3 studs and duds from the Seahawks Week 1 to the Rams

The Seahawks did have one stud performance

Okay, I lied. I'm going with my stud here. I just can't take another survey of mediocrity right now. Man, that would be would be a highlight at this point for most of the Seahawks. So let me acknowledge the man himself, Kenneth Walker III. K-9 had a fine first half, rolling up 53 yards on just nine carries in the first half. Seattle had the lead 13-7, so of course they'd continue to rely on Walker to keep the Rams defense honest. RIght? right? Man, I feel like Natalie Portman in all those Padme memes. Sadly, the Seahawks decided that in fact, they did not wish to let the true Offensive Rookie of the Year control the game for them. A lot of Hawks are responsible for this loss, but Walker isn't one of them.

Okay, time to get savage. I rarely do - at least not on these pages - but I think I speak for most 12s when I say I cannot believe what we saw yesterday. Let me start by saying I'm not singling out DK Metcalf, although he'd be richly deserving of the dishonor. Yeah, he scored a touchdown, but once again he let the opposition bait him into an incredibly stupid penalty. In Bob Condotta's typically excellent examination of the loss, he said that Metcalf's penalty had no real impact on the game.

For once, I can't agree with Condotta. Yes, the Seahawks were down 27-13 with under five minutes to go. A couple of nice passes, and a few decent runs, and they're right back in the game. But Metcalf changed a second and two at their own 43 to second and 17. The Rams knew Seattle would pass because that's all they had done in the entire half anyway. Back-to-back sacks, and yes, now the game was over.

But I'm not calling out Metcalf as a dud. Yes, he makes far too many of these ludicrous, childish penalties. But he's also a fantastic receiver, and by all accounts, one heck of a great human being. But you do know who perpetuates the culture that allows those penalties, right? Who was it who decided that the Hawks didn't need to run the ball anymore in the second half? You'd think it was Seattle who was averaging 2.3 yards per carry, not the Rams. Nope, I'm calling out Pete Carroll as the biggest dud of this game.