Seahawks final grades in Sunday’s win versus Cowboys
By Lee Vowell
The Seahawks defeated the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday 21-12. Most prognosticators had predicted Seattle to lose. And while it wasn’t pretty, here are the grades for how it was done.
Offense
Quarterback – Russell Wilson
Did you know the last two game the Seahawks have average 143 yards of total offense. That sucks. Against the Cowboys, Wilson threw for 93 yards. But for two touchdowns and seven first downs. What weird stats. And his quarterback rating was 107.8.
Wilson took a sack when he was running backwards which was dumb. By no stretch of the imagination did Wilson have a perfect game. But he did Wilson-type things, like scramble for first downs and still lead Seattle in rushing.
Let me be clear: There is no way that Seattle wins in Dallas without Wilson. Or has more than four wins this year.
Grade: B
Running backs
This is another weird area. Seattle once again failed to score a touchdown rushing from its running backs. Mike Davis, though, ran for 25 yards and caught passes for 18. But let me ask you, dear reader, did it not feel like Davis was good for 100 total yards himself?
Other than that, Thomas Rawls had a very nice run of 15 and had an average run of four yards a carry on just five attempts. Weird.
Chris Carson. Please come back soon. And can the Seahawks running game really be blamed on the running backs alone or the offensive line’s ineptitude?
Grade: C
Receivers
Again, Seattle had just 93 yards receiving. But within those yards are plays like this
Sick move by Doug Baldwin for six points. These are the moments that created a Seattle win. The Seahawks lost a lot of individual battles but they won the war. That is what counts.
Another example is Jimmy Graham had one catch for three yards. It was a touchdown. Not a great day for Graham, but an important one.
Grade: C
Offensive line
Have you I mentioned that Seattle gained only 136 yards? This was for 2.5 yards per play. Yep. Two-point-five. Terrible. Awful.
The Cowboys did not have the greatest statistical defense coming into the game. But Seattle’s line made them look terrific.
Grade: F
Defense
Defensive line
Frank Clark was excellent, thank goodness. I think Clark has the potential to be a regular All Pro, but he is so inconsistent and disappears for several games. He had a sack against the Rams and was extremely active against the Cowboys. Clark had six quarterback hurries and a sack. This is what Seattle needs from him nearly every week.
Michael Bennett and Dion Jordan also has sacks and Sheldon Richardson had four tackles. After giving up rushing yards to Ezekiel Elliott early, the line limited Dallas after the second quarter.
Grade: B
Linebackers
Wow. How much did the Seahawks miss K.J. Wright against Los Angeles? Wright had a fantastic game against Dallas, including six tackles and an interception. Pro Football Focus gave Wright a 90.7 grade for the game.
And Bobby Wagner looked much healthier than in the LA matchup. Wagner worked the entire field and affected the game with his speed. Wagner finished with eight tackles.
Grade: A
Secondary
Dak Prescott had a quarterback rating of 51.3. Shaquill Griffin had a sack. Justin Coleman returned an interception for a touchdown. Earl Thomas had 11 tackles. Byron Maxwell forced a fumble that was recovered by the Seahawks.
Um, yeah…
Grade: A
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Special teams
Jon Ryan’s best punt was one in which he slipped, but did average 46.1 yards a punt. Blair Walsh did not miss an extra point. Tyler Lockett had no kick returns and only one punt return. Dallas, unlike the Rams, got no chunk yards on returns.
Grade: B-