EATTLE – Impressions from the Seahawks’ 16-0 victory over the Raiders Monday night:
This had to be a feelgood game for the Seahawks, especially for the defense, torched the past two weeks by Minnesota and Kansas City.
Never mind the success came against lowly Oakland. The Seahawks needed a confidence boost after playing listlessly the past 41/2 games. The last time the defense played with this much intensity was in the first half against the New York Giants Sept. 24.
“Our defense had a few things to prove,” Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said. “I think they played very, very hard and very, very smart.”
The offense wasn’t pretty, but it was efficient. The horrible weather dictated emphasis on the ground game, and Mo Morris responded with 138 yards on 30 carries. The Seahawks had no turnovers. Seneca Wallace was 18-for-30 passing for 176 yards and a TD. He didn’t throw an interception.
” (Running the ball) was something we had to do,” Holmgren said. “I don’t want to overload Seneca at the quarterback position. It’s important to get our defense off the field a little bit and that we sustain things.”
Now, the real question: Were the Seahawks that rejuvenated or are the Raiders that bad.
Answer: Both. Still, the win was needed going into a favorable stretch in the schedule that includes St. Louis, at San Francisco, Green Bay and a pair of road games against Denver and Arizona.
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Is it just me, or do the Raiders have a conspiracy against playing former Washington Husky Marques Tuiasosopo? They drafted Andrew Walter two years ago, then brought in Aaron Brooks as a free agent in the off-season.
Walter replaced Brooks because of injury and started Monday night. The whole time, I’m wondering whether Tuiasosopo’s skills have deteriorated over the years from inactivity to the point where he’s unplayable. Walter couldn’t move the offense a lick, partly because his offensive line is a virtual red carpet to Walter’s sweating, anxiety-ridden hide, which was sacked nine times.
Seems to me that Tuiasosopo can get beaten up just as well as Walter can.
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Seahawks tight end Jerramy Stevens appears to be in shape in neither body nor mind. One disastrous second-quarter drive earned him a one-way pass into Holmgren’s doghouse.
First, he jawed at free safety Stuart Schweigert, resulting in a 15-yard penalty that backed the Seahawks up from the Raiders 10-yard line to the 25.
“We were down there ready to score,” Holmgren said. “It was a huge thing, so I was upset with him and I took him out.”
He was back in three plays later, only to drop a certain TD pass. This, after Raiders defensive tackle Terdell Sands woofed himself into a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct and took the Seahawks to the Raider 13.
The Seahawks settled for a field goal.
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Raiders coach Art Shell never asked me, but I can’t believe they’re getting the most they can out of Randy Moss, once the most feared deep threat in football.
Moss entered the game with 26 receptions for 371 yards, an average of 14.3 yards a catch. At this rate, Moss will have his second-worst year, after his injury-shortened final season at Minnesota in 2004, when he had just 49 catches for 767 yards.
The reports from Oakland are that Moss is dropping more than his share of passes and that he’s continuing his normal routine of giving a spotty effort.
Monday night, the Raiders used him primarily on short outs and medium-range slants. Just once did they even attempt a deep pattern.
After Monday night’s dismal showing by the Raiders’ offense, it’s questionable whether the team has a quarterback who can get the ball deep to Moss with any consistency. Or an offensive line that will give the quarterback that kind of time.
Moss finished with six catches for 76 yards, with a long of 18. He dropped two throws. When requested, he angrily refused comment after the game.
We can’t print what he told reporters.
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