Here’s how the Seattle Seahawks grade out in their 21-20 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at State Farm Stadium:
OFFENSE
The result and the stats don’t necessarily reflect it, but this was a largely dismal performance by Seattle’s offense. Running back Kenneth Walker broke free for some exciting runs in the first half, and the Seahawks were actually pretty good on third down (6-for-12) after struggling for much of the season. However, the offense was impotent in the second half, punting on each of its first four possessions as Arizona turned a 13-6 halftime deficit into a 20-13 fourth-quarter lead. The Seahawks finally put a TD drive together in the waning minutes after Arizona missed what should have been the clinching field goal and then went into a prevent defense, so at least there was that.
Grade: D+
DEFENSE
Seattle hasn’t been able to stop the run to save its life since mid-November, and that was again the case Sunday as the Cardinals gashed the Seahawks for 206 yards on the ground, making it the second straight week Seattle allowed 200-plus rushing. The tackling issues which were so glaring in last week’s loss to Pittsburgh weren’t a lot better this week. The good news was that the defense stiffened in the red zone, and the only red-zone TD Arizona scored was on a fake field goal. But for the second straight week the Seahawks allowed an offensively-challenged opponent to rack up a season high in yardage, and Seattle didn’t even get the defensive stops it needed in the fourth quarter as the Cardinals twice had field-goal attempts to either ice or win it.
Grade: D
SPECIAL TEAMS
Seattle was having an excellent game on special teams. Kicker Jason Myers made his three chip-shot field goals to set a new franchise record for field goals in a season. Punter Michael Dickson deadened punts inside the 20 to pin the Cardinals back. And the coverage on both kickoffs and punts was on point. However, the special teams got burned big time when the field-goal defense unit got caught on a fake field goal in the fourth quarter, which gave Arizona a 20-13 lead. Whether Seattle should have been given the opportunity to make substitutions on the fake field goal is a subject for debate.
Grade: C+
COACHING
The coaches’ offensive game plan in the first half had the Arizona defense confused on multiple occasions, the Seahawks managed the clock well at the end of the first half to squeeze out a field goal as time expired, and Seattle was flagged for no penalties. However, Pete Carroll wasn’t able to get a timeout in time to prevent the fake field goal, and Arizona won the battle of halftime adjustments as the Cardinals were largely the better team in the second half. Thank you to Carroll for going for two following the late touchdown to ensure there was no overtime in a dead rubber.
Grade: C
OVERALL
Well, give the Seahawks credit for not giving up when it was clear they knew Green Bay had won to officially eliminate them from playoff contention, and Seattle at least got the result it needed to give itself a chance at the postseason. But the truth is the victory was gift-wrapped by the Cardinals, who missed two field goals in the final three minutes, either of which would have won it for Arizona. A true playoff contender doesn’t need a handout from a four-win team, and there was nothing from this performance that suggested the Seahawks belonged in the postseason. Seattle finished its season with a winning record at 9-8.
Grade: C-
– Nick Patterson, Herald writer
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