For Pete's Sake: 6 critical observations from Seattle Seahawks near win in Week 13

It's another unfortunate week where the Seattle Seahawks have lost, but they at least looked stylish and put up quite a fight while doing it. The throwback uniforms and the fact they hung with the Cowboys until a poorly decided fourth-down play call make the loss a bit more digestible, right?

Considering Seattle was not favored whatsoever in this game, and the Cowboys have been trampling over their opponents by double digits all season long, the Seahawks looked much more impressive than initially anticipated. It may not mean much at the end of the night because they lost and now hold a 6-6 record.

However, it's much better to go down fighting until the very end rather than be absolutely dominated for a full 60-minute game.

DK Metcalf went absolutely berzerk in Dallas

All of the D.K. Metcalf fantasy owners are sending their gratitude to the wide receiver for likely being the reason they all won their matchups this week, as an unreal performance made all the difference for the Seahawks on Thursday night.

It was clear the night was going to be exceptional on the offense's first drive when Geno Smith hit Metcalf for what wound up being a 73-yard touchdown pass. The receiver was unexplainably left wide open on the play, allowing him to use his record-breaking speed to get all the way down the field and put the team ahead early in the first quarter.

He added another score on the night right before halftime, with a one-yard reception into the end zone to put the Seahawks ahead by one point. And fortunately, that's not how Metcalf's night ended because who doesn't want to see him score three touchdowns in one game?

The last of his scores came early in the fourth quarter as Seattle took over on downs at their own 30-yard line. Metcalf scored a three-yard touchdown, putting them up 35-27 with just over 14 minutes remaining in the game.

He eventually ended his night recording six receptions for 134 yards and three touchdowns, a feat he hasn't accomplished since Week 17 of the 2021 season. Metcalf was one of the primary reasons the team was able to keep it close against a team with an explosive offense and dominant defense, making his performance that much more impressive.

The Seahawks and Cowboys made history with their performances

As probably the most entertaining Thursday Night game of the 2023 NFL season, is it really surprising to hear that it was also a record-breaking performance by both teams as well?

Besides a missed field goal and a few failed fourth-down conversions by both teams, Dallas and Seattle did not force a single punt in the game. It is only the fifth time in league history that a game concluded without either team punting, and just the second time in the last three years that it has also occurred.

Although the Seahawks were not able to get the win in the final seconds of the game, their defense was successful in keeping the wildly talented Cowboys offense from running all over them. And the offense was able to keep the opposing defense at bay long enough to allow Geno Smith, D.K. Metcalf, and Zach Charbonnet to make the necessary plays to keep the game within reach, a feat that has been proven difficult for almost all of Dallas' opponents this season.

Despite the loss and the potential postseason implications it may have, the team and fans should be happy with how they played in a difficult environment and against one of the best teams in the league.

The Cowboys have primarily won their games this year by utter domination with blowouts and double-digit differences in the score, but Seattle was able to curb that and force them to alter their game plan as it appeared they overlooked them in this matchup.

The officials may have gotten penalty happy, but...

It was apparent to all watching this Thursday Night matchup that Clete Blakeman and his team were ready to penalize both teams for anything and everything all game long. It became so tiresome that even Al Michaels sarcastically suggested they were done calling the game, and they were handing duties over to the referees as the constant flag-throwing grew exhausting.

The only silver lining of the whole thing is that both teams were flagged for almost identical amounts of times and yards, with the Seahawks just barely beating the Cowboys with ten penalties for 130 yards.

Although they certainly benefitted often from Dallas' nine penalties for 127 yards, making so many mistakes that likely cost the team precious time and costly yardage is unacceptable.

Hopefully, this was just a flukey game with a crew of officials eager to penalize and not something that will continue to be an issue for the Seahawks in the final five games of the season.

Zach Charbonnet had a breakout game at the right time

The offense greatly missed Kenneth Walker III in last week's game against the 49ers but was fortunate this week to have rookie Zach Charbonnet have a perfectly timed breakout game.

It was a lot to ask of a young running back against a stout defensive line in Dallas, yet it didn't look like too tall of a task for Charbonnet, who scored Seattle's second touchdown of the night and helped continue successful drives late in the game with a 39-yard reception to put the offense in the red zone.

On top of recording 19 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown, Charbonnet was also a contributor in the passing game, which was very much needed in Walker's absence. Although he only caught one pass for 39 yards, it set up an eventual touchdown to put Seattle ahead early in the fourth quarter.

With Walker's return still up in the air, this breakout game for Charbonnet could increase the offense's chances against more tough opponents in the coming weeks. It allows them to open up the run game, which has consistently been a key to Seattle's success and a big reason why they have struggled in others.

Geno Smith made up for his recent lackluster showings

A lot of criticism has been hurled Geno Smith's way this season, particularly in recent weeks, but his performance against the best defense in the league doesn't warrant much of that this time around.

After a less-than-thrilling outing against the 49ers last week and a mediocre yet almost winnable performance against the Rams the week before, Smith had one of the best showings of the 2023 season against a defense that typically wouldn't allow that to happen.

Smith recorded 23/41 passes for 334 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. On top of that, he added two carries for six yards and a score on the ground. It becomes his only game with three passing touchdowns this season and his first rushing touchdown as well, proving he was ready to give it his all against a team that deemed them no threat on their home turf.

Other than slinging the football all over the field, his decision-making was much better than we've seen in recent weeks, which in turn allowed him to implement more receivers into the mix and give the offense a better chance at moving down the field.

As they come into the home stretch of the season, Smith must work hard to keep this kind of performance going if Seattle wants any chance of making the postseason and being successful upon getting there.

What was that final play call?

Maybe it's not entirely fair to criticize offensive coordinator Shane Waldron for really just one poorly made play call, but since it was the most important one of the entire night, it seems like fair game at this point.

With the game on the line and the offense going for it on fourth and two at midfield, Waldron called the most predictable play that anyone watching could smell from a mile away: a run. The Dallas defense knew it immediately, allowing Micah Parsons to run right through the offensive line on a straight path to Geno Smith, forcing him to throw an incompletion and sealing the win for Dallas.

It was an absolutely heartbreaking way for the game to end since Waldron had otherwise seemingly redeemed himself for a much improved put-together game plan.

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