So that game happened. The Seattle Seahawks lost 21–19 to the Los Angeles Rams in a wild one. Seattle almost overcame Sam Darnold’s four interceptions, but Jason Myers’ 61-yard field-goal attempt came up wide and short. Myers was Seattle’s only offense up until the fourth quarter in what was an ugly game for the Seahawks’ offense. Aside from Darnold’s interceptions, the Seahawks stalled out multiple times in the red zone, ultimately having to settle for field goals.

I have to give credit to the Rams,  they had amazing coverage all night and pressured Darnold unlike any team has this season. Yesterday was only Seattle’s second road loss in the Mike Macdonald era. There haven’t been too many major flaws in the Seahawks’ offense this season, but if there’s one, it’s the turnovers. With Seattle leading in so many games this season, the turnovers hadn’t seemed to matter much. But after yesterday’s game, they now lead the NFL in turnovers with 20, which is something that absolutely has to change if this team wants to make a deep postseason run.

The common theme in Darnold’s four picks was that he was trying to force plays that weren’t there. As I mentioned, the Rams blanketed almost everything, forcing Darnold to attempt throws into tight windows.

Kenneth Walker scored Seattle’s only touchdown of the day and had another one called back, which proved to be the difference in the game. Walker had 111 yards on 19 touches and found the end zone for the first time since Week 3. Jaxon Smith-Njigba had what might be one of the quietest 100-yard games you’ll ever see, finishing with nine catches for 105 yards, including a beautiful one-handed grab down the sideline. JSN broke Steve Largent’s franchise record for 100-yard games in a season with seven.

The Seahawks had no business being in this game, none at all. They were being dominated from almost the start. So why were they in it at the end? The defense is legit. This is the best Seattle defense since the Legion of Boom days. It’s the first time I’ve had confidence in this defense since then. This was the worst game the offense is going to play, and they still had a chance to win it at the very end.

Seattle may have won this game if Ethan Evans, the Rams’ punter, hadn’t made some of the best punts I’ve ever seen, pinning Seattle at the one-yard line on their final drive. This defense is going to give the team a chance to win every game, and that’s scary for the rest of the NFL.

Perhaps Seattle’s biggest loss was rookie guard Grey Zabel leaving the game after getting rolled up on by Charles Cross. Zabel has been absolutely amazing this year and has been a key reason the offense has played so well. Head coach Mike Macdonald said he received positive news about Zabel’s injury, and every Seahawks fan across the globe exhaled a sigh of relief.

Now, you may start to question things after yesterday’s game and say, “It’s the same old Darnold again,” or insert any joke you want. But Darnold led this team down the field, backed up at his own goal line, looked composed, and almost pulled out the win. I know this team believes in Darnold,  take a look at Ernest Jones’ postgame interview if you don’t believe me.

The good thing is that the Seahawks now face Tennessee, a team at the very bottom of the standings, and it’s the perfect game for Darnold and the offense to leave this one behind and get their groove back.