Halftime Observations: Hindered By Special Teams Miscues, Seahawks Trail Bears 17-0
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Producing only five first downs during seven offensive possessions and struggling to function on special teams, the Seahawks were blanked in the first half of their second preseason game and headed to the locker room trailing the Bears 17-0 at Lumen Field.
Receiving his second straight start with Drew Lock out due to COVID, Geno Smith completed 10 out of 18 passes for 112 yards and a 74.3 passer rating. Travis Homer paced the ground game with 46 yards on three carries, while safety Josh Jones led the defense with five tackles and a tackle for loss.
Here's four quick observations from the first half:
1. Pass protection held up well in front of Geno Smith for most of the half, but the Seahawks offense couldn't find any rhythm.
In the first two quarters of play, the Bears only hit Smith twice and sacked him once and the veteran signal caller consistently had time to operate in the pocket. But unfortunately, his receivers let him down on numerous occasions, including a bad third down drop by Freddie Swain on Seattle's opening drive that forced a Michael Dickson punt. He missed on a few throws he would like to have back as well. Penalties didn't help the offense find traction either, as rookie tackle Charles Cross was flagged three times alone and the Seahawks were flagged six times for 49 yards. Add in Smith's "team" sack after tripping over running back Travis Homer, and it's not a surprise the unit produced only 151 yards, converted one out of seven third downs, and scored zero points in the first two quarters. Playing better than his numbers indicate, Smith did complete a 41-yard strike on a vertical route to receiver Penny Hart and threw for 112 yards on 10 completions.
2. Missed tackles continue to plague Seattle's defense during exhibition play.
In an era where players rarely practice actual tackling during training camp, it's not abnormal for teams to struggle bringing down ball carriers in exhibition games in August. But after nearly amassing 30 missed tackles as a team in Pittsburgh on Saturday, the Seahawks have shown minimal improvement in this area in their second dress rehearsal. Safety Marquise Blair, who started in the place of Jamal Adams, missed four tackles in the first quarter alone. Rookie linebacker Joel Dublanko left a pair of tackles on the field as well, while poor pursuit angles on a long punt return by Velus Jones doomed Seattle in the first quarter and led to a touchdown pass by Trevor Siemien. Not all was bad in regard to tackling, however, as cornerback Mike Jackson made several nice stops stopping screens and run plays, further improving his odds of making the 53-man roster. Rookie Tariq Woolen also registered two tackles and a quarterback hit after a rough debut in the tackling department.
3. Atrocious special teams play proved instrumental in heading to the locker room down multiple scores.
Over the past few years, the Seahawks have boasted one of the better special teams units in the league under the coaching of Larry Izzo. But Thursday has been a rough evening in this phase of the game so far. After they went three-and-out on their second possession, linebacker Joel Iyiegbuyniwe took a poor angle trying to tackle Jones, allowing the speedy rookie to rocket past him. Rookie receiver Dareke Young got sealed towards the sideline, springing Jones for a 48-yard return down to the Seahawks 33-yard line. Later in the half, moments after Smith threw a dime to Hart to push Seattle deep into Chicago territory, Jason Myers had his 47-yard field goal attempt tail wide right, leaving his team empty-handed and still with a bagel on the scoreboard. Capping off a comedy of errors, with just 33 seconds left in the half, Cade Johnson muffed a punt and the Bears recovered the ball in the end zone for a gift-wrapped touchdown to take a 17-0 lead into the break.
4. A critical injury along the offensive line sullies any positives that emerged from the first half.
Only two plays after checking into the game for Jake Curhan at right tackle, rookie Abraham Lucas put a defender on skates and drove him back several yards before punishing him into the ground for a pancake. But unfortunately, few will remember what the former Washington State star did on that particular play because of what happened on the other side of the line. Getting his leg rolled up at the tail end of the run by DeeJay Dallas, trainers rushed to the field to attend guard Damien Lewis, who appeared to suffer a significant ankle injury. He had to be carted off with an air cast on his right leg and Phil Haynes replaced him in the lineup. If Lewis misses extended time as anticipated, that's a huge blow for Seattle's front line and the onus will fall on Haynes to prove he can be a full-time starter and play at a high level as he has throughout training camp.
If there's positive news on the injury front, Seattle did dodge a bullet after rookie Boye Mafe went in the locker room with a shoulder issue. The second-round pick returned to action and made a tackle shortly after the team listed him as questionable.
