For Pete's Sake: 5 critical observations from the Seahawks Week 9 blowout loss

After a thriller against the Browns last week while donning their incredibly '90s throwbacks, the Seattle Seahawks came into Week 9 on a bit of a high note despite the obvious threat the Ravens posed to them this Sunday.

Unfortunately, they ended up being more than just a threat; they were complete and utter dominators who handed Seattle a devastating blowout loss, serving a plate of 37-3 for them to travel back home with. And you could tell it would be that kind of game right out of the gate.

After trading a few drives that ended in punts, a Geno Smith interception after a Ravens touchdown was followed by a Lamar Jackson fumble that the Seahawks could not take advantage of. Another fumble by Baltimore resulted in a fumble by Seattle, leading to a field goal to put them up 17-3 at the half.

And that's when the game went downhill.

On every drive in the second half, minus their last one, the Ravens scored points. They were unstoppable, staying on the field for over 40 minutes. This gave the Seattle offense barely any time to actually get anything done, leading to a losing effort by Geno Smith, who is unfairly dealing with the wrath of fans and media.

It was a forgettable game but a humbling one, with the silver lining being they now know how they fare against one of the best teams in the league, a good test for the next six weeks of the schedule.

Seahawks get an unwanted wake up call about Geno Smith

Since the trade of Russell Wilson and the naming of Geno Smith as the starter, it's been quite a roller coaster ride for the Seahawks. After completing the best season of his career as the official QB1 in 2022, leading the team to the playoffs, there was a lot of optimism that he and the offense would be able to build upon that this year and see how far they could take it.

That's what made the drafting of Jake Bobo and Jaxon Smith-Njigba even more exciting. They were set to join two great veterans in Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, with Kenneth Walker III continuing to ascend the running back ladder after a stand-out rookie season.

Some of that has come to fruition through nine weeks so far, particularly regarding the rookie receivers, but the offense's performance against the Ravens was certainly an unwanted wake-up call that may dictate how the rest of the season goes.

It's no secret that Smith was not the long-term solution at quarterback. He was brought in initially as a backup to Wilson and proved he could be good enough to lead the team to success when called upon. He did that last year, carrying the team on his back, which was the leading cause for their postseason contention.

Some of that remains true this year, but the ill-timed mistakes combined with inconsistent protection from the offensive line, which impacts the offense overall, make it even more difficult for Smith to do anything well. That's what defined this game against the Ravens.

Obviously, this does not mean Smith should be benched and replaced by Drew Lock, which should not be a talking point by any fans or media. However, it does mean that the quarterback needs more help from his offensive teammates if they want to beat good teams for the rest of the season, especially since they are still in contention to win the division.