Stacy on Seahawks: What we learned from Week 1 loss

The San Francisco 49ers entered Lumen Field on Sunday with plenty of new faces on defense, but a very familiar one ended up costing the Seattle Seahawks their shot at a last-second win.

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With less than a minute remaining and the Seahawks inside the 10-yard line, quarterback Sam Darnold took the snap and started to scan the field to his left. San Francisco’s All-Pro edge rusher Nick Bosa plowed into right tackle Abe Lucas, who backed up toward his quarterback. At the same time, Darnold seemed to lose the ball in his wind up, and it fell, pathetically, to the turf.

Six yards to go, San Francisco recovers, game over. Talk about an anticlimactic ending to this one.

Here’s what we learned in Seattle’s Week 1 loss to a divisional foe.

• 1. The offense has a ways to go… and someone not named Jaxon Smith-Njigba will need to make some big plays.

No one expected Seattle’s offense to hit the ground running (no pun intended) with a new quarterback and new offensive coordinator. But when you have no choice but to build on a 10-win season, the bar gets raised pretty quickly.

Safe to say the Seahawks didn’t clear it Sunday.

‘Not the start that we wanted’ for Seahawks’ offense

There were a few bright moments: Jaxon Smith Njigba’s catch to take Seattle in the red zone late (he certainly looks primed for a strong season), while Zach Charbonnet’s touchdown at least proved an early commitment to the run.

First of the game. Here we goooo 🗣️

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/UFvX70M2JU

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 7, 2025

But other moments felt frustrating. The offense never got into much of a rhythm, converted just 3 of 10 third downs, and got a bit too cute with playcalling in a tie game at midfield late. And for all their focus on establishing the run, the Seahawks finished with just 84 yards on the ground.

“We were hot and cold,” head coach Mike Macdonald said of the offense. “We’ve got to operate a little more efficiently and be better on early downs.”

Is there some good to take? Absolutely. Darnold faced some pressure but was sacked just once. And again, Smith-Njigba as a primary target looks fit for the job. But for as much fanfare as there was for former Rams receiver Cooper Kupp joining Seattle in free agency, and for as much hype as there is around rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo, JSN finished with the Lions share of Darnold’s targets (13) and yards (124). The next closest pass catcher – Kupp – finished with just 15.

• 2. Seattle’s got a formula that could work, but it can’t afford many mistakes.

Run the ball, let Sam Darnold do just enough, win the turnover battle, take an occasional deep shot, and win the game with an elite defense. That’s the secret sauce for Seattle this season.

For a minute, it looked like it could work. The defense allowed a touchdown from the 49ers early – a tough matchup for Ty Okada, in for an injured Nick Emmanwori, against tight end George Kittle – but for most of three quarters afterward they were held out of the end zone.

Cornerback Riq Woolen saved a touchdown getting the tips of his fingers on the ball in the right corner of the end zone. But Woolen got beat late in the fourth quarter, hesitating long enough in coverage to let Ricky Pearsall gain a step on him and haul in a 45-yard pass from Brock Purdy.

The lesson from this one? Limit explosives. Both 49ers touchdowns were wins by the tight ends (including a phenomenal catch by Jake Tonges); the real issue was two deep completions on the scoring drives. Both 49ers touchdown plays were snapped deep in the red zone and were for completions of under 5 yards, but those two deep shots to Ricky Pearsall (one in the first quarter for 25 yards and the fourth-quarter shot against Woolen) made the difference.

There was a lot to like otherwise. Ernest Jones had a leaping interception. Josh Jobe accounted for another. Julian Love plowed past lineman to block a field goal attempt and sacked Purdy for a loss of 12 yards.

Jobe takes what you give him. 🤷

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/XsmzXJayJ8

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) September 7, 2025

If there’s a silver lining to take from a loss, it’s that the foundation of Seattle’s defense looks quite promising. But you’re always playing a tricky game when you’re counting on one side of the ball to set the tone and carry the load. The defense won’t need to be perfect, but it’ll need to be close, and Seattle saw how much a handful of mistakes cost them Sunday.

• 3. Notable Numbers: Time of possession, third downs, and a key for Week 2.

Seattle lost the time of possession battle 22:02 to 37:58 and converted just 30% of third down attempts, undoubtedly a massive factor in their failure to establish much of a rhythm.

Ball security, always an emphasis, will at least be a talking point for critics ahead of Week 2. The Seahawks fumbled the ball three times and lost two of those, the latter costing them the game.

If you were wondering, the Steelers defense (Seattle’s Week 2 opponent) finished fourth in pressure percentage and, why yes… Pittsburgh did finish first in forced fumbles (tied with the Eagles).

Injury Update: Latest on Seahawks rookie safety Emmanwori

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