Three instant impressions after the Seahawks pull away in the fourth quarter and pick up their first win of the season with a 31-17 win over Pittsburgh:
Third-and-nine
Sam Darnold will get some deserved criticism for throwing two interceptions in the first half and some of the offensive inconsistency. But his play on third-and-9 midway through the fourth quarter was among the most important of any made in his second career game with the Seahawks.
Darnold deftly spun away from an inside blitz as Patrick Queen sprinted untouched up the middle. Escaping the sack was one thing. But Darnold kept his composure and hit AJ Barner for a 19-yard completion to pick up the first down. On the next play, Darnold used play action and connected with Jaxon Smith-Njigba for 43 yards down to the Pittsburgh 10 and the drive eventually ended with Kenneth Walker III’s clinching 19-yard touchdown.
Darnold finished 22 of 33 for 295 yards, and while the two interceptions put a dower on his final stat line, the overall performance was precisely what the Seahawks need from their quarterback.
K9, JSN and Coop
Week 1 was Smith-Njigba and not much else offensively. Cooper Kupp was barely a factor. Walker couldn’t get started.
Week 2 was more of what the Seahawks want in offensive balance. Walker rushed for 105 yards on just 13 carries, averaging 8.1 yards per attempt. Walker eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the first time since Week 1 of last season when he rushed for 103 yards against Denver. Per NFL NextGenStats, 97 of Walker’s rushing yards came while running to the left, including his 19-yard TD on third-and-goal that pushed him over the century mark.
Darnold also was able to get Kupp involved after he had just two catches for 15 yards in the opener. Kupp had seven receptions for 90 yards, all but one of those coming in the first three quarters.
And Smith-Njigba continued to be Darnold’s favorite target. His day was without any big plays until hauling in the 43-yard pass that set up Seattle’s final touchdown. It’s the second time in his young career that Smith-Njigba has posted back-to-back games with 100 yards receiving.
Held to 17
For the second straight week, the Seahawks defense held an opponent to 17 points, forced a pair turnovers, sacked Aaron Rodgers three times and held the Steelers to just 3.4 yards per rush.
Derion Kendrick provided one of the big moments of the game, intercepting Rodgers in the end zone on a deflected pass in the third quarter when it was still a 14-14 game. Coby Bryant provided another pick in the closing minutes. It’s clearly a good sign that the Seahawks have come up with four interceptions in two games.
It was also another good game for the defensive front in creating pressure on the opposing quarterback. Byron Murphy II had one of the best games of his young career with five tackles, 1½ sacks and three quarterback hits.
Lastly, Riq Woolen deserves some recognition. He committed a bad defensive holding penalty on a third down in the first half that helped lead to a Pittsburgh field goal. But his hustle was also responsible for chasing down Jaylen Warren on a 65-yard catch-and-run in the third quarter and stopping him at the Seattle 5. It became a huge hustle play as Kendrick made the interception three plays later.
Bonus impression
Know the rules, kids. The mistake by Pittsburgh rookie Kaleb Johnson letting the kickoff bounce into the end zone without covering it and watching George Holani fall on it for a touchdown was a game-changing moment. Kudos on Holani for not letting up and immediately going after the loose football. Kudos on the Seahawks for closing out the game from there after taking a 10-point lead.