By Scott M. Johnson
Herald Writer
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – With a few well-timed defensive schemes and an occasional big play, the Seattle Seahawks spent most of December fighting back into the AFC playoff race without star cornerback Shawn Springs.
He’ll return from a four-game suspension this week, but it will be one crucial drive too late.
The Seahawks saw their playoff chances dwindle to slim and none Sunday after the New York Giants exposed a young secondary and drove 96 yards for the game-winning score. Seattle’s 27-24 loss leaves the team only a flicker of hope in regards to postseason play. The Seahawks need to win their final two games – at San Diego and at home against Kansas City – while the Baltimore Ravens would have to lose their remaining games. Otherwise, it will be another postseason spent at home.
“This probably hurts the most out of all the games we lost this year,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said afterward. “This was a game we felt we could have won, and had opportunities to win. We just let it go. It’s a shame, because this was a big game for us. We needed this one.”
For 57 minutes, it looked as if the Seahawks (7-7) might pull this one out. In fact, things couldn’t have looked better with three minutes to go, as punter Jeff Feagles pinned a punt inside the Giants’ 5-yard line with Seattle clinging to a 24-20 lead and 2:52 remaining.
But New York quarterback Kerry Collins completed 7 of 10 passes to account for all 96 yards, including a 7-yard touchdown pass to Ike Hilliard with just 20 seconds to go, as the Giants completed the improbable drive.
“It seemed like a guy was open every time. It was crazy,” Seahawks defensive lineman Antonio Cochran said of the final drive. “I couldn’t believe it. Ninety-six yards? It was a great punt, good coverage, and we should have stopped them. That was a hell of a drive they made on us.”
The Giants (7-7) took advantage of a soft zone defense to march down the field without having to convert a single third-down until the final play. Collins completed his first five passes of the drive, including three consecutive first downs.
The Seahawks really could have used Springs on that drive, but even Ike Charlton would have sufficed. The second-year cornerback had a pretty solid game while being asked to cover Amani Toomer, New York’s leading receiver, one-on-one for most of the day. But Charlton started suffering cramps midway through the fourth quarter and had to come out of the game.
That left Ken Lucas, Willie Williams and Paul Miranda as the only healthy corners. Lucas got victimized on a 28-yard pass from Collins to Toomer to open the drive, but also came up with a pass breakup that nearly resulted in an interception by teammate Reggie Tongue. Seahawks linebacker Anthony Simmons almost picked off another Collins pass on first-and-goal, but his diving stab came up empty when the ball bounced off Simmons’ fingertips.
Then Collins gave the Giants their second comeback win in as many weeks after Hilliard found a soft spot between Williams and safety Marcus Robertson in Seattle’s zone defense. The third-down play held up after Hasselbeck threw an interception, on the Seahawks’ final drive.
“We had the game in the bag,” Williams said. “They did a great job of finding the holes in the zone and making plays downfield.”
In a game that had sudden-death consequences for both teams, the Seahawks and Giants traded barbs while exchanging remarkably similar scores.
Seattle opened the scoring when running back Shaun Alexander busted open a short-yardage play for a 29-yard touchdown. The Giants’ Ron Dayne matched that carry with a 31-yard touchdown of his own on the very next drive.
After the Seahawks went ahead on a 20-yard Rian Lindell field goal, both teams played copycat again with fumble recoveries that resulted in touchdowns.
Things seemed to turn the Seahawks’ way on the opening kickoff of the second half, as Marcus Bell forced a fumble that was recovered by Miranda at the Giants’ 30. Seattle scored four plays later on another Alexander touchdown, giving the Seahawks a 24-17 lead.
Despite a Giants field goal early in the fourth quarter, it appeared as if Seattle’s lead might hold up. Thanks to some nifty punting from Jeff Feagles, the Seahawks continually pinned New York deep in its own territory for most of the second half.
But when it counted most, Collins and the Giants offense delivered.
“Guys were optimistic when we went out there that we would get it done,” Seattle defensive end Michael Sinclair said. “We had done it before. But it didn’t go our way. We didn’t close the deal. That’s the bottom line. We played well, but when you play well and don’t close out the deal, it doesn’t matter.”
The loss put the Seahawks into a precarious position in regards to possible playoff scenarios. Seattle needed a win, combined with a loss from either Baltimore or New England, to take control of its own playoff destiny. But the Seahawks failed to hold up their end of the bargain.
“It’s gut-wrenching,” Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said afterward. “This is as tough a ball game as we’ve played all year. You’ve got to give credit to the Giants on that last drive. They did a nice job.
“Doggone-it, one of these days our young guys are going to grow up, and hopefully we can win a game like that.”
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