Seahawks’ defense pitches shutout in Kam Chancellor’s return

Kam Chancellor shot through the line of scrimmage, hit the ball-carrier in the backfield and slammed him to the CenturyLink Field turf. The first play of his first game back with the Seahawks didn’t even count, blown dead by a delay-of-game penalty before it even started. But it nonetheless made the desired statement.

“I wanted the first tackle to be an, ‘I’m back,'” Chancellor said after the Seahawks’ 26-0 win over Chicago. “So it felt good to get my hands on him and throw him down as hard as I could.”

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Chancellor’s return to the field from a protracted holdout coincided with a return to form for the rest of Seattle’s defense, which on Sunday looked more like the group that allowed the fewest points in the league in each of the past three seasons than the one that had a hard time stopping the run, limiting big plays and holding late leads during the team’s 0-2 start.

Seattle’s defense was every bit as dominant as it was expected to be given the matchup. Chicago’s offense entered the game in complete disarray, missing its starting quarterback and its top two wide receivers while playing with a line considered to be among the worst in the league.

But regardless of the qualifiers, Seattle’s defense got back on track following a pair of unfamiliar performances to start to the season. The Seahawks allowed 11 passing plays of at least 20 yards over the first two games, which was more than a third of what they allowed all of last season. They were gashed by Green Bay’s backup running back and had an even harder time with St. Louis’ third-stringer. And they lost fourth-quarter leads in both games, missing the finishing touch that had been one of their defense’s hallmarks the last few seasons.

Sunday’s performance was much more familiar. Seattle held the Bears to 146 total yards, forced punts on all 10 of their possessions and allowed Chicago to run only two offensive plays on the Seahawks’ side of the field. By the time it was over, first-year coordinator Kris Richard was wiping ice-cold Gatorade off his face after being given the celebratory shower from Chancellor and cornerback Richard Sherman.

“That’s the defense you know and love,” said defensive lineman Michael Bennett.

The shutout was Seattle’s first since a 23-0 win over the Giants in Week 15 of the 2013 season.

“It’s so hard in this league to hold somebody to no points,” coach Pete Carroll said. “That’s a fantastic job by our defense today, and I’m really proud of those guys and they had a lot of fun with it all.”

Especially Chancellor, who returned to the team on Wednesday from a holdout that lasted more than seven weeks and was difficult for all involved. He was greeted with loud cheers during pregame introductions – which was “very warming,” he said – and was given a few plays off as the team wanted to limit his workload considering how he was coming off such an extended absence.

Chancellor, who was credited with one tackle, said afterward that he had enough energy to play another game.

“It felt good. It felt normal,” he said. “I was out there playing with my brothers, running around, making plays, making hits, making tackles. It felt good to get back into it again.”

It would be an oversimplification to say that Chancellor’s return on Sunday was the difference for Seattle’s defense. But it was certainly one of them.

“He did have an impact. We could feel it during the week,” Carroll said. “The guys were excited to play with him again and he was really excited to be back and playing with his teammates. We talked throughout the game and throughout the week, too, on the back and forth of what it felt like. He was very comfortable, and they were comfortable with him coming back.

“You can just see that he made us whole, kind of. He’s a terrific football player and he had a special impact, and what more can you do? We shut them out, and we’re really happy about that.”

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