3 ups and 3 downs for Seattle Seahawks in preseason game 1
By Lee Vowell
The Seahawks lost to the Steelers 32-25 in Seattle’s first preseason game of 2022. While the team lost, not everything about the game was bad.
Did we find answers to who will start at quarterback in 2022? Not at all. Did any cornerbacks play so well that they assured themselves of being one of the starters at that position? Nope. So going into preseason game 2 against the Bears this week, the Seahawks still have many questions that need answers.
All that said, 12s should rest a bit easier about some players and some other positions that are concerns heading into the season. While this was a preseason game, of course, and a lot of backups played and many assumed starters sat out, we still got an inkling of where Seattle might be successful this year.
What follows are some of the good and some of the bad from Seattle’s loss to Pittsburgh.
Ups and downs for the Seahawks versus the Steelers in preseason game 1
Up: The rookie offensive tackles played well enough
The Seahawks took Charles Cross in the first round in hopes he could be the team’s left tackle for the next decade. Seattle chose Abe Lucas in the third round with the same hopes he could hold down the right tackle spot.
Both Cross and Lucas played most of the first half and into the second half and both played well. Seattle allowed three sacks on the game but the worst – Drew Lock’s sack near the end of the game where he was hit and fumbled – occurred after Cross and Lucas were out of the game.
Geno Smith was sacked in the first half but it was on a play where he held on to the ball too long, Russell Wilson-style.
Seattle averaged 6.1 yards a carry – very good stuff – and 5.7 yards per play. That last statistic would have ranked near the top 10 in the NFL in 2021 so that is also a positive. A lot of the reason Seattle’s offense played better as the game wore on was that its rookie offensive tackles got more comfortable. That’s a good sign.