Brock and Salk: What stood out in Seahawks’ preseason opener

Aug 12, 2024, 12:52 PM

Seattle Seahawks backup QB Sam Howell...

Sam Howell of the Seattle Seahawks in the first half during a preseason game on Aug. 10, 2024. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

(Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

BY ZAC HERETH

Seattle Sports

The first preseason game of the Mike Macdonald era is in the books for the Seattle Seahawks.

Brock: Seattle Seahawks player who had best preseason opener

There was plenty dissect for the new-look Seahawks as they penned a solid introduction to the first chapter of Macdonald’s tenure, defeating the Los Angeles Chargers 16-3 on Saturday night.

What stood out the most? Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk discussed there takeaways Monday morning.

Sam Howell turns in solid showing

The reports on backup quarterback Sam Howell weren’t very encouraging during the first couple of weeks of training camp, with accuracy and timing being brought up as areas of weakness. However, Howell turned in a solid performance in his first game action with the Seahawks.

Howell completed 16 of 27 passes for 130 yards and one touchdown. He also showed his ability to create with his legs and perhaps most importantly played a turnover-free game.

“The player we saw on the field did no way resemble the guy in practice,” Mike Salk said. “He had command, there was more accuracy – not perfect – but more accuracy, his mobility showed up, he didn’t look desperate, he looked like he ran with a purpose. He wasn’t perfect by any means, but he was better than what we’ve seen so far.”

Huard was impressed by the way Howell bounced back from a mistake late in the first half when he took a sack that forced the Seahawks out of field goal range late in the second quarter. The third-year quarterback responded by engineering a 14-play, 84-yard TD march that burned 8 minutes, 15 seconds off the clock to start the third quarter.

“I thought Sam was super, super solid,” former NFL quarterback Brock Huard said. “I thought he was composed. I thought his command overall was good. There was no delay of games, there was nothing frantic and maybe some of the reason he struggled in these couple weeks of preseason camp is the same reason that (Chargers quarterback) Easton Stick struggled. This Seahawk defense is pretty (darn) good, and there’s not a lot of easy completions to be had.”

Murphy, Seattle Seahawks rookie class impress

The Seahawks saw plenty of contributions from their rookie class, which included first-round defensive tackle Byron Murphy II being a force at the line of scrimmage. One of the plays that showed just how dominant the Texas product can be was when three blockers couldn’t stop him from pressuring Chargers quarterback Easton Stick out of the pocket and into a throw that Boye Mafe batted down.

“There was definitely some Aaron Donald ‘you can’t block me one-on-one,’ and (he) definitely reset the line of scrimmage,” Huard said.

“He looked faster on the field than I thought he would,” Salk said. “I think that was probably the thing that jumped out most to me is that … he looked quicker than I thought that he would.”

Murph on display. 📺 pic.twitter.com/Ob2uigF5bg

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) August 11, 2024

Murphy’s performance highlighted a strong day for Seahawks rookies.

“I thought (linebacker) Tyrice Knight played pretty good. The (Pro Football Focus) guys loved him,” Huard said. “… The two young corners (Nehemiah Pritchett and D.J. James) both flashed. (Offensive lineman) Christian Haynes played some great football. So yeah, that entire draft class did a pretty good job in their first time on stage.”

Disrupting the quarterback

Much has been made of Macdonald’s defense and the ‘illusion of complexity’ it creates with multiple looks and disguises that keep the defense guessing. Saturday offered a first look at how that will look with the Seahawks, and it resulted in three sacks, five quarterback hits and one interception in the debut of Macdonald’s defensive scheme.

“You could see (Chargers quarterback) Easton Stick was broken,” Huard said. “… They got to him. When was the last time you saw a quarterback that disrupted – preseason or regular season – whose head is just on a swivel (thinking), ‘Where are they coming from?’ It affects linemen, it affects quarterbacks, it affects offense. The name of the game is affecting the quarterback in the NFL. The best defensive coordinators and the best defenses do it.

“I’m not crowning anybody. It’s one game. There were some starting NFL linemen (in) for the Chargers. It was their backup quarterback, but it was really nice to see a guy totally taken out of the game.”

It’s only preseason, but very clearly you see a Seahawk defense that “disrupts” the opposing QB

No longer should you know the hand being dealt. QB’s will now have to read, react & decipher pre & post snap

This feels purposeful for the @Seahawks

— Brock Huard (@BrockHuard) August 11, 2024

New kickoff rules add opportunity

The Seahawks played their first game with the new kickoff rules adopted by the league this season, which were installed in part to help revive a once-exciting play that had largely become inconsequential during games.

Both teams ended up popping a kick return of at least 40 yards, including a game-high 44-yarder from new Seahawk Laviska Shenault Jr.

“I don’t know how it was in all of the games, but from what I saw, there’s at least an opportunity for it,” Salk said. “I don’t want 40-yard runbacks all the time, but that should be at least a possibility that had all but disappeared in the NFL. If that’s going to be a real thing, sweet. I’m all in for that.”

Strong competition at back of Seattle Seahawks WR room

Neither DK Metcalf or Tyler Lockett played Saturday, which gave even more opportunity for the backend of the Seahawks wide receiver group to showcase their skills. It resulted in a solid day for several players.

Third-year pro Dareke Young led the team with three receptions for 44 yards. Shenault added two receptions for 31 yards and a five-yard rush to go along with his impact in the return game. And Easop Winston Jr. and Cody White each snared two receptions and had 31 and 30 receiving yards, respectively.

Those players all appear to vying for roster spots behind Metcalf, Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Jake Bobo.

“There was (a lot to like), and that is natural in preseason games, especially,” Huard said. “We see this every year in preseason games. You see a wide receiver darling kind of show up in the second half of a bunch of these games, but for these fellas, they are fighting for a spot, they’re fighting for their livelihoods, and that competition has been very, very healthy.”

Third-down execution

Third downs were a sore spot for the Seahawks last season. They ranked 23rd offensively with a 36.2% conversion rate and 30th defensively while allowing conversions at a 46.3% clip.

The Seahawks flipped the script against the Chargers, converting 11 of 20 third-down attempts and allowing their opponents to go a meager 2 for 13.

“That’s how you dominate a game,” Huard said. “That’s how you don’t just win a game in the fourth quarter and finish late. How do we dominate this game over the course of the 60 minutes? We dominate the money down, and there is no clearer picture of that (than) going 11 of 20 and holding them to 2 of 13. You could look at the last 10 years of preseason games and you’re not going to find that disparity versus any opponent very often.”

Listen to the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of the story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.