Recap: Seahawks ground high-flying Eagles in primetime

The Seahawks improved to 8-4 with a 24-10 win over the (now 10-2) Philadelphia Eagles.

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Here’s a breakdown of each quarter:

FIRST QUARTER

Seahawks: 10, Eagles: 0

The Eagles won the toss and chose to defer. It was a promising start for the Seahawks, who moved well to start the drive but eventually stalled near the PHI-28. Kicker Blair Walsh nailed a 46-yard field goal, which put Seattle on the board and drew an interesting note from 710 ESPN Seattle’s Danny O’Neil:

The 46-yard FG was so pretty I won't mention it's the 25th straight regular-season game the #Seahawks failed to score a TD on opening drive.

— Danny O'Neil (@dannyoneil) December 4, 2017

The Seahawks drew their first flag on the Eagles’ first possession, when cornerback Bradley McDougald was called for a personal foul on a hit on a rushing Carson Wentz. The defense eventually forced a punt to keep the Eagles scoreless.

Wilson was sacked (B. Graham) for a loss of six yards to end Seattle’s next possession.

The Eagles offense also fell short, failing to capitalize on good field possession and ending a drive by allowing a sack of Carson Wentz (F. Clark).

The Seahawks’ first touchdown came on their last drive of the quarter. Starting from their own 15, Seattle moved 85 yards downfield before Russell Wilson hit Jimmy Graham with an 11-yard pass for a touchdown. The score was Graham’s ninth of the season – already more than his first two seasons with Seattle combined.

SEA – Blair Walsh 46 FG (SEA 3-0)
SEA – Russell Wilson 11 pass to Jimmy Graham (Walsh kick, SEA 10-0)

SECOND QUARTER

Seahawks 10, Eagles 3

A strong run game put the Eagles deep in Seahawks’ territory, but Philadelphia was ultimately kept out of the end zone when a holding penalty pushed the Eagles back from the 2-yard line. Still, Eagles kicker Jake Elliott sank a 26-yard field goal to put them on the board.

Despite a solid first quarter, the Seahawks’ offense couldn’t get the momentum it needed to sustain drives in the second and was held out of the end zone.

The biggest takeaway from the first half was Seattle’s defense: down a handful of starters, the defense held Wentz to 45 yards (9-13, 0 TD, 0 INT) and sacked him once for a loss of eight. Zach Ertz, the Eagles’ leading receiver, didn’t get a catch. Seattle still struggled to contain the rush (Philly had 91 yards on the ground, counting scrambles from Wentz), but the Seahawks otherwise kept a high-scoring, young team out of the end zone.

Overall, it was a slow quarter for both teams, with Elliott’s field goal being the lone score.

PHI – Jake Elliott 26 FG (SEA 10-3)

THIRD QUARTER

Seahawks 17, Eagles 3

The Eagles lost a timeout on a failed challenge during their first drive but found success after Wentz converted a third down with a two-yard gain and then hit wide receiver Alshon Jeffery for a 23-yard pass to the Seahawks’ 4-yard line.  Wentz tried to run it up the middle to get into the end zone, but defensive end Sheldon Richardson plowed into him to force a fumble, which went out of the end zone for a touchback.

The Seahawks’ offense took over at the SEA-20. The drive started well with a quick completion to Graham for nine yards, but Wilson was forced to scramble for his life and throw it away on two following plays. A defensive holding penalty picked up the first down for the Seahawks, however. From midfield and under pressure, Wilson threw a bomb to a wide-open Doug Baldwin, who caught it and ran into the end zone. The touchdown call was overturned when it was determined Baldwin’s foot was out-of-bounds before he crossed the goal line. Starting from the 1, though, Wilson was able to hit Tyler Lockett three plays later for a touchdown.

Wentz responded with a deep, 32-yard pass to Nelson Agholar on what looked to be a miscommunication or busted coverage by the Seattle defense. He was chased down and tackled by linebacker Bobby Wagner. Another two plays put the Eagles at the SEA-25 (where Eagles tight end Zach Ertz had to leave the field to be evaluated for a head injury). A quarterback hit by linebacker K.J. Wright threw Wentz off-balance for an incomplete pass – and another end to an Eagles drive.

The Seahawks took over for their second possession with just under four minutes remaining in the third, but the drive ended when Wilson took a hard shot to the chest and was flagged for intentional grounding.

Seahawks cornerback Justin Coleman sacked Carson Wentz to end the third quarter.

Notable: A questionable no-call on what looked like a facemask penalty against wide receiver Paul Richardson.

SEA – Wilson 1 pass to Tyler Lockett (Walsh kick, SEA 17-3)

FOURTH QUARTER

Seahawks 24, Eagles 10

The Eagles got their first touchdown on a phenomenal 27-yard pass from Wentz to Agholar. The Seattle defense left a few plays on the field – but worth noting, it was the first time this season the Eagles were held out of the end zone through the first three quarters.

One of the Seahawks’ best plays came out of a scramble from Wilson on the following drive. As he was being tackled on a scramble and run, Wilson lateraled to running back Mike Davis, who picked up another 17 yards. Wilson eventually found running back J.D. McKissic for a 15-yard touchdown to make it a two-score game.

Fittingly, former Eagle Byron Maxwell drew the loudest cheer of the night with an interception in the end zone of a deep pass intended for Agholar.

Seattle took over with two minutes remaining, leading 24-10. They punted the ball with less than one minute remaining and held on for the win.

PHI – Carson Wentz 27 pass to Nelson Agholar (Elliott kick, 17-10 SEA)
SEA – Wilson 15 pass to J.D. McKissic (Walsh kick, 24-10 SEA)

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