Seahawks Quick Hits: Unlikely duo saves the day, DK Metcalf has a star-making game

Well, after the Seahawks coasted to victory in Week 1 against the Falcons, the “Heart Attack Hawks” returned for Week 2, especially in the second half.

Seahawks beat Pats 35-30 | Another goal-line finish | Instant Reaction

The 2019 Seahawks were all about close and big finishes with 11 of their 12 wins (including playoffs) coming by eight points or less. Thanks to a goal-line stop of Cam Newton and the Patriots, the Seahawks added a win of that fashion into the column for 2020, topping New England 35-30 at home in a primetime thriller.

There’s a ton to cover from the win, but we’re going to focus on just a few things: the play of the game, what would have been the play of the game had Seattle lost, just how good the offense was, and a key question heading into Week 3. Let’s get started.

Lano and L.J. for the win

If I’d have told you before the game started that backup safety Lano Hill and 2019 first-round pick L.J. Collier, who many had written off as a bust already, would combine for a game-saving tackle of Newton with time expiring, you wouldn’t have believed me. Well, that’s exactly what happened.

The Patriots got the ball back with just under two minutes remaining – we’ll talk about that in a second – and, like they did in the second half, promptly drove down the field.

A few first downs and big plays later, the Patriots were 2 yards out of the end zone with just three seconds remaining and no more timeouts. Newton already had two rushing scores and as he went for his third, Hill blew up the fullback blocker and Collier slipped in and clipped Newton’s feet, stopping him well short and securing Seattle’s second win of the year.

AAAAAAAND EXHALE

That'll do it ❗️ pic.twitter.com/SQR6ndhmnV

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 21, 2020

Hill was only in the game because of injuries and an ejection, and he came up huge for the Seahawks at the right time. For Collier, it was far and away the biggest play of his young career as he looks to prove he was worth a first-round pick last year.

Questionable call: Going for the pass on third-and-1

Last year in the playoffs, rather than running the ball on third down against the Eagles, the Seahawks went for the killshot and threw a deep ball to DK Metcalf, who beat the coverage and ended the game with a leaping snag.

After two Chris Carson rushes for a total of 9 yards, Seattle took a big risk with Wilson looking right for Tyler Lockett, but the ball fell incomplete and Newton and the Patriots, who had scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, had a chance to win it. And as we discussed, they nearly did.

Seahawks fans are loving that the team is passing the ball more, but I really wonder how everyone felt about the play call. Carson averaged 4.2 yards a carry in the win and even if he fell short, New England would have been forced to burn another timeout as the clock would have kept running, which would have been critical on their final drive.

Hindsight is 20-20, of course, but it seemed like an unnecessary risk that almost proved fatal.

Seahawks torched a great secondary

Wilson has nine passing touchdowns and just 11 incomplete passes this year through two weeks. Yeah, ridiculous.

Last week he decimated a poor Atlanta defense, but this week he went up against a team that boasts one of the best secondaries in the NFL, including reigning Defensive Player of the Year cornerback Stephon Gilmore.

Like many expected, the long-armed Gilmore shadowed DK Metcalf. Well, Metcalf got the better of that matchup, catching four of six targets for 92 yards, including this long touchdown with Gilmore draped all over him.

THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL@DangeRussWilson ➡️ @dkm14 for the 54 yard touchdown ❗️

📺: Watch live on NBC pic.twitter.com/qHYONpFo5p

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 21, 2020

Metcalf was thought of by many analysts as a breakout star for 2020 after having 900 yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie, and he sure looked like a star in Week 2. Going up against arguably the best cornerback in the game, Metcalf more than held his own, and he showed just how much of a physical freak he can be at 6 foot 3 and 230 pounds with 4.3 speed.

In addition to another star-making performance from Metcalf, Wilson threw five touchdown passes to five different players. We’ve discussed Metcalf’s already, but Wilson also connected with Lockett for Seattle’s first touchdown, rookie receiver Freddie Swain for his first career touchdown, Carson for his third touchdown of the year, and David Moore, who made an exceptional play to stay in bounds for a long score in the third quarter.

Oh my goodness @DMoeSwagg23 gets his feet in!! 🙌

Q3: SEA 21, NE 17

📺: Watch live on NBC pic.twitter.com/cIhk65FlpT

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 21, 2020

The Patriots’ defense isn’t as good a it was last year as many players left in free agency or opted out, but for the most part the secondary is intact aside from Patrick Chung, who opted out of the season. Of 13 passing touchdowns allowed by New England last year, just four were caught by opposing wide receivers. The Patriots allowed that number on Sunday alone to the Seahawks’ receivers.

This offense sure looks to be firing on all cylinders, which is a bad sign for opposing defenses, starting next week with the Dallas Cowboys.

Quick Question

After that game, there is a key question to be asked, and it’s one that’s been discussed all offseason: Do the Seahawks need to add another pass rusher?

I would have asked this even before defensive end/linebacker Bruce Irvin left the game with a leg injury in the fourth quarter. With him banged up, it’s even more of a concern.

The Seahawks have three sacks through two games and two of them are by safety Jamal Adams. The other was by defensive end Benson Mayowa last week in Atlanta. It sure seems like the Seahawks could use an extra body there to help bring down opposing quarterbacks, though Newton is always extremely difficult to bring down and he showed that on Sunday Night Football.

The Seahawks have had rookie fifth-round defensive end Alton Robinson inactive for both games in 2020, and he may be called upon now with Irvin banged up. The first free agent that comes to mind: Clay Matthews Jr. He played for head coach Pete Carroll at USC and has experience both at outside linebacker and defensive end, just like Irvin.

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