The Seattle Seahawks were defeated 26-20 by their NFC West rival Los Angeles in overtime in Sunday’s Week 9 contest. Trailing 20-13 late in the fourth quarter, starting quarterback Geno Smith located sophomore wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 14-yard touchdown with under one minute to play, sending the game to overtime.
The Seahawks won the coin toss in OT and received an opportunity to score a walk-off touchdown. The Seahawks ran seven plays on that possession, gaining a total of 54 yards. Facing a 3rd-and-1 from the Rams’ 16-yard line, running back Kenneth Walker III was stuffed at the line of scrimmage. Head coach Mike Macdonald opted for the fourth-down attempt as opposed to kicking a go-ahead field goal.
Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb called another Walker run, and he was again stuffed at the LOS for no gain. The Rams took over possession and swiftly scored a game-winning TD. Speaking with the media on Monday, Macdonald was critical of Grubb’s third-and-fourth-down play calling.
“It’s not good enough right now,” Macdonald bluntly said. “We’re not converting those short yardage situations.” Macdonald did add, “It’s not like he [Grubb] just sits in his office and dreams this stuff up. It’s a team effort,” carefully ensuring to avoid placing full blame on Grubb.
Mike Macdonald was asked about the package of critical-down plays (third/fourth) that OC Ryan Grubb is coming into games with.
Macdonald said, in part: “It’s not good enough right now.”
Full response below pic.twitter.com/hrhl6LLeoD
— Dugar, Michael-Shawn (@MikeDugar) November 4, 2024
Grubb is a first-year NFL offensive coordinator that is working through some critical-down (third/fourth down) struggles. An underperforming offensive line and rushing attack isn’t making those decisions easier. Together, Macdonald and Grubb must find ways to improve in crucial situations.
