12s changed the outcome of Seahawks versus Dolphins in Week 3

The Seahawks dominated the Dolphins in the first half. But for true domination, you have to look to the 12s. Miami has been frustrated by the crowd noise as much as by Mike Macdonald's defense.

The halftime stats for the Seahawks tell most of the story. The Hawks lead the Phins in yardage, 223 to 87. They lead in first downs, 11 to 6. Most important of all, Seattle takes a 17-3 lead into the locker room at the half. Much of that dominance is due to an explosive offense and an overpowering defense. But there's one more factor in the early edge for Seattle.

That edge, of course, was the presence of the 12s. Make that the very loud presence of the 12s. As we've seen throughout the history of Lumen Field, the fans of the Hawks can make this a very difficult place for visiting teams. Today's contest has been one more example of the impact the 12s can have on the opposing team.

The Seattle Seahawks thrive with the very vocal support of the 12s

The Dolphins came into this game with a big handicap. Their starting quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, was placed on injured reserve prior to the game. The Hawks were missing more than a few key players as well, with Uchenna Nwosu, Abe Lucas, George Fant, Jerome Baker, and Kenneth Walker all on the sidelines for the game.

If the Seahawks ever needed the12s to come up big, Week 3 was one of those days. And they came up as large as ever. In the first half, the Phins were flagged for four penalties on special teams alone. Miami was called for three more penalties on offense. While I can't in all good conscious say the crowd noise contributed to all of the calls against their special teams unit, the frustration Miami has faced certainly played into that.

Much of that frustration was due to the confusion on offense. Miami runs a lot of motion. With the crowd noise and a backup quarterback, that's not exactly a recipe for greatness with all the heat the 12s are bringing.