O how sweet it must be for the Seahawks to finally pull one out on the road, a long way on the road in fact. Russell Wilson throws 2 interceptions, despite having perhaps his best passing performance of his brief pro career. The Seahawks started the game quickly on defense, forcing the Panthers to go three and out, then Wilson did as he has become accustomed to, throwing accurate and often early in the game. He has created a trend of hitting Sidney Rice early on crossing patterns to start games and develop a certain throwing rhythm to start. However, it's the penalties again that became a huge Achilles heel for this Seahawks offensive unit. It seems like each time that Wilson and the offense get on a roll, someone takes the air out of them with an infraction killing drives and potential scoring opportunities.
The Legion of Boom has been like old faithful, always glowing brightly and reliable week in and week out. The Seahawks defensive line and linebackers stuffed the Panthers running game and completely neutralized all of the natural talents of last year's offensive rookie of the year,Cam Newton. The "Clark Kent/Superman" wannabe was more like Pee-Wee Herman today, showing little of the natural athletic talent that he showcased in 2011 and of course 2010 when he collected the most prestigious trophy in college football. The Heisman recipient looked confused and rattled through much of the game and not once was he able to do his touchdown celebration pose. Truth be it said, Russell Wilson outplayed Newton and despite throwing two pics (one a deflection) Wilson remained positive, energetic and every bit the leader that he has been throughout his football career.
Seattle was fortunate to leave Charlotte with a victory. Particularly when you examine the penalties that the Seahawks committed and when. It's not always how many penalties a team gets, but Seattle seems to have a natural proclivity for committing costly penalties on plays that killed drives and scoring opportunities. Today, Russell Wilson launched a picture perfect pass 59 yards down inside the red zone of the Panthers, landing right in the arms of Golden Tate who pulled in the bomb and landing four yards shy of Carolinas goal line. But then, the O' so familiar yellow box appeared on my television and the Panthers fans began to make noise (a little). Then, the official flipped on his belt mic and pointed toward Seattle's offense and said, "Holding. Offense. Ten yard penalty." This negated Russell Wilson's deepest completed pass of the season and, again, killed Seattle's momentum. Breno Giacomini is one tough hombre, although I'm not quite sure why Marshawn Lynch calls him the "Big Russian", but then again, I'm not sure why Lynch does anything. He's a bit odd, but as long as he keeps trading touchdowns for skittles bite sized candy, he can call Seattle's right tackle anything he wants. Breno was already on Pete Carroll's poop list for so many unforced errors culminating into unnecessary penalties. Carroll has said that he likes Breno's toughness and competitiveness, but his penalties are holding back Seattle's already anemic offense and it has to stop. Well, it didn't stop and one more untimely unnecessary roughness penalty happened again and Carroll had seen enough for a while. Giacomini was pulled and sent to Seattle's bench to think about things for a while and Frank Omiyale took over for a couple of series. Pete Carroll made his way over to the bench to talk to the Big Russian and looked relatively calm about the whole thing. Breno returned to right tackle and managed to stay penalty free throughout the remainder of the game, but those untimely penalties are notably hurting Seattle's ability to build momentum.
One of the more interesting matchups on Sunday was Carolina's wide receiver Steve Smith and Seahawks left corner, Richard Sherman. The two looked more like Roman Greco wrestlers than they did receiver and defensive back. Surprisingly, there wasn't a single personal foul between them, but you can't blame them for trying. Sherman made the all Pro receiver insignificant throughout the game. Smith's frustration was obvious and he seemed to lose his cool several times in the first and second half. The Seahawks entire defense was dominant throughout the game. It seemed that every defensive player made a significant flight in this game. First-round draft selection, Bruce Irvin, not only logged another sack, he also created a turnover slapping the ball from Cam Newton's hand before he was able to throw the ball from the pocket, and the Seahawks recovered the fumble. Jason Jones also had a stellar performance, hurrying Newton on practically every passing play. Chris Clemons and Alan Branch both recorded sacks, but it was the pressure all day that kept Newton from getting anything done. A combination of tipped passes, hurried passes and getting hammered while throwing the football each time had the Panthers quarterback frustrated and hiding underneath a towel on the sidelines after each of Carolina's offensive series. He looked like anything but a leader of an NFL offensive unit. In contrast, Russell Wilson never once looked defeated even after his two interceptions or the two times he was sacked. Each time he popped up from the ground and hustled back to the huddle or sidelines and began preparing for his next opportunity to make a play. This is why Wilson inspires me to watch Seahawks football. It's the little things that he does that make me want to watch him play. It's the enthusiasm he has about an opportunity that few ever see in their lifetimes, 10 lifetimes. These are the traits that will keep Wilson on the field and starting instead of Matt Flynn who has done nothing but play well when given the chance. Wilson just makes it nearly impossible for a coach to pull them out of the game. I still believe that Russell Wilson can be a very effective quarterback in this league and not just running around and making plays with his legs. I believe once the Seahawks saw around him with wide receivers who can create separation from defenders and once Pete Carroll and Daryl Bevell open up the playbook for him, he will be exactly what the Seahawks need to succeed. It just takes time and hopefully RWIII will earn that trust and provide him with a better wide receiver corps to throw to.
Golden Tate looked good in a limited number of touches that he had in this game. He caught the 59 yard pass negated by the holding penalty, and he also caught the touchdown pass from Wilson, the teams only touchdown, and Steven Huachuca kicked three field goals. Next week, Seattle must score more than they did in any of their previous games. They play the New England Patriots and I can almost guarantee that feature Hall of Fame cornerback Tom Brady won't lay an egg the way that Cam Newton did today. I believe Seattle will need 28 points next week to beat the Patriots, but they will have their most valuable asset on the sidelines… The 12th man will be a rare form, I'm sure after watching the Hawks win their first game on the road this season will stoke the coals under a fire waiting to become a blazing inferno at Centurylink. Should be fun for the Seattle fans. Go Hawks!
