Seahawks suffer first loss as Arizona escapes with bizarre 37-34 OT victory
Oct 25, 2020, 6:07 PM | Updated: Oct 26, 2020, 1:23 am
The Seahawks played the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Ariz., on Sunday night, and some crazy stuff happened.
But you probably should have expected that.
Seahawks lose 37-34 in OT: Quick hits | Reaction | Moore’s take | Stats
The Seahawks led the entire game in regulation after they came out like a house of fire on their first offensive series.
Tyler Lockett caught 15 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns, all either setting or tying career highs for Seattle’s veteran wide receiver.
And Arizona kicker Zane Gonzalez missed a chance to deliver the Cardinals a win with a 41-yard field goal attempt in overtime, inadvertently iced by a timeout by his own coach.
All that, and the Seahawks didn’t win.
Like I said, some crazy stuff happened, and that’s only the half of it from Seattle’s 37-34 loss, its first of the 2020 season.
Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who hadn’t thrown two interceptions in a game since Week 1 in 2018, threw three.
The Seahawks pushed their lead to 34-24 with under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter on a spectacular touchdown catch by Lockett, only it wasn’t enough to seal victory.
And on top of all that, the play the game may be most remembered for is a tackle by DK Metcalf, the Seahawks’ hulking wideout.
Expect the unexpected whenever the Hawks go to Glendale, especially in primetime. After all, the last time the two teams played on a Sunday night in Arizona, it ended in a 6-6 tie where all the points were scored on field goals and yet each team missed field goal attempts that would have won the game in overtime. It seemed like it may come to something similar this time, only for Gonzalez to get a chance at redemption, which he cashed in.
Wilson threw a uncharacteristically sloppy interception to give Arizona the ball back late in overtime –after Gonzalez had missed a chance to win it from 41 yards out – and the Cardinals had enough time to drive close enough for Gonzalez to sneak a 48-yard game-winner inside the right upright.
Redemption for Zane Gonzalez for the big win in overtime! #RedSea pic.twitter.com/jZZ4rl5ItK
— Sunday Night Football (@SNFonNBC) October 26, 2020
The Seahawks are now 5-1 after dropping their first meeting with an NFC West rival this season, while the Cardinals move to 5-2 with the win.
Here’s a quarter-by-quarter look at the game.
First quarter
Seahawks 10, Cardinals 7
You think the Seahawks were eager to get back on the field after their bye?
Judging by their first series on each side of the ball, that appeared to be the case.
Tyler Lockett made an insane one-handed catch on the first play from scrimmage and the Hawks just kept flying. Russell Wilson completed all five of his pass attempts on the opening drive, Chris Carson added a 10-yard run, and it took just six plays for Seattle to cover 75 yards and take a 7-0 lead. Lockett caught a 3-yard pass for the touchdown.
.@TDLockett12 finishes off this perfect opening drive with the TD!
📺: #SEAvsAZ on NBC pic.twitter.com/so1wF6D94q
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 26, 2020
The Seattle defense, which has had a much harder time this season than the offense, kept the momentum going with an impressive three-and-out stand on its first shot. Arizona ended up losing seven yards on the drive, with Kyler Murray completing two passes for a total of minus-2 yards and a false start call on “everybody but the center” – seriously, that’s what the official said – pushing the Cardinals back another 5 yards.
The next two series weren’t quite as positive for the Seahawks, though they did at least initially build on their lead. An apparent touchdown pass from Wilson to tight end Greg Olsen was called back after a replay review, and Seattle had to settle for a rare Jason Myers field goal – rare in that the Hawks’ stellar success in the red zone meant Myers’ attempt was only his third so far this season.
In another instance of almost a great play for Seattle, linebacker Bobby Wagner had Murray in his grasp for a sack on third-and-8, but the ever-elusive Cardinals QB escaped and scampered to a first down to keep the drive alive. Seven plays later, Murray connected with DeAndre Hopkins on a long pass to the front corner of the end zone for a 35-yard TD, cutting the Hawks’ advantage to 10-7.
The Seahawks were in Arizona territory at the end of the quarter after a pair of runs for a combined 11 yards by Carson and a 16-yard pass to Lockett, giving him 54 yards receiving in the first frame alone.
SEA – Tyler Lockett 3 pass from Russell Wilson (Jason Myers kick), 11:59
SEA – Myers 41 FG, 6:39
ARI – DeAndre Hopkins 35 pass from Kyler Murray (Zane Gonzalez kick), 3:14
Second quarter
Seahawks 27, Cardinals 17
You’d think a play where Seattle’s MVP front-running quarterback gets picked off from the 3 and Budda Baker returns the interception 90 yards would lead to disastrous things for the Hawks.
Not so fast. At least not when DK Metcalf’s around.
Seattle’s hulking wide receiver somehow tracked down Baker, the Bellevue High School and UW Huskies product, for about as impressive of a chase down and tackle you’ll ever see from an offensive player.
Come for the Budda Baker interception, stay for DK Metcalf CHASING. HIM. DOWN. 😳#SEAvsAZ | NBC pic.twitter.com/eeth0yseX6
— Sunday Night Football (@SNFonNBC) October 26, 2020
Getting chased by DK Metcalf is super high on the list of things I hope to never experience
— Curtis Rogers (@AKidFromKent) October 26, 2020
It’s not just that Metcalf got to Baker to prevent a touchdown that would have given Arizona the lead. The Seahawks’ defense, which had given the offense the ball in the first place with a fumble recovery, took that and actually stuffed the Cardinals to cause a turnover on downs even though Arizona started the drive at Seattle’s 8.
Wilson and company weren’t about to let a second gift from the defense go to waste, responding by reeling off a six-play, 97-yard touchdown drive. Wilson had a 34-yard run and 28-yard pass to Will Dissly, and veteran running back Carlos Hyde took it home with a 24-yard run.
For as strong as the defense had looked to that point, the Cardinals got to the Seahawks on their next drive with something that has plagued Seattle this year: the big play. Murray converted a third-and-8 with a 13-yard pass to Hopkins, then hit Dan Arnold for 41 yards on the very next play, setting up a 7-yard TD pass to Christian Kirk that made it 20-14 in the Seahawks’ favor.
That gave Wilson the ball back with a little over a minute until halftime, and that was about twice as much as he needed to score another touchdown. He threw one of his trademark deep balls up to Lockett, resulting in an incredible 47-yard score with 43 seconds to spare.
.@TDLockett12 is SPECTACULAR. 🌟
📺: #SEAvsAZ on NBC pic.twitter.com/eVK5I42LyW
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 26, 2020
That gave Lockett 133 yards and two TDs on eight catches – at the half.
Wilson had 250 yards on 16 of 24 passing with two TDs and an interception at the break, along with a team-high 56 rushing yards on two carries.
Arizona was able to attempt a field goal at the end of the second quarter, with Zane Gonzalez connecting from 49 yards to cut Seattle’s lead to 10 points.
The half ended on a somber note as Arizona’s Isaiah Irving had to be put on a backboard and carted off the field after being injured on the kickoff after Lockett’s TD.
There was some worrisome news for Seattle, too. Carson left the game and was questionable to return with a foot injury. Rookie guard Damien Lewis also left the game for a short time due to a possible injury but returned.
SEA – Myers 44 FG, 12:55
SEA – Carlos Hyde 24 run (Myers kick), 4:04
ARI – Christian Kirk 7 pass from Kyler Murray (Gonzalez kick), 1:14
ARI – Gonzalez 49 FG, :04
Third quarter
Seahawks 27, Cardinals 24
Undefeated or not, it’s rare for the Seahawks to make it cleanly through a full four quarters as the obvious aggressors. This game was no exceptions.
The Cardinals clawed back into the game with the combination of offense, defense, calls going their way and even injury in the third quarter.
Seattle lost Pro Bowl cornerback Shaquill Griffin as he was ruled out after being evaluated for a concussion. And while linebacker K.J. Wright blew up a screen pass to Hopkins for a loss of 4 that contributed to Arizona having to punt on its first drive after halftime, and Seahawks All-Pro Michael Dickson had yet another punt downed inside the 10, that was about it for highlights from the Seahawks in the third.
An unnecessary roughness call on a third down incompletion going against Seattle linebacker Bobby Wagner (that drew the ire of Hawks fans) helped the Cardinals out on a 12-play, 93-yard touchdown drive that cut the Seahawks’ lead to 27-24. Murray completed three passes of 12 or more yards along the way and capped the drive off with a 5-yard rushing score.
The Seahawks were driving near midfield at the end of the quarter.
ARI –Murray 5 run (Zane Gonzalez kick), 2:59
Fourth quarter
Seahawks 34, Cardinals 34
Once again, the defense had Wilson’s back after an interception. After Wilson overshot Metcalf and was picked off in the end zone by Patrick Peterson, Quandre Diggs gave Seattle possession with a pick of Murray on the very next play.
And just like the previous time Seattle’s defense responded to a turnover by giving the ball right back to its offense, the Seahawks turned that into a touchdown. This time it came on an incredibly important 3-yard catch by Lockett that had such a high degree of difficulty it needed to be confirmed by replay review.
TWO FEET IN! 🙌
Make it 3️⃣ touchdowns on the day for @TDLockett12!
📺: #SEAvsAZ on NBC pic.twitter.com/3gTJUqoO1m
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 26, 2020
As important as Lockett’s TD was, it wasn’t enough to settle things in regulation. The Cardinals ended the fourth quarter with 10 straight points to force an extra period despite trailing the entire game to that point.
First Arizona put together a 14-play, 75-yard drive, with Murray hitting Kirk from the 8 for a second TD connection between the pair. And while Seattle had a chance to clinch the win with one last drive, it came up short on a third-and-2 run by Hyde and punted away.
With 52 seconds on the clock and no timeouts left for the Cardinals when they started the drive, Murray did what he needed to do to keep his team alive. He started by completing three straight pass attempts, then handed off to Chase Edmonds for a 12-yard run. That set up Zane Gonzalez for 44-yard field goal. He nailed it as time expired to even up the score and send the game to OT.
The first SNF OT of the season!
Catch #SEAvsAZ on NBC now.pic.twitter.com/ajJ559cezA
— Sunday Night Football (@SNFonNBC) October 26, 2020
SEA – Lockett 3 pass from Wilson (Myers kick), 6:50
ARI – Kirk 8 pass from Murray (Gonzalez kick), 2:28
ARI – Gonzalez 44 FG, :02
Overtime
Cardinals 37, Seahawks 34
A few things went the Seahawks’ way in overtime, but they were unable to capitalize.
First, they won the coin toss and got the ball first. Score a touchdown and it’s game over.
That didn’t happen.
Instead Seattle had to punt after gaining just 9 total yards on six plays.
Then, when the Cardinals got close enough to attempt a field goal from 41 yards, the play clock ran down on them, and Arizona head coach Kliff Kingsbury had to take a timeout. He ended up icing his kicker, as Gonzalez missed and the game continued with the Seahawks on offense.
That’s where things took a turn for the worse for Seattle. Wilson tried to force a throw on third-and-14 and was intercepted by Arizona’s Isaiah Simmons.
ISAIAH SIMMONS. CLUTCH INTERCEPTION. #RedSea | NBC pic.twitter.com/xIAT2lf0hS
— Sunday Night Football (@SNFonNBC) October 26, 2020
He returned it to the Seahawks’ 49, and Arizona got as close as the 30 to set up Gonzalez for his chance at his redemption. He hit it, a 48-yarder, to send the Hawks home with their first loss of the season.
ARI – Gonzalez 48 FG, :20
O’Neil: Seahawks’ highwire act tumbles | Rost: ‘Now or never’ for defense?
