The Seattle Seahawks faced an uphill battle entering Week 1 against the New England Patriots. Sure, head coach Mike Macdonald's team had won the Super Bowl against the same opponent last season, but Seattle had lost talent to free agency, and injuries had depleted the secondary ahead of the new Pats game.
Whatever happened, 12s were probably OK with. After all, the Seahawks had lost Week 1 of last year against the San Francisco 49ers and had still gone on to win the title. The season is a long one with ebbs and flows, and the hope is that the best moments come at the end, not the beginning.
The issue is that quarterback Sam Darnold was injured on the first series of the game for Seattle. He suffered a hip injury, and his timeline for return was not readily known after the game.
Winners and losers from the Seattle Seahawks versus the New England Patriots in Week 1
Seattle was also somewhat of a team still finding itself against New England. New offensive coordinator Brian Fleury was entering his first game calling plays. First-round selection Jadarian Price was playing in his first game as a professional. A loss would not have been awful, but a learning experience was a must.
And it was a learning experience for both the team and the fans, and one that Seattle won anyway, 13-10. Not everything was good, of course, but it might help in the future.
Winner: Edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu
Nwosu was arguably the best player Seattle had on the field all game. He was a pure menace to the Patriots, getting constant pressure (without getting a sack), a tackle for loss, and a pass broken up on a stellar play that he read on a swing pass. Nwosu is in a contract year, and if he continues to play as he did in Week 1, he's going to get paid a lot of money next offseason.
Loser: Offensive coordinator Brian Fleury
Clearly, it is far too early to say the first-time OC is over his head, and he is expected to make mistakes, but his lack of experience calling plays affected the team after Sam Darnold was hurt. Instead of using running back Jadarian Price more, as Price was exceedingly efficient when he ran the ball, Fleury threw too much in a close game.
The new OC did have a few brilliant calls in the second half, but on the fourth quarter drive that ended in a field goal, the play was far too late getting in several times, which threw the offensive line off, resulting in a penalty, and also one for delay of game. Why the play was consistently late getting in was not clear.
Winner: Cornerback Josh Jobe
Jobe has a lot of pressure on him because he basically became CB1 (at least on the outside) late last season, and was good enough that the team felt fine letting Riq Woolen leave in free agency. Unfortunately, in the first half, Jobe was badly beaten on a flea-flicker, and he was called for pass interference that was followed by an easy Patriots touchdown.
Jobe changed his narrative in the second half, though. He had a huge tackle in the open field, and then he closed out the game with an interception in the end zone on a ridiculous decision by Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
Winner: Safety Julian Love
Love continues to be one of the best and most underrated players at his position in the NFL. He had a couple of tackles for loss, an interception in the fourth quarter, and was everything the Seahawks needed him to be, with Seattle missing Ty Okada and Nick Emmanwori entering the game.
Loser: Linebacker Chazz Surratt
Surratt stuck on the roster due to his special teams acumen, but that is exactly what hurt Seattle in the third quarter when the linebacker was called for roughing the punter, giving New England decent field position. They were able to convert a long field goal on the drive because of it. At that point, it was 10-0 New England, so any points were crucial.
Winner: Quarterback Drew Lock
Sam Darnold's first drive injury might have doomed the game, but Lock was precise with his passes and smart with his choices. The offense didn't put up a lot of points, but that was more because of the Patriots' good defense.
Lock proved he can lead the Seattle Seahawks to wins, and he might need to for a while until Darnold returns. Lock is also increasing his asking price in free agency next year.
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