As the Seattle Seahawks prepare for their first trip to the playoffs since 2022, one thing has become crystal clear: They will make it as far as their offense can take them.
For most of the season, the Seahawks’ defense has carried them. The unit is among the best in the NFL, and heading into their game Thursday night against the Los Angeles Rams, they were allowing the fewest yards per passing attempt and the second-fewest rushing yards per attempt.
However, the offense has been struggling to get going for much of the season. For every explosive game by Jaxon Smith-Njigba, or near-perfect performance by Sam Darnold, or bruising run by Kenneth Walker, there is a game where Smith-Njigba vanishes from the offense, games where Darnold has the same deep ball touch as a seagull with one wing, and games where the running game doesn’t get going.
No game better characterized the see-saw nature of their season than their come-from-behind win over the Rams on Thursday night.
For most of the night, the Rams laid bare the Seahawks’ weaknesses: The offense is susceptible to going three-and-out, particularly if you stop the run early and then take advantage of the Seahawks’ overmatched offensive line to put pressure on Darnold. If you force the offense into three-and-outs or turnovers, you keep the defense on the field, and it eventually wears down. The Rams executed their game plan to perfection on Thursday, while the Seahawks didn’t appear to have much of one at all.
Then, in the 4th quarter, the tables turned. The Seahawks got a punt return touchdown from Rashid Shaheed, then Darnold threw his best pass of the night with a 26-yard touchdown to AJ Barner.
Then the crazy magic that has been the hallmark of every great Seahawks season kicked in. The Seahawks went for two, and everyone in the stadium thought the Rams snuffed out the play. However, Darnold’s pass off a Rams defender’s helmet was ruled a backward pass. When Zach Charbonnet picked up the ball in the end zone to give it to the officials, he inadvertently tied the game for the Seahawks.
The defense did the job the rest of the way, holding the Rams to just a single touchdown in overtime. At the same time, the Seahawks offense finally found its footing, with Smith-Njigba and Darnold connecting for all of Smith-Njigba’s 96 receiving yards in the second half, including the Seahawks’ touchdown in overtime that allowed them to win the game.
It’s a trend that has been manifesting itself throughout the second half of the season, with the defense papering it over with several dominant games. Following easy wins over Tennessee, Minnesota, and Atlanta, all keyed by the defense, the Seahawks got into a risk-averse battle against the Indianapolis Colts last week.
The Colts were starting Phillip Rivers at quarterback, a recent semi-finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, thanks to an impressive career, and for having spent the last five years retired and coaching high school football. The Colts were clearly trying to give the Seahawks few opportunities to create turnovers. They indeed were successful in that regard, with Rivers throwing his only interception on the final play of the game. However, the Seahawks offense, which was run by a quarterback coming off his best season, inexplicably received the same mandate. It left the team unable to reach the end zone and forced a win only thanks to a perfect 6-for-6 day by kicker Jason Myers, including a 56-yard game-winner in the final minute.
When the Seahawks and Rams met in Los Angeles earlier this season, Darnold had his worst game, throwing four interceptions. However, the Seahawks defense forced the Rams to punt on their final three possessions, and Darnold finally figured things out to lead a late rally, only for Seattle to see a Myers 60-yard field goal go wide at the buzzer.
The same script played out Thursday night, only with the team dramatically finishing the job this time, with Smith-Njigba tiptoeing the back of the end zone and Darnold finding third tight end Eric Saubert for the game-winning two-point conversion.
Prior to Indianapolis taking a 16-15 lead over the Seahawks late in the fourth quarter on Sunday, the last time the Seahawks had a lead and relinquished it was in October, when they lost 38-25 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Since then, the Seahawks have been highly reliable: if they have a lead, it is doubtful they will give it up.
The Seahawks now have the playoffs clinched and a clear path to the NFC’s No. 1 seed. Had they lost to the Rams, they would have needed to fight to avoid becoming the NFC’s No. 7 seed.
Through the wild swings of Thursday night’s game, the Seahawks made clear that they are going to go as far as their offense and a little sprinkling of magic can take them. The defense and special teams have been locked in all season, but those units can’t score all the points against playoff teams. But when they find their magic, and when the offense clicks, there may not be a team in the NFL that can stop them.
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