There probably isn’t much reason to panic over a preseason loss, especially when the Seahawks rested many of the players who will actually determine how far this team goes. Still, Mike Macdonald clearly wasn’t interested in shrugging off Seattle’s 17-7 loss to Dallas just because it happened in August.
Afterward, Macdonald said Seattle’s “operation is not up to par,” pointing to communication, getting calls in, motions, shifts and simply getting lined up correctly. That was really the story of the night. The final score didn’t matter much, but the sloppiness did.
Seattle scored on its opening possession and didn’t score again. Dallas outgained the Seahawks 338-156, converted 11 of 15 third downs and repeatedly controlled the line of scrimmage. Seattle also wasted several excellent scoring opportunities, which made an already uneven performance look even worse.
Tyrice Knight Was The Biggest Winner
If there was one player who unquestionably helped himself, it was linebacker Tyrice Knight. He finished the first half with 10 tackles and two passes defensed while consistently finding his way to the football.
Macdonald called Knight “the best player on the field on defense today, for sure,” which is quite a statement for someone currently behind Ernest Jones IV and Drake Thomas on the depth chart. Knight isn’t simply fighting for a roster spot. He’s making a case for Seattle to find meaningful defensive snaps for him.
Montorie Foster Jr. Keeps Making His Case
Wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr. was another clear winner. He caught five passes for 36 yards, including Seattle’s only touchdown, and also created separation on a deep route that could have turned into a 68-yard score if Drew Lock had connected.
Foster has been making plays throughout camp, and now he’s carrying that production into games. Seattle has plenty of competition at receiver, but Foster is doing exactly what a player on the roster bubble needs to do: make the coaching staff uncomfortable with the idea of cutting him.
Lock Was Fine. Milroe Was More Interesting.
Drew Lock completed 9 of 13 passes for 40 yards and a touchdown. He looked comfortable on Seattle’s opening 13-play, 80-yard drive, but the offense couldn’t recreate that success and he missed Foster on what could have been the biggest offensive play of the game.
Jalen Milroe was more interesting, even if he remains very much a work in progress. He completed 5 of 8 passes for 36 yards and added another 36 yards on the ground. Macdonald said extending plays with his legs has been a point of emphasis, and Milroe showed why his athleticism makes him such an intriguing developmental quarterback.
The downside was that he took three sacks and struggled behind an offensive line that didn’t give him much help. Lock is clearly the more polished option right now, but Milroe continues to provide enough flashes to make his development worth watching.
The Trenches Were The Biggest Concern
Seattle’s biggest concern came on both sides of the line. The reserve offensive line struggled with protection, penalties and short-yardage situations, while the defensive front failed to record a sack and allowed Dallas to rush for 137 yards.
The Cowboys’ 11-for-15 performance on third down was especially frustrating. Obviously, many of Seattle’s starters weren’t playing, but depth matters in the NFL. Saturday showed there could be a significant drop-off if the Seahawks are forced too far down the depth chart in the trenches.
Special Teams Deserved Better
Seattle did get some encouraging work from its return game. Rashad Rochelle broke a 52-yard punt return, Cody White added an 18-yard punt return and Michael Dickson forced a muffed punt that T.J. Harden recovered inside the Dallas 5.
Unfortunately, Seattle failed to turn those opportunities into points. The Seahawks finished 1-for-4 in the red zone and 0-for-2 on fourth down, wasting the kind of field position that should lead to easy scores.
So, How Much Should We Care?
Not much about the 17-7 final score, but quite a bit about what happened underneath it. Seattle rested many of its most important players, so this wasn’t close to the team we’ll see once the regular season starts.
Still, preseason is about figuring out who can help when the games matter. Knight looks ready for a bigger role. Foster continues to make the receiver competition interesting. Milroe remains an intriguing long-term project, and the return game showed some real explosiveness.
The bigger concern is the depth along the offensive and defensive lines. That’s what I’ll be watching next. Forget the scoreboard and focus on whether Seattle looks cleaner, stronger in the trenches and more consistent with the basic operation Macdonald clearly wasn’t happy with.
The Seahawks don’t need August wins. They do need August answers, and Saturday gave them a few good ones along with several questions they still need to solve.
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