For Pete's Sake: 5 critical observations from Seahawks Week 3 win over the Panthers

Hey 12s, did you catch the Jason Myers Show?

On the first play of the second quarter, Geno Smith got time to throw and connected with DK Metchalf for a huge 33-yard pickup. Zach Charbonnett ran hard from another first, but it was called back for holding on center Evan Brown. On a side note, the second Carolina defensive back walked off the field after colliding with Metcalf. You know, just in case you forgot the man is a load.

On first and 20, Smith found Lockett over the middle for nine yards. With an injury to Damien Lewis, the Hawks now have exactly one starting offensive lineman in the game. The Panthers immediately sacked Geno to set up third and 22. That's a bit of a setback, considering Charbonnett had the ball at the Panthers four-yard line before that holding call. One third down Jaxon Smith-Njigba picked up 10 yards, but the Hawks had to settle for a field goal. 6-3 Seattle, but man, that holding call.

On first down, Devon Witherspoon rode Miles Sanders out of bounds for a one-yard gain. Sanders picked up three yards on second down, but Tre Brown was injured on the play. Dalton wasn't able to connect on third down, so the Panthers had to punt. The Hawks took over at their own 39 after a nice 14-yard return by Deejay Dallas despite getting hit the moment he fielded the punt.

Walker ripped off a nine-yard run, then cut right and wasn't stopped until he had a 36-yard run to his credit. Smith nearly threw a pick in the end zone, but Tyler Lockett gave his best DB impression and broke up the play. An attempted 7-11 connection was a hair late, and Seattle had to settle for another field goal. At least the kicking unit has been solid. 9-3, Seahawks.

The injury parade continued when Carolina got the ball. Darrell Taylor was injured on the first play of the drive. After the Panthers picked up a first down on a Dalton to Adam Thielen connection, we saw another incompletion. Miles Sanders picked up 15 yards for the first down, but was injured on the play. At this point in the game, I think I was injured myself. A few plays later it was Panthers ball at the Seahawks 47, third and 10. Sadly we saw another instance of blown communication as Michael Jackson let D.J. Chark run past him. Julian Love couldn't get over in time, and it was 10-9, Panthers.

The next series was disastrous for the Seahawks. After a missed pass to Tyler Lockett on first down, Geno Smith was sacked for a six-yard loss. Let's add some salt to that wound, shall we? Stone Forsythe not only got rag-dolled to give up the sack but was called for holding on the play. How bad is that, that you held the lineman but still gave up the sack? On the next play, Smith made one of his very few mistakes of the day. Trying for Jaxon Smith-Njigba crossing the middle, linebacker Deion Jones jumped the route and tagged Geno with his first turnover of the season.

Considering that the Panthers had such a short field - they started at the Seahawks 28-yard-line - the defense did a great job. Carolina only managed to pick up two yards and settled for a field goal to extend their lead to 13-9. This is as good a time as any to mention the great game that Deejay Dallas had. Dallas caught the kickoff at his own one and brought the ball up to the Seattle 27. Yeah, it's a minimal gain over what the Hawks would have had with a touchback. But his energy fired up the team throughout the game.

What we saw next showed what I really like about Geno Smith. He is able to hit the reset button and shake off mistakes with the best in the business. With 2:35 left in the half, Smith led the Hawks to the Carolina 19. Yes, the drive stalled and Seattle had to settle for yet another field goal. I looked at it like this: Geno just wanted Jason Myers to know that the guys had his back after last week's misses. Justin showed his appreciation by hitting the relative chip shot for 37 yards and his 12th point of the game. Seattle now trailed by just one point, 13-12.

Andy Dalton got the Panthers to the Seahawks 48, but Seattle's pass rush got enough pressure on him to rush his next two passes. The Hawks secondary played tight coverage too, so Carolina never got closer. With 14 seconds left in the half, they had to punt. Johnny Hekker hit a beauty, as the ball trickled to the Seattle three-yard line where about half a dozen Panthers downed the ball. With one second on the clock, Pete Carroll rolled the dice and went for it all. Uh, no, he's not crazy. Geno Smith took a knee, and that was the half. The score was Panthers 13, Myers 12.