Seahawks struggle in 2nd half, lose 30-16 to Baltimore Ravens

The Seahawks had an answer for the threat posed by the dual-threat ability of Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson – for most of the first three quarters.

The rest of the game, however, belonged to Jackson and his Ravens.

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Jackson ran for an 8-yard touchdown on fourth down to put the Ravens in the lead late in the third quarter, and his legs helped set up a key field goal in the fourth quarter as Baltimore knocked off the Seahawks in Seattle 30-16 on Sunday.

Both teams left the game with a 5-2 record.

Seattle’s offense struggled on a rainy day at its home stadium, scoring just one touchdown. And in perhaps the most surprising development of the day, Seahawks QB Russell Wilson, the NFL’s leading MVP candidate, threw his first interception of the season. It was a costly one, too, as Marcus Peters’ pick in the second quarter was returned 67 yards for a touchdown.

The Hawks had a second turnover that translated directly to Ravens points when they really couldn’t afford one, too. Rookie wide receiver DK Metcalf fumbled while trying to shift the ball from one side to the other in the fourth quarter. The ball was picked up in Seattle territory by Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, who streaked down the sideline for an 18-yard TD return, giving Baltimore a commanding 17-point lead with 3:37 remaining.

Wilson finished the day 20 for 41 passing for 241 yards, a touchdown, an interception and a season-low 65.2 QB rating. Chris Carson was Seattle’s leading rusher with 65 yards on 21 carries, and Tyler Lockett caught five passes for 61 yards, including an 8-yard TD.

The Seahawks’ defense had a strong game considering everything. Seattle was without safeties Bradley McDougald and Lano Hill and defensive end Ziggy Ansah. The Ravens didn’t do much in the passing game, but Jackson topped the century mark in rushing yards for the third time this season with 116 yards on 14 carries.

Here’s a quarter-by-quarter look at the game:

First quarter

Ravens 3, Seahawks 0

The Seahawks’ defense was tasked with a tall order on Sunday – contain Jackson. The results of the first quarter were promising in that regard.

While Jackson had one run for 10 yards and a big 50-yard pass to Miles Boykin to set up a field goal, those three points were all Baltimore would get in its first two possessions.

That pass to Boykin was the only real mistake made by Seattle’s defense in the opening quarter, but it was a big one as Boykin got behind Seahawks free safety Tedric Thompson to haul in the long bomb from Jackson. The good news is that on third-and-2 just a few plays later, Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney got to Baltimore’s Gus Edwards in the backfield for a loss, making the Ravens settle for a 25-yarder by kicker Justin Tucker.

Seattle had a rough first offensive series, as Carson lost six yards when he bobbled and then caught a pass in the flat, and Metcalf had a throw from a running Wilson hit off his hands on third down. But the Seahawks came up with a stop on defense, and the offense started putting together a strong drive as the clock ticked down towards the end of the quarter. Carson took three straight handoffs to open the series to get a first down, and Metcalf beat Peters for a 37 yards reception on a long Wilson throw.

Seattle had the ball at Baltimore’s 15 when the second quarter started, and while the Ravens had the lead at that point, it wouldn’t be long before the Seahawks took it.

BAL – Justin Tucker 25 FG (BAL 3-0), 10:19

Second quarter

Seahawks 13, Ravens 13

The Seahawks did an excellent job holding the Ravens’ offense out of the end zone in the first half.

The Ravens’ defense, on the other hand? Not so much, and that’s why the two teams went into their respective locker rooms tied after two quarters.

Wilson threw his first interception of the season, as Peters stepped up to pick off a pass intended for Seattle wide receiver Jaron Brown. Once Peters had the ball there was nothing but wide-open field in front of him, and the Ravens’ newest cornerback – Baltimore acquired the former UW Huskies standout in a trade with the Rams last Tuesday – went 67 yards for a pick-six that put the Ravens ahead 13-10 with 5 minutes left before halftime.

In his first game with the @Ravens…

A 67-yard PICK-6 for @MarcusPeters! 💯 #BALvsSEA

📺: FOX
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app
Watch free on mobile: https://t.co/wAXJCleXiU pic.twitter.com/05xqNlWVig

— NFL (@NFL) October 20, 2019

Prior to that mistake, the Seahawks had been in pretty great shape. In a matchup that had significant potential to turn into a shootout, the Seahawks had instead made the Ravens play their kind of game. And, pick-six notwithstanding, it had been advantage Seahawks.

Seattle took the lead early in the second quarter as Lockett dove to catch a wobbly Wilson pass in the end zone after Wilson took a late shot (which resulted in a flag for roughing the passer), putting Seattle ahead 7-3.

.@DangeRussWilson and @TDLockett12 in motion?

Pure MAGIC. ✨

Q2: SEA 7, BAL 3 pic.twitter.com/fj9YmNIOFy

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 20, 2019

The Seahawks were able to maintain the lead even though Baltimore reached the red zone on the next possession. Bobby Wagner broke up a Jackson pass on third-and-8 from the Seattle 10, making the Ravens settle for a Tucker field goal for the second time in as many trips to the red zone.

Seattle got those three points back, as a 24-yard pass from Wilson to Malik Turner helped set up a 34-yard Jason Myers field goal.

When the Seahawks got the ball back after Peters’ interception, Wilson and company went right back to work, too. Despite starting the drive at their own 8 due to a penalty on the kick return, Seattle picked up four first downs, the third of which came on a 33-yard rainbow of a pass from Wilson to Lockett that moved Seattle all the way from its own 33 to the Baltimore 34. Wilson ended up having to throw the ball out of the back of the end zone twice with the clock ticking down, however, and Myers was called upon once more to kick a 31-yard field goal and send the game to halftime tied at 13-all.

SEA – Tyler Lockett 8 pass from Russell Wilson (Jason Myers kick, 7-3 SEA), 14:46
BAL – Tucker 28 FG (SEA 7-6), 11:06
SEA – Myers 34 FG (SEA 10-6), 7:35
BAL – Marcus Peters 67 interception return (Tucker kick, 13-10 BAL), 5:00
SEA – Myers 31 FG (13-13 tie), :02

Third quarter

Ravens 20, Seahawks 13

Baltimore was pretty much guaranteed to take the lead inside the final two minutes of the third, as it had the ball at Seattle’s 8 and was prepared to let Tucker, the best kicker in NFL history based on percentage, attempt a chip-shot field goal. Then, suddenly, the Ravens had second thoughts.

It paid off for them.

Baltimore called a timeout and Jackson consulted with head coach John Harbaugh on what to do, then came back out with the offense on fourth-and-2. The decision was to run with Jackson, and it was the right one as he went the full 8 yards to score the Ravens’ first offensive touchdown of the day and put them ahead 20-13 after Tucker hit the extra point.

The Seahawks nearly fell behind a bit earlier than that, but K.J. Wright broke up a pass that was in the hands of Ravens tight end Mark Andrews in the end zone.

Seattle’s offense didn’t do much in the third quarter, as it had to punt on the opening drive of the second half and Myers just missed a field goal from 53 yards out on the Seahawks’ second series.

BAL – Lamar Jackson 8 run (Tucker kick, 20-13 BAL), 1:20

Fourth quarter

Ravens 30, Seahawks 16

The fourth quarter was one the Seahawks will want to forget.

After punting from their own 44 early in the frame, they appeared to have the Ravens on their heels.

Then Jackson did this.

Lamar Jackson is playing at a different speed 🔥 @lj_era8 #BALvsSEA

📺: FOX
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app
Watch free on mobile: https://t.co/wAXJCleXiU pic.twitter.com/nZ3ZVSCCEB

— NFL (@NFL) October 20, 2019

That 30-yard scramble on third-and-8 was the beginning of the end for Seattle. Jackson and the Ravens had worn down the Seahawks’ defense by that point, and they took an entire nine minutes off the clock before letting Tucker hit a 22-yard field goal that put Baltimore ahead by 10 points.

That’s when disaster struck for the Seahawks. Metcalf fumbled, and with just 10 seconds having come off the clock since Tucker’s field goal, Baltimore was in the end zone on Humphrey’s fumble return that sealed the win for the Ravens.

Seattle scored on one last Myers field goal to cut the Ravens’ winning margin to 14 points – exactly how many Baltimore’s defense scored on takeaways.

BAL – Tucker 22 FG (23-13 BAL), 3:47
BAL – Marlon Humphrey 18 fumble return (Tucker kick, 30-13 BAL), 3:37
SEA – Myers 35 FG (BAL 30-16), 1:49

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