Photo Credit: ESPN
You know that meme of the horse drawing where the front half looks like it was drawn by a child and the back half looks like it was drawn by a professional artist? That was pretty much the Seahawks against the Falcons, a dismal first half and a masterful second half. The Seattle Seahawks improved to 10–3, matching last season’s win total, after a 37–9 win over the Atlanta Falcons where Seattle put up 31 points in the second half. After only having two catches for 23 yards last week, Jaxon Smith-Njigba bounced back with seven catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns. Both touchdowns came against A.J. Terrell, one of the elite corners in the NFL, and he hadn’t allowed a touchdown all year heading into Sunday.
Sam Darnold joined Tom Brady as the only quarterbacks to have consecutive 10-plus-win seasons with two different teams. Darnold finished with 249 passing yards and three touchdowns. This game was 6–6 going into halftime, you wouldn’t believe it if you looked at the final score. Seattle could have actually been trailing, but Darnell Mooney had his touchdown called back. The Seahawks were playing horribly on offense; it was yet another game where they couldn’t get the run game going and couldn’t move the ball effectively. Then a switch flipped at the start of the second half.
Rashid Shaheed took the second-half kickoff back 100 yards to start things off with a bang. It was Seattle’s first kickoff return for a touchdown since Week 6 of last season when Laviska Shenault Jr. took one back against the 49ers. On the ensuing drive, the Seahawks forced a turnover, which led to JSN’s first touchdown. Then Seattle forced another turnover, and it was pretty much over from there. Just like that, Cooper Kupp added another touchdown, JSN added one later, and a game that was tied at halftime turned into a blowout. The Seahawks proved that they are one of the top teams in the NFL and can beat you in all three phases.
But now, the main reason the Seahawks not only won this game but have won so many games this season, the defense. I’m telling you, this defense is elite. If you don’t think they’re at minimum a top-three defense, I seriously question your ball knowledge. They got reinforcements back with Julian Love and Jarren Reed returning Sunday. Love had missed the last eight games with a hamstring injury, and Reed missed the last four with a thumb injury.
The Seahawks forced three turnovers and blocked a kick, and they haven’t given up a touchdown in back-to-back games. Seattle held Bijan Robinson to 86 rushing yards, and they haven’t allowed a 100-yard rusher in 22 games, the longest streak in the NFL. I could go on and on about so many defensive players, Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy are having great years, Ernest Jones is playing like one of the top linebackers in the league, and the secondary has been elite. Devon Witherspoon had a great game, recovering a fumble and picking off a pass. Coby Bryant filled in great for Julian Love when he was out.
But there’s one guy I have to point out, Nick Emmanwori. Emmanwori had an absolutely magnificent game, that may even be an understatement. He finished with five tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, an interception, and a blocked kick. The Seahawks traded up for Emmanwori in the draft, and we all knew he was a talented player. He battled injuries early in the season, but he finally looks like he’s coming into his own. He’s even jumped into the defensive rookie of the year conversation. It’s a great feeling knowing that on days when the offense isn’t playing up to par, the defense can not only keep us in games but win us games as well, just like last week and the first half of this week.
The Seahawks return home to face the Indianapolis Colts in what was looking like a tough matchup before, but after Daniel Jones went down with an injury, the Colts’ season is up in the air. The Seahawks still have work to do as they fight for a division title, as they are tied with the Los Angeles Rams with a month left in the season.
