Seahawks had some diamonds in the rough of the Saints loss

The Seahawks played a really bad game against the Saints, but they still had a few players manage to shine in the gloom of this loss.

I’m sure I’m in the majority of 12s when I say the Saints game was tough to watch. So many of what have been the Seahawks strengths were reversed in this contest. From Michael Dickson’s poor punt to Chris Carson’s footing to the secondary’s tackling to – okay, that’s enough. I’m about to get sick again. I think I’ll focus on the players that stood out for good reasons in this one.

I have to start with Bobby Wagner. As I mentioned in my piece on the game MVP, Wagner set his single-game record for combined tackles against New Orleans. When you consider that he’s been a tackling machine for virtually his entire career, that’s something. The Seahawks defensive leader had 18 total tackles, 12 of those being assists.

Wagner was everywhere on CenturyLink Field Sunday. I think I saw him selling beer in Section 112 at one point, but that was probably just my imagination. Now that I think about it, that can’t be right because the beer guy didn’t tackle anybody.

Wagner was amazing. The only reason I didn’t name him my game MVP was that he didn’t have one of those signature moments we remember so well. He didn’t race off with a pick-six, demolish an offensive lineman, or have any of his usual amazing moments. He just stopped his opponent, or helped, an amazing 18 times.

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My second diamond of the rough day was Wagner’s compadre, K.J. Wright. He had one blemish on what was otherwise an outstanding defensive game. With Seattle down by two scores, Wright got tangled up with Alvin Kamara in the end zone and was flagged for pass interference. It was a fair call, but it wasn’t a deliberate move by Wright, either. I fact, if it hadn’t been for Wagner and Wright, Kamara would have easily gone for over 200 yards from scrimmage. Probably 250.

K.J. Wright totaled 13 tackles on the day, nine of those coming on assists. Wagner and Wright accounted for 31 of the Hawks 63 combined tackles. No other Seahawks player had more than five. Of the 21 total tackles on Kamara, Wagner was in on 11, Wright on 8. Just how bad with the game have been with either of them? Diamond studs, both of them.

Tyler Lockett continued to prove he’s among the NFL elite wide receivers. He followed up his career-best 10 receptions versus the Steelers by going one better, with 11 yesterday. Lockett totaled 154 yards and snared his second touchdown of the season. If not for an overthrow by Russell Wilson, Lockett would have had two scores. He also returned two kicks for 47 yards.

I truly doubt he’ll keep up this pace but after three games, Lockett’s stats project to 117 catches for 1,477 yards. Both would be Seahawks records. No Seattle player has ever broken 100 catches, and none has ever reached 1,300 yards. Whether he gets there or not, Tyler Lockett again showed this past week that he’s worth every penny of his new contract.

I’ll give an honorable mention to tight end Will Dissly. Once again he showed that he’s a terrific receiver, especially for a guy who was seen as a blocking tight end. He has three touchdowns on the season now and caught 12 of his 14 targets. In fact, Dissly has more touchdown catches than any other tight end in the league. Only three players have caught more TD passes than Dissly this season. Can I hear a Jimmy who?

It wasn’t a fun game to watch by any means. And there were so many critical errors, at times it was literally painful to see the Seahawks play this badly. But it wasn’t all bad. A few players flashed their brilliance and played some of the best football of their careers. That bodes well for the next game and the rest of the season.