Here’s how the Seattle Seahawks grade out in their 20-17 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night at Lumen Field:
OFFENSE
Seattle was plunged into uncertainty, as starting quarterback Geno Smith wasn’t ruled out because of his groin injury until shortly before kickoff. Therefore, Drew Lock was thrust into his second consecutive start. Lock wasn’t as effective as he was last week against San Francisco, but he produced perhaps the most important drive of the season when, trailing 17-13 with 1:52 remaining, he took the Seahawks 92 yards, hitting Jaxon Smith-Njigba with a perfect 29-yard touchdown pass with 28 seconds remaining to win it. After finding little joy with the run game in the first half, Kenneth Walker III (19 carries, 86 yards and a score) busted out in the second half. Seattle’s 297 yards of offense weren’t a lot, but the Seahawks got them when they needed them most.
Grade: B
DEFENSE
It wasn’t a perfect night for Seattle’s defense. The Seahawks gave up three sustained scoring drives of 12-plus plays, allowed the Eagles to go 10-for-17 on third and fourth downs, and immediately gave up a TD drive after tying it at 10-10 in the third quarter. However, the defense got three straight stops in the third and fourth quarters to keep giving Seattle a chance to tie or win it. Safety Julian Love came up with two critical fourth-quarter interceptions, one that prevented the Eagles from taking a two-score lead and the other that clinched the victory. And after giving up explosive plays left and right last week against San Francisco, the Seahawks effectively gave up none Monday.
Grade: A-
SPECIAL TEAMS
Punter Michael Dickson again was a factor in changing field position, averaging 56.0 yards on his five punts. Kicker Jason Myers had no issues with his two field goals. Punt returner DeeJay Dallas had one iffy moment in the first quarter when he let a short punt bounce, then watched as Philadelphia got a big roll on what ended up being a 61-yard punt. Jon Rhattigan’s illegal bat of the ball while in punt coverage in the first quarter resulted in a 10-yard penalty and a re-kick, and Seattle lost 17 yards on the exchange.
Grade: B-
COACHING
The most important coaching decision Seattle made may have been to continue handing the ball off to Walker in the second half, despite having little success with the run in the first half, and the Seahawks were rewarded with the third-quarter touchdown that made it 10-10 and gave Seattle life. The Seahawks chose not to blitz Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts, and while that resulted in zero quarterback hits, it was also a big part of why the Eagles had no explosive plays. Twice there were snafus that led to timeouts when going for it on fourth down during a third-quarter drive, and the second timeout allowed Philadelphia to successfully challenge a play, which forced Seattle to settle for a field goal. The staff successfully navigated not knowing who the starting quarterback was going to be.
Grade: A-
OVERALL
This was a season-saving result for the Seahawks. Seattle had lost four straight, was facing a tough 10-3 Eagles team, and another loss would have dropped the Seahawks two games below .500 and made the playoffs an unlikely prospect. But now Seattle is 7-7, and with several results going their way over the weekend the Seahawks right back in the mix for a wild-card spot. Seattle may have won just one game during it’s brutal four-game stretch against San Francisco (twice), Dallas and Philadelphia, and the Seahawks are still one place out of playoff position. But the last three are all against beatable opponents, and it’s all in Seattle’s hands again.
Grade: A-
– Nick Patterson, Herald writer
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
