Seahawks win game, may have lost the season with Earl Thomas injury
The Seahawks won in Arizona, but it may have been a Pyrrhic victory as Earl Thomas appears to have been lost for the season. History lesson included!
The Seahawks won a game they truly needed against the Arizona Cardinals. Their record now stands at 2-2. Sadly, the prospects of going to 3-2 took a huge hit as Earl Thomas fractured his leg with nine minutes left in the game. Now all the fans that demanded the Seahawks get rid of Thomas can see just how much he’ll be missed.
Actually, Seattle’s chances of climbing to a winning record weren’t that great even with Thomas on the field. Their next opponent, the Los Angeles Rams, have been playing a bit better than average. They’re ranked second in offense, and have given up the fourth fewest points. Their average score has been 35-17. They’ve piled up 137 first downs to just 84 by their opponents. And now the Seahawks have to face them without Thomas.
There were a few bright spots to the game today. I mean, beyond the final score. For the second straight week, Seattle had a 100 yard rusher. With Chris Carson on the shelf for this one, it was time for the Mike Davis show again. He brought what we’re now accustomed to seeing from him, pure ferocity. Davis was also targeted four times and made each count.
This was the first time Seattle had back to back 100 yard rushers since Marshawn Lynch pulled it off in the 2014 playoffs. Yeah, we know how that ended, one carry short. Regardless, this is a very good trend. After seeming to forget how handoffs worked in their first two games, the Hawks have pretty clearly committed to the running game again.
The Seahawks could not afford to lose Thomas
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They’ll need to run the ball to keep it out of the hands of Carson Wentz and his circus playmates. That’s where the loss of Thomas hurts so much. This is where your free history lesson comes in. We’re talking about the big one, what losing Thomas means. If you’re unsure about the meaning of Pyrrhic victories, look for a guy named Plutarch. Or click that link.
The last time the Seahawks played without Earl Thomas, it showed all too clearly. He missed five games in 2016, the first he’d missed in his career. In the 11 games with Thomas, the Seahawks allowed 15.7 points per game. Without Thomas, they surrendered 23.8 per contest. They were 7-2-1 with Thomas, 3-3 without him. After giving up a season high of just 25 points (twice) with him, they gave up 34 and 38 in two of those three losses.
You may have noticed the defensive backfield wasn’t particularly sharp this preseason, either. Thomas will be missed as much as anyone, with the exception of Russell Wilson. It’s a fact that Bradley McDougald has been playing great this year, but he can’t play two positions. Now it’s up to Tedric Thompson, who got lost a few times in coverage. I really wish Eric Reid had taken that offer from Seattle back in August. We were calling for him months ago. Ah well, at least Seattle tried to get him.
As for Thomas, he had a somewhat unusual reaction as he was being carted off the field. Fair warning: if you’re offended by profane gestures, it’s profane. You can see it here, in all its glory. Oddly enough, the injury to Thomas proves the point of both sides in this argument. This is exactly why Thomas wanted the extension, in case he was injured. Conversely, a possible injury was exactly why the Seahawks didn’t want to give him one.
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As for his reaction, I get it. I’d be mad, and I suspect you would be too. It’s obviously far too soon to know just how bad the injury is. It could end more than his season; it could be his career. Broken bones aren’t usually a long-term problem, but who knows what other damage was done? We certainly hope Thomas has a speedy recovery, no matter where he plays next year.