No, we didn’t get the result we wanted Sunday. But coming into this season, every one of us would be thrilled to see the Seahawks at 6-4 at this point.
I’m not about to say that I’m thrilled with the Seahawks performance in Munich. At least not with the first 50-odd minutes. The run defense was terrible and never got better. The Hawks own running game never got going, either. I mean, the offensive rookie of the month wound up with just 17 yards on 10 carries. Kenneth Walker III will bounce back, and so will this team.
Speaking of bouncing back, Geno Smith could have folded after he fumbled away the Seahawks prime chance to close the gap to four points. Just as he did in the Hawks win over the Cardinals, Smith cinched up his shield – yes, that’s a Cap reference – and went to work. Unfortunately, the defense couldn’t do their part, but at least the offense came to life.
Seahawks have laid a winning foundation
Now I completely agree that celebrating a 7-3 Seahawks team with our Belgian waffles and Bloody Marys would have been far more fun than seeing our guys take their fourth loss. To put it in perspective, how painful was the loss to the Niners back in September? The Hawks (and the 12s) were riding high after the opening win over Russell Wilson’s Broncos. Riding – get it? Anyway, the next few weeks were pretty miserable.
And then Clint Hurtt’s defense started putting it together. Maybe they were too aggressive initially, but they’ve played much better over the past month. Probably has a lot to do with the Hawks finally starting Ryan Neal over Josh Jones, but that’s another story. They disappeared versus the Bucs – especially versus the run – but there’s no reason to think they won’t bounce back.
What matters is that the Seahawks didn’t fold. They nearly came all the way back after doing virtually nothing for almost the entire game. Most sites projected the Seahawks win ceiling at seven games, and the floor at four. And here they are at six wins, with their next three games versus teams that are a combined 8-20. I like our chances; don’t you?