Mike Macdonald was furious. His defense played a game so bad that records were set. They simply could not get off the field as the opposing play caller was dialing up the perfect play time after time. Questions started being asked about whether Macdonald and his defense were just feasting off inferior competition before this game. The date was September 18th, 2022. Mike McDaniel and the Miami Dolphins had just completed a historic comeback against the Baltimore Ravens. Miami trailed 28-7 at halftime before scoring 35 points in the second half (28 in the 4th quarter) for a 42-38 win. It was Macdonald’s second game as a defensive coordinator. His defense had dominated a bad Jets offense the first week, but face-planted against their first quality offense. A game like that can sink a young coach. It did not sink Macdonald.
The Dolphins faced Macdonald’s defenses in each of the next two seasons. They never scored more than 19 points. He would later talk about the lessons learned in that game and how he worked with his players to start correcting the mistakes. That defense would take a few more licks early in the season before finishing as the 8th-ranked DVOA unit in the NFL.
Detroit represented a terrific early test for the Seahawks. They are true Super Bowl contenders, and were playing at home in a game they needed to win or risk falling two games behind another NFC competitor and losing the tiebreaker. The Lions had lost six straight to the Seahawks, 9 out of 10, and the last two on their home field. This game was circled on the schedule for the Lions and their fans. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson emptied his clip, holding nothing back.
The Seahawks defense was not up to the task. They were humbled. Yes, there were injuries to many of their best defenders, but this Lions offensive performance had the feeling of one that might have been destined to happen no matter who Seattle had on their side of the field. Even if the injuries were a major factor, the more productive conclusion is that the Seahawks defense was nowhere near good enough. You can be sure that was Macdonald’s perspective.
He was seething in his postgame press conference. I have seen him boiling after a bad defensive day during training camp. He has no tolerance for undisciplined and porous defense, and takes little solace in good offense when his defense does not meet his bar.
That intensity is what helped him grind through the early bumps with the Ravens and ultimately erect the best defense in football. It will serve him well hear as well.
To their credit, Seahawks players have responded when Macdonald has left a practice unhappy. Some of their best days during camp came after the offense had their way the day before.
A guy like Devon Witherspoon exit this game as a problem instead of the solution for the first time in his career. He and every other Seahawks defender had the plane flight back to reflect on what went wrong before needing to flush it and move on to their next opponent. Witherspoon seems like a guy who will use this as fuel to improve his play. His team needs him to be more impactful.
Some fans have had a far more negative response to this game than feel warranted. Here are some of the key questions Seattle faced coming into this one:
- Can the Seahawks slow down the Lions run game without two of their three best defensive tackles and two best edge run defenders?
- Can the Seahawks get pressure on Jared Goff without their best pass rushers?
- Can Macdonald confuse Goff and create turnovers?
- Can the offensive line keep Aidan Hutchinson from dominating?
- Can the Seahawks get any amount of run game themselves against a dominant Lions run defense?
- Is Kenneth Walker III really a difference maker in this offense or was week one an illusion?
- Can Ryan Grubb, Geno Smith, and this offense go toe-to-toe with one of the best offenses in football while facing a top defense?
They exit with a mixed scorecard:
X Can the Seahawks slow down the Lions run game without two of their three best defensive tackles and two best edge run defenders?
X Can the Seahawks get pressure on Jared Goff without their best pass rushers?
X Can Macdonald confuse Goff and create turnovers?
✔ Can the offensive line keep Aidan Hutchinson from dominating?
✔ Can the Seahawks get any amount of run game themselves against a dominant Lions run defense?
✔ Is Kenneth Walker III really a difference maker in this offense or was week one an illusion?
✔ Can Ryan Grubb, Geno Smith, and this offense go toe-to-toe with one of the best offenses in football while facing a top defense?
They also exit with answers to questions they did not anticipate, like how would this team respond to getting punched in the mouth and finding themselves down 14-0 in a hostile environment.
The offense was brilliant in this game. Geno Smith played at an MVP level for the second time in four games. He set career highs in passing yards, completions and attempts. He repeatedly led the team back from the brink, and if not for some questionable penalties (and non-penalties), he very well might have tied this one.
The game turned early when the Seahawks were driving and Metcalf fumbled while fighting for extra yards. This has been an issue for Metcalf throughout his career. You love to see the effort. He needs to be mindful of how he is protecting the ball in those moments, and avoid letting the ball stretch away from his body.
That turnover left the Seahawks playing catch-up all night and might have been the difference in a game where both offenses were nearly flawless.
Smith and the offense responded with a gutsy 70-yard touchdown drive. The Lions punched right back to take a 21-7 lead that would be the score at halftime. Then the third quarter happened.
Seattle got the ball to start the half and quickly found themselves in a 4th and 1 at their own 34-yard line. Lots of coaches would punt in that situation. They would explain that there was plenty of time left and that they were going to count on their defense to get the ball back. Not Macdonald.
The Seahawks went for it without hesitation, and converted. They would finish the drive with A.J. Barner’s first NFL touchdown, and it seemed like “Game on.” The Lions scored immediately after a series of broken tackles by David Montgomery on a 40-yard pass play.
Again, on the edge of a blowout, Seattle punched back. Walker broke away for 28 yards on the first play of the next drive and Smith would help the team convert a 3rd and 8 and recover from a 6-yard loss by Walker to throw a dart to Tyler Lockett for 29 yards. Walker finished off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown.
Detroit needed only one play to put Seattle back into the corner with a 70-yard busted coverage touchdown.
Every possession in the 3rd quarter resulted in a touchdown. The only one that did not was a Seahawks possession that bridged into the 4th quarter and also resulted in a touchdown.
Seattle impressed not only with responding to scoreboard adversity, but by overcoming long yardage situations multiple times. They had a brilliant play on a 3rd and 16 that saw Jaxon Smith-Njigba streak across the field behind blockers before throwing the ball backwards at least 10 yards to the sideline where Zach Charbonnet was waiting to race past the first down marker. They had the big completion to Lockett mentioned earlier, an 18-yard tunnel screen to Laviska Shenault Jr. on a 2nd and 14, a 13-yard completion to Walker on 2nd and 12.
In all, they had 9 plays where they were behind the sticks (11+ yards to go), and converted a remarkable 44% of them for first downs. That is unheard of. It certainly was not something that happened under Shane Waldron, who managed just a 10.2% conversion rate on those plays over the past two seasons (24th in the NFL).
We also saw Metcalf add more proof that he is now someone who can use his strength to make contested catches and bully opponents on the way to his third straight 100-yard receiving game for the first time in his career. Walker performed a backflip while being tackled to gain a first down. He was electric. Smith-Njigba was great all night making tough catches and getting yards after the catch. Noah Fant and Barner had nice moments.
Maybe most importantly, the offensive line did enough to make it all possible. This was not game film you will want to send to Canton, but there were very few moments of unavoidable pressure or breakdowns. There were also fewer penalties.
Christian Haynes rotated with Anthony Bradford and both players appeared to play decently. Stone Forsythe had a very tough test against the NFL sack leader and held him without a sack for the first time this season. Yes, he had help, but so did other guys who have faced Hutchinson this year.
Seattle had huge chunk plays on the ground and in the air. This is what is possible with just mediocre levels of offensive line performance. Smith is playing so well that all but the most instant breakdowns can be overcome.
We now enter the window where we find out if Abe Lucas will start practicing with the team. Jerrick Reed and Cameron Young are also available to come off the PUP list. Reed seems ready to go and could be a boost on special teams and in the safety room where Coby Bryant appeared to struggle in this one.
The Lions deserve every bit of shine thrown their way for the way their offense played. That should not take anything away from what Smith and Grubb and crew did on the same field. I guarantee you there will be a ton of “second look” studies of just how well Seattle played on offense.
The lazy take will be that the Seahawks defense was a mirage after facing bad competition and wilting against their first real offense. I would argue the Seahawks left this game with a higher ceiling, not a lower one.
This team was always going to be limited by how functional their offense could be due to a suspect offensive line. The way the offense performed against a Super Bowl contender with all the adversity they faced puts them in a new tier. Detroit is thrilled with their win, but you can bet they want no part of Seattle at full strength come playoff time.
The Lions have been building for years. They have an identity. This season is a culmination of many years of work. Seattle is in the early stages of finding out who they are. Their defense was rocked back on their heels. It would be a shock if Macdonald lets them fall. Getting his starting defensive line back would help.
Seattle faces a pivotal stretch of two more games in the next 10 days, with one of them being a Thursday night game against the 49ers. There is no time to stew about how things went against Detroit. You can tell a lot about a fighter by how they respond to tasting their own bloodied lip. The Seahawks offense fought back time and again. Look for the defense to regain their footing and help everyone see what this team looks like when they fight with both hands.
