Seahawks punter Michael Dickson jokingly named ‘honorary player of the game’

The Seattle Seahawks were without a punter for the fourth quarter.

In a roundabout way, it ended up benefiting them.

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With standout punter Michael Dickson dealing with what head coach Mike Macdonald described as back spasms, the Seahawks elected to keep their offense on the field for a fourth down inside their own 40-yard line with just under 10 minutes remaining. Seattle converted the fourth down and went on a go-ahead touchdown later in the drive that led to a 26-21 road win over the New York Jets on Sunday.

“We nominated (Dickson) as the honorary player of the game for not being available – for us having to go for it on fourth down,” Macdonald joked.

Early in the fourth quarter, the FOX broadcast showed Dickson in apparent discomfort and receiving treatment on the sideline. Shortly afterward, he came out to serve as the holder for Jason Myers’ 43-yard field-goal attempt, which New York’s lead to 21-19 with 13:11 left. But soon after that, the Seahawks listed him as questionable to return.

A few minutes later, Seattle was still trailing by two points when it faced a fourth-and-6 from its own 33-yard line. It was an obvious punting situation, but Macdonald said Dickson was unavailable and that the options were either to go for it or use Myers as the punter.

Myers was the primary punter for FCS-level Marist College in New York back in 2012, but Macdonald ultimately opted to keep his offense on the field.

“I did think about (punting with Myers), but it’s just one of those deals where it was best for us to go for it,” Macdonald said.

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The decision paid off in a major way.

Caught off-guard by the Seahawks’ decision to go for it inside their own 40-yard line, the Jets were flagged for having 12 men on the field, including a return man expecting a punt. That gave Seattle a fourth-and-1, where Geno Smith rolled out and fired a pass to DK Metcalf, who drew a pass interference penalty on little-used cornerback Qwan’tez Stiggers to earn an automatic first down.

Later in the drive, Seattle bypassed a field-goal attempt and went for it on fourth-and-inches from the New York 32. Backup running back Zach Charbonnet was initially stopped short of the first down on a run up the middle, but Jets defensive lineman Solomon Thomas was flagged for a horse-collar tackle that extended the drive.

A few plays later, Charbonnet ran for an 8-yard touchdown to cap the nine-play, 71-yard drive and give the Seahawks a 26-21 lead with 5:34 left.

“It was a great drive at the end by our offense,” Macdonald said.

Macdonald said Dickson was in “good spirits” after the game.

“They’re calling it back spasms,” Macdonald said. “… We’ve just gotta get it loosened up, I guess.”

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