The Seattle Seahawks stumbled out of the gate against the LA Rams today, with Geno Smith throwing a pick on his first pass. However, they stuck with it and fought the Rams into overtime, where they captured a 19-16 win thanks to a Jason Myers redemption-field goal.
Buy Seahawks TicketsHere are five takeaways.
1
Seahawks' playoff hopes still alive
Don’t stick a fork in these Seahawks just yet. Thanks to their win over the Rams, their playoff hopes are still alive. Now to get into the playoffs they’ll need the Lions to beat the Packers on Sunday Night Football. Detroit has won just three of their last 30 visits to Green Bay, though.
2
Geno Smith never really got into a rhythm
Smith began the game by throwing an interception – which was a great play on the ball by Jalen Ramsey. While it’s tough to fault Smith too much for that pass, he was never really able to get into a rhythm aside from one beautiful dime for a touchdown to Tyler Lockett. Ramsey picked him off again in the third quarter on an awful decision and Smith was lucky to avoid another pick in the second quarter. He ended the game 19/31 for 213 yards, one touchdown and a 65.7 passer rating.
3
Bobby Wagner got a hero's welcome
Former Seahawks middle linebacker Bobby Wagner was the only player the Rams sent out for the coin-toss and he got an incredible standing ovation and “Bobby-Bobby” cheer from the crowd.
Classy move by Rams coach Sean McVay, sending out Bobby Wagner as LA’s only captain for the coin toss in his Seattle reunion game vs Seahawks.
Lumen Field crowd roars, then chants “Bob-by! Bob-by!” @thenewstribune pic.twitter.com/2SX1TiMVzg
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) January 8, 2023
Wagner ends the season with the second-highest PFF grade among off-ball linebackers. He still has four years left on his contract with Los Angeles.
4
Pass rush finishes regular season on strong note
This was a pretty ugly game all around, but one silver lining was the pass rush finishing the season strong. In the first half they got to Baker Mayfield for three sacks, including Boye Mafe’s third of the season. As a team, they finished the day with five sacks and 10 quarterback hits.
5
Run defense remains problematic to the last
While the pass rush’s gains down the stretch are encouraging, the defense still can’t get over what’s been their fatal flaw all year long. Cam Akers did most of the damage on the ground, totaling 104 yards on 21 carries. However, he wasn’t the only Ram who got in on the action. As a team they averaged 5.2 yards per carry.
