
Carroll noted that the Hawks had recovered from a slow start (down 17-0) to come close to being down three, 20-17, in the fourth quarter.
That only made the end result hurt more. In the last 15 minutes, Carolina rushed 15 times for 101 yards. The Seahawks knew it was coming and couldn’t stop it.
It wasn’t a very satisfying final act, and instead of this Seahawks team becoming a heartwarming holiday season story, it might soon be the jalopy everyone’s been waiting for.
Source: news.google.com