For Pete's Sake: Critical observations from Seahawks preseason Week 2 win

The Seattle Seahawks moved to 2-0 in the preseason. The record means nothing, but the way the Hawks played, that's everything. Seattle made the big plays versus Dallas, and that bodes very well for the games that count.

I love the quote from Clint Hurtt mentioned at the start of the game: "This season, there's no smoke breaks for tackles." The Seahawks definitely lived up to that, as they got good pressure on the Dallas quarterbacks throughout most of the game. Several players made big plays, making the 53-man cut that much more difficult for Pete Carroll and his staff. Alright 12s, let's dive in.

Wait, wait. Before we jump into the game, let me talk just a bit about expectations. I expected to see quite a bit of Geno Smith, and we got to see him for the first quarter. No spoilers on how he did. Drew Lock played most of the second quarter, and it was all Holton Ahlers after that. Bobby Wagner and DK Metcalf both enjoyed the game from the sidelines. Overall, most of Seattle's stars let the second and third-team guys duke this out with Dallas. And we found a few new stars in this one.

Seahawks shut Cowboys down in the first quarter

Geno Smith takes his first snap of the preseason in shotgun and hits Will Dissly for nine yards and, oh, ten inches. The line gave Smith about an hour on that pass, great to see. It was important because the line was getting zero push in the running game. One play after the Hawks picked up the first down, Tyler Lockett checks in and picks up seven yards, dragging his toes at the sideline. Wow, never seen that before. A false start put the Hawks in third and eight, and Dareke Young can't come down with the ball on a rocket over the middle. It was definitely going to be a tough catch as it was a bit high, and he had a defender screening his vision, going with him step for step. I can't help but think that Jake Bobo makes that catch.

A patented Michael Dickson punt pins the Cowboys at their own nine. but Dallas rips off a nine yard run to give themselves some room. After a first down, Boye Mafe puts huge pressure on Cowboys QB Cooper Rush and forces an incompletion. Tre Brown brings the running back down to force third and seven. Unfortunately, Michael Jackson gets completely turned around and allows a long completion. We'll see more of this later. On the next set of downs, Mafe tips the pass to force third and four. This sets the stage for Jarran Reed to smash through the line and sack Rush. He seems to enjoy playing nose. Dallas punts putting the Hawks at their own four to start their second drive.

One quick note from the early action: Zach Charbonnet is getting zero room, whether he's running the ball or catching it in the flat. Oh snap! On second and nine, Jake Bobo has no one within five yards of him and picks up 28 yards. On the very next play, the line opens a hole for Charbonnet and he rips off 29 yards. Told you he just needed some room. Jackson Smith-Njigba gets his first catch, but the Seahawks line collapses and gives up the sack. Jason Myers says "cool", and nails a 57-yard field goal. Seahawks go up, 3-0.

First quarter thoughts: Both lines need to clean up a few things. They weren't opening enough holes for the running game and gave up the late sack that resulted in the field goal. The defensive line gave up too many runs. On the other hand, Boye Mafe was living large in the Cowboys backfield, tipping a pass and constantly applying pressure to the quarterback. Michael Jackson was beaten twice, giving up two first-down catches.

On the final drive of the quarter, Myles Adams made a nice stop, Derick Hall *just* missed dropping the QB, forcing a pass that was eventually ruled to have hit the ground. Dallas went for it on fourth down and picked it up, *again* on Mike Jack. What happened to the guy who was lighting it up all preseason? Right now, I agree with K.J. Wright, trade the man. Only problem is, he just pushed his value from maybe a fourth-round pick to a gas station burrito.